Entertainment
Dragons’ Den: Steven Bartlett makes history as youngest Dragon ever on BBC series after Tej Lalvani exit
Entrepreneur and author Steven Bartlett has been announced as the newest star of Dragons’ Den, making history as the youngest Dragon ever on the BBC One show’s history.
In January this year, it was announced that Vitabiotics CEO Tej Lalvani had decided to leave Dragons’ Den after four years on the programme.
Steven, the CEO of social media marketing agency The Social Chain, a company that he set up in his bedroom in Manchester, will take Tej’s place alongside Dragons Peter Jones, Deborah Meaden, Touker Suleyman and Sara Davies.
At 28 years old, Steven will be the youngest person ever to sit in one of the Dragons’ intimidating chairs when he joins for the 19th series, which is due to start filming this summer.
After dropping out of university, Steven developed his companies The Social Chain and Media Chain when he was 22, taking his firm public five years later.
The current market valuation for his company is now more than £300million.
Steven explained that he has ‘been watching Dragons’ Den since I was 12 years old’, saying that ‘it was my first window into the real world of business and investing’.
‘It’s a tremendous honour to join the Den, hopefully representing a new generation of entrepreneurs, inspiring young and specifically under-represented entrepreneurs to follow in my footsteps,’ he said.
Six years after setting up his business, Steven left to pursue other investment opportunities.
He has also written a book titled Happy Sexy Millionaire, which he released this year, and hosts a podcast called The Diary Of A CEO.
Sarah Clay, commissioning editor for entertainment at the BBC, praised the new Dragon’s ‘unique approach to business’.
‘As well as being our youngest ever Dragon, Steven’s unique approach to business will bring a whole new dynamic to the Den,’ she said.
‘He brings a wealth of experience from the social media, technological and brand building worlds. I’m so excited to see him in the next series.’
Chi Ukairo, executive producer of Dragons’ Den at BBC Studios, added: ‘Steven is a great addition to the Den and we are all looking forward to seeing him in action when we start filming this summer.’
Dragons’ Den airs on Thursdays at 8pm on BBC One and is available on BBC iPlayer.
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