The BBC’s UK version of Dragon’s Den first premiered in 2005.
The programme debuted on BBC Two as a British adaptation of an international business-reality format. Entrepreneurs enter the studio to present a company, product or business idea to a panel of wealthy investors, known as the Dragons.
Dragon’s Den is based on the Japanese television format Money Tigers, which began in 2001. The British adaptation became one of the BBC’s longest-running factual entertainment programmes, combining investment pitches with negotiation and business advice.
The show’s title uses the plural possessive “Dragons’,” referring to the panel collectively. It is sometimes confused with similarly named international versions, but this question concerns the original UK adaptation broadcast by the BBC.