Dragons’ Den panellist Theo Paphitis has joined the board of Marvel Entertainment.

Having previously revived retail brands including Ryman the Stationer and the Contessa and La Senza lingerie chains, Paphitis will be overseeing the development of Marvel’s interests in Europe from September.

“I’ve always said that business should be fun and joining the advisory board of Marvel is certainly that,” said Paphitis. “Having loved Marvel’s comics, films and merchandise, I now find myself sharing them with my children and grandchildren.

“Although Marvel is 70 years old, it is in its infancy in most markets outside the US and UK. I’m looking forward to helping Marvel develop positive results in new territories.”

David Attenborough has a point, the Dragons certainly are a fearsome species!

Launching a new musical is a notoriously risky venture; will Kent-based theatre director and former Pebble Mill presenter Josephine Buchan hit the right note in her quest for cash? East London brothers Oliver and Toby Richmond hope there will be no stalling when they ask the Dragons to invest in their car servicing company. A former GCSE project takes centre stage when Welsh student Emily Webb asks for 75,000 pounds to take her invention to market, and Rugby duo Frank Drewett and Lawrence Webb hope a Dragon’s backing will help lift the lid on the potential of their wheelie bin accessory.

Tonight, 9PM BBC Two

Top British inventor Trevor Baylis has hit out at the producers of Dragons’ Den, saying that the show belittles entrants.

Baylis invented the clockwork radio in 1989 and has asked the BBC to show more respect to the people who put themselves forward for the show.

Speaking to the Daily Express, Baylis commented: “I’ve nothing against a television show that treats inventors with due deference and respect. But I’m afraid that appears to be the last thing on the producers’ minds.

“They seem to regard the inventors who go on the programme as nothing but gameshow contestants to be mocked and belittled by the ‘Dragons’ in the most humiliating manner.”

Everyone wants to be Simon Cowell eh?

TV’s dragon slayer Levi Roots brings carnival to the kitchen with his hot’n’spicy debut cookbook. After winning over the business minds of The Dragon’s Den with little more than a song and a smile, entrepreneur Levi Roots has since sold more than one million bottles of his delicious Reggae Reggae Sauce. Building on this success and his ever-growing popularity as a food hero, Levi Roots now has his very own cookbook!

Levi Roots’ Reggae Reggae Cookbook brings the excitement and vitality of Caribbean flavours to your own cooking. An eclectic and colourful range of recipes from simple dishes for students to fantastic feasts for friends are all accompanied by heart-warming anecdotes in Levi’s incomparable tell-it-like-it-is style. This bright and colourful book brings together influences as diverse as Jamaican folk tales, Notting Hill Carnival and the music of Bob Marley to create family-friendly food with that famous jerk kick.

Levi Roots’ Reggae Reggae Cookbook will surely add a funky beat to what you eat!Levi Roots’ Reggae Reggae Cookbook features more than 80 simple and exciting recipes such as Mash-Up Eggs, Salmon St Jago de la Vega , Guinness Punch, Rum Cake and Sweet Potato Pudding. Levi also offers a diverse range of vegetarian dishes and puts a Caribbean twist on classic European favourites such as pizza and pasta. Contents include: Everyday Caribbean Rise and Shine Reggae Flavours Carnival Sweet Satisfaction Reggae Extras

Dragons’ Den has got to be one of the best reality TV shows around and the fact that some people actually launch a decent career off the back of it (think Levi Roots of Reggae Reggae sauce and Imran Hakim of the iTeddy) makes it doubly enjoyable for me.

Series 7 of the show kicked off last week and on tonight’s episode we see the Dragons’ all standing around pounding on huge drums. I have no idea how they can make any money off this, but it does make good, visual TV.

Watch tonight’s show at 9PM on BBC Two

The panel of Theo Paphitis, James Caan, Deborah Meaden, Peter Jones and Duncan Bannatyne returns, offering entrepreneurs hope of cash investments in the difficult economic climate. Business pitches include personalised romantic novels, a scary attraction, eco-friendly patio heaters and a device to end nuisance phone calls.

This has to be the best reality TV show since The Apprentice!

Wednesday 15th July 9:00pm BBC Two

It seems that Dragon’s Den star Duncan Bannatyne is about to put his not inconsiderable knowledge of revamping businesses to the test for a new TV show.

The Virgin Media show, ‘Save Our Seaside’ does exactly what it says on the tin and Duncan will play an integral role in rescuing some of the UK’s most downtrodden seaside resorts.

