Deborah Meaden first became a Dragon in series 3 of the UK television programme Dragon's Den.
Meaden joined the investor panel after Rachel Elnaugh's departure. She became one of the programme's longest-serving and most recognisable Dragons, known for direct questioning about sales, margins, ownership and the practical route to profitability.
Before her television career, Meaden built experience in business and investment, including work connected with family enterprises and leisure businesses. Her arrival helped establish the panel combination remembered by many viewers from the programme's early years.
The series number is easy to confuse with the show's launch series because Meaden is so strongly associated with Dragon's Den. However, she was not part of the original first-series panel. This question asks when she first joined the UK programme, rather than when she made a particular investment or when she appeared in another country’s version.