Who created the British television programme Dragon's Den?

The British television programme Dragon's Den was created by Nippon TV.

Nippon TV is the Japanese broadcaster associated with Money Tigers, the format that supplied the foundation for Dragon's Den. The British programme therefore has both a local production history and an international format origin: the BBC made the British version, while Nippon TV created the underlying television concept.

This distinction matters because viewers often use “created” and “produced” as if they mean the same thing. The British series was made for the UK audience by British production arrangements, but its format lineage leads back to Japan.

The concept proved highly adaptable. Different countries changed the panel names, business culture and presentation details while preserving the central pitch for equity investment. That global spread is why Dragon's Den is often discussed alongside other investor-panel programmes.