The British TV programme Dragons' Den first premiered on BBC Two in 2005.
The UK adaptation brought entrepreneurs before wealthy investors, known as Dragons, who could offer money in exchange for a stake in their businesses. Its format was adapted from the Japanese programme Money Tigers and became one of the BBC's most recognisable factual-entertainment series.
The first UK series established the central conventions still associated with the programme: entrepreneurs deliver a presentation, answer questions about their finances, and negotiate directly with the panel. A contestant receives an investment only if a Dragon makes an offer and the deal proceeds beyond the televised negotiation.
The programme is sometimes confused with Shark Tank, the US adaptation of the same international format. Shark Tank premiered later, in 2009, while the British Dragons' Den began in 2005.