Great to see Dragon's Den make a return to TV tonight with series 6. Congratulations to Hamfatter and Dance4MePromotions who both secured investments.
I have to say that the the decision to appear on a business reality show by indie band Hamfatter was a stroke of genius. Regardless of whether they got an investment or not, the 15 minutes of prime time TV would almost certainly open up a lot of doors for them. As it happened though, they had to choose between Peter Jones, Duncan and a combined offer from Theo and Deborah. Thankfully they dismissed Theo and Deborah, quite rightly too as their tinpot music download business wouldn't benefit them at all. Instead they chose Peter who can open doors at Sony. Well done, I would have done exactly the same.
As for Air Oasis, well those guys need to stick with their door-to-door Multi Level Marketing strategy. Completely hopeless. Same applies to the Layline people, I mean come on, good comedy value but a real business? I don't think so.
Finally. I thought the D4M girls were brilliant. Their business was quirky, fun and something different. Already healthy and earning decent profits it was easy to see how James and Duncan could easily, easily bring them shedloads of business from their contacts and existing businesses. For what it's worth I would have chosen those two over Theo and Peter in this instance, as I just don't see how D4M can fit into Red Letter Days. They are a corporate entertainment company, not an experience.
Anyway, great first show, roll on next week!
What I'm listening to right now: Joe - "All or Nothing"


Welcome to my blog. My name is Kieron Donoghue and I am the founder of ShareMyPlaylists.com, ContentNