Which investor joined the regular panel of the UK series Dragon's Den in 2006?

Deborah Meaden joined the regular panel of the UK series Dragon's Den in 2006.

Meaden is an English businesswoman and investor with experience in leisure, tourism and retail. She became one of the programme's most recognisable Dragons after joining during its early years, and she has remained strongly associated with the series in public discussion.

Her investment style is often linked with careful attention to sales, margins, ownership percentages and whether a business can expand. Those questions reflect the central financial tension in Dragon's Den: entrepreneurs want capital and expertise, while investors seek a stake that matches the risk and potential return.

Meaden joined after the original 2005 panel, so she was not one of the first five Dragons. She is also distinct from later female investors such as Kelly Hoppen and Sara Davies, whose arrivals occurred in later series.