Peter Jones remained the only original Dragon's Den investor to appear in every series through the show's early history.
Jones joined the original panel when the British series launched in 2005. He is an entrepreneur and investor whose business interests have included mobile phones, technology, media and property. His continued presence made him a familiar link between the programme's original panel and later line-ups.
The other original investors had shorter runs. Duncan Bannatyne left after series 12, Rachel Elnaugh left during the early period, Doug Richard departed after the first series and Simon Woodroffe also left the panel. New Dragons subsequently brought different industries and investment styles to the programme.
This fact is sometimes confused with the claim that Jones was the longest-serving Dragon in every possible measure. Panel appearances and the number of series are related but not identical when guest appearances, special episodes and changes in the programme's format are counted.