Deborah Meaden is one of the most well-known Dragons’ Den investors, but the star confessed on Wednesday that she almost rejected down the job entirely.
The 64-year-old entrepreneur revealed on Loose Women’s midweek episode that she was first hesitant about being in the spotlight, but now likes being accosted in the street.
Deborah has been a regular on the iconic BBC show since 2006, and the Den simply wouldn’t be the same without her.
Deborah said on Wednesday, ‘I actually turned it down three times. “No, I don’t want to be in the spotlight,” I responded.
The star added: ‘But actually, I don’t mind people approaching me in the street because they’re talking about the thing I love and they’re having a go. They’re not sitting on their sofas thinking, “oh, I’ve got a great idea”.’
Deborah replied, ‘Every time!’ when asked if people actually pitch her in the street.
Deborah also stated that she has no plans to leave Dragons’ Den anytime soon.
When asked whether she still loves being on the show, she enthusiastically replied: ‘Every year I think, “is this my last series?” And I sit in that chair and I get excited.’
Deborah’s debut on Loose Women came after she said that people can’t believe their eyes when they see her in thrift stores.
‘I buy second-hand clothes. People do double-takes when they see me in charity shops.’
‘Now, everybody in the Den talks about sustainability, which pleases me,’ she added to The Mirror.
Deborah recently warned others to be alert of changes in their bodies after neglecting the warning signals before being diagnosed with skin cancer.
She noticed a difference in her skin while getting her make-up done for Dragons’ Den more than seven years ago, and the timing couldn’t have been better.
‘I was filming Dragon’s Den, and I don’t get spots, but my make-up artist had noticed what looked like a [tiny little] whitehead that had been on my face for probably about six weeks,’ Deborah explained.
‘She kept saying, “That’s not right, Deborah”, and I thought, “OK that’s really weird, I don’t usually get spots”. I was going off to Africa and I thought, before I go, I just need to get that checked out.’
Deborah said to Vogue Williams on the Taboo Talk podcast that she then submitted a photo of the area to her doctor, who informed her that ‘it may be something, it might not, but it could be something’.