Deborah Meaden's Dragons' Den behaviour sparks outrage with fans on BBC show

23 February 2024 , 11:58

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Deborah Meaden's Dragons' Den behaviour sparks outrage with fans on BBC show

Deborah Meaden has left Dragons' Den fans fuming after she 'rejected' one of the BBC show's entrepreneurs.

Charlie from South East London was looking for investment for her recycling company, which should have been right up eco-conscious Deborah's street.

However, when the hopeful proudly admitted she had "created a new form of activism" with her high-end accessories made from recycled plastic from her local community, Deborah, 65, decided not to invest.

The multi-millionaire was initially interested in the pitch, refusing to reveal her hand until all the other Dragons had dropped out. She began by saying: "So Charlie, listen, what makes it hard is that I love [this] so much. And I think you're smart."

Deborah Meaden told the Dragons' Den hopeful she would not be investing (BBC)

But then she explained: "What I have a worry for is that in the time that you're trying to build this model, the industry is going to zoom past you because it is becoming a really big issue and I think people are beginning to see plastic as a real commodity.I mean, they get proper money for these bales of plastic so that commercialism hasn't got the conscience you've got, but it is what is going to change the world because money changes the world sadly."

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Then came the killer blow as Deborah delivered: "Unfortunately, you can hear from my language..." After the curious curveball, fellow Dragon, Steven Bartlett, couldn't believe what he was hearing and pretended to cry as he whispered "please" to the Strictly Come Dancing star as a distraught-looking Charlie also pleaded for the investment.

However, Deborah, who boasts a number of eco-friendly companies in her My Green Life portfolio, wasn't having any of it as she told The Diary Of A CEO star: "No I don't need you do it as well. Steven! For goodness sake, I'm finding this hard enough!"

Despite being full of praise for the entrepreneur, who carried on begging the star to invest, Deborah reluctantly explained: "Shut your eyes, I'm going to shut my eyes, my eyes [are shut]. I'm out!"

Charlie wanted investment for her recycling company (BBC)

Fans were fuming after the endless exchange, with one taking to X, saying: "How could you Deborah Meaden!! #dragonsden." Another raged: "All that spiel from Deborah and then she says I’m out #dragonsden." A third said: "So Deborah is only interested in saving the planet if there's money in it for her." While a fourth begged: "Aww. Come on Deborah...call her back!"

Before her pitch, Charlie told viewers: "I'm going in to get Deborah. I feel like she'd be a good laugh with a glass of wine. I just feel like all of her knowledge and all her connections I would really benefit from, yeah. That's what I'm hoping for today."

However, despite her confident presentation, the Dragons all had their doubts about how viable her product was. As the business moguls withdrew one by one, leaving only Steven and Deborah, the Diary of a CEO founder explained: "I'm out. I wish you the very best and I think you are awesome!"

Victoria Johns