A spokesman for Virgin1 told the Press Association today, “We are really excited to be working with Duncan Bannatyne on what we hope will be a series which will capture the imaginations of the British people and encourage a regeneration of our seaside attractions – which are a huge part of our heritage” said a spokesperson for Virgin1.

An expert in the Leisure industry, Duncan will visit various seaside resorts around the UK including Barry Island in the Vale of Glamorgan and ‘Westcliff Leisure Park’ in Kent. In both resorts he’ll apparently “work on the attractions” and see how flagging tourist numbers can be boosted.

Dragons’ Den judge Duncan Bannatyne has said that Prime Minister Gordon Brown should read his new book How To Be Smart With Your Money.

Bannatyne told thelondonpaper: “I think he must read this book and I’m certainly going to send him a copy. I’m actually going to see him in a couple of weeks’ time so I’ll take him a signed copy!

“Perhaps I’ll write another for him; How To Be Smart With Our Money!”

He added: “There’s a couple of ideas I’m gonna run by him, such as how banks treat small businesses.

“I know banks are suffering, but that’s their own fault, and they shouldn’t use that to whip small businesses.”

The BBC announced today the identities of two new Dragons who will preside over an online-only version of BBC Two’s Dragons’ Den.

Shaf Rasul and Julie Meyer, two highly successful entrepreneurs, will give Britain’s budding business men and woman the chance to secure up to £50,000 of investment for their ideas.

Anyone with a must-have product or top-notch business idea can visit bbc.co.uk/dragonsden to apply. The most innovative and entertaining ideas will be selected by the BBC to be pitched to the online Dragons. These encounters, capturing all the drama and tension that are the hallmark of the show, will be available exclusively online from Monday 30 March and will be updated weekly.

Dominic Byrne, newsreader from The Chris Moyles Show (BBC Radio 1), will host the online Dragons’ Den, interviewing the entrepreneurs before and after they pitch, chatting to the Dragons and finding out what goes on behind the scenes when the cameras stop rolling.

Julie Meyer is known for supporting internet and technology entrepreneurs over the past ten years in the UK, having helped UK hits like lastminute.com and WGSN secure funding, and having advised Skype and Espotting early in their development. She has backed many growing tech and media firms including SpinVox, Monitise, SliceThePie and Zopa.

She founded First Tuesday in 1998, and led a roll out of the company to include 500,000 entrepreneurs across the world, groups of which networked each first Tuesday of the month. First Tuesday was sold at the height of the market for millions. Julie founded Ariadne Capital in December 2000 and launched Entrepreneur Country, the start-up community in 2008. Julie is a World Economic Forum Global Leader for Tomorrow and an Ernst and Young Entrepreneur of the Year.

Edinburgh-based Shaf Rasul established optical-media distribution company, E-Net Computers Limited, in 2000 and it is now the largest storage media distributor in Europe and one of the biggest buyers of optical storage products in the world. As well as expanding E-Net Computers, Shaf has developed a venture capital investment portfolio, worth in the region of £30million, which focuses on property, asset management and internet technology.

Shaf Rasul said: “I have always taken an innovative approach to my business interests and it is extremely exciting to be invited to join the BBC in launching this successful show to an online audience. I am a firm believer that it is people who make a success of their business and I look forward to identifying opportunities to provide the funding and operational support to take a business to the next level.”

Julie Meyer said: “I’ve worked to demystify entrepreneur-led economic growth since I arrived in the UK ten years ago, through my businesses and my writing and speaking. The opportunity to align with Dragon’s Den interested me as continuing to peel back the onion for the mass market in terms of what it takes to build businesses is one which I couldn’t pass up.”

Dominic Byrne said: “I’m a huge fan of the TV show so to get a chance to be working on Dragons’ Den online is really exciting. I’ll be talking to all the entrepreneurs finding out how they got the idea for their invention and if they get a ‘yes’ in the den how that might change their lives. I’ll be chatting to the Dragons too and I’m hoping to have a bit of fun with them. Oh … I’d also like one of them to explain to me what a ratchet system is. No idea at the moment.”

Mario Dubois, executive producer of Dragons’ Den online, said: “We know that the Dragons’ Den brand is massively successful as a television show, it’s synonymous with original ideas generation and the world of business. The Dragons’ Den online opportunity is a significant brand extension from TV into the digital arena, which enables the audience to take part and contribute. I believe that it is a major step forward for content on the web as well as using the functionality of the web in a new and creative way.”