Which investor replaced Rachel Elnaugh on the Dragon's Den panel in series three?

Deborah Meaden replaced Rachel Elnaugh on the Dragon's Den panel in series three.

Deborah Meaden is an English businesswoman and television personality known especially for investments in consumer, leisure and hospitality businesses. Her direct questioning and emphasis on commercial fundamentals became a defining part of her role on the programme.

Rachel Elnaugh was one of the original Dragons and appeared in the first two series. When Elnaugh left the panel, Meaden took her place in series three. This was an important early change because Meaden went on to become one of the longest-serving and most recognisable investors in the British edition.

The two women are sometimes confused because both were prominent female Dragons in the programme’s early history. The sequence is clear, however: Elnaugh was an original investor, while Meaden joined for the third series as her replacement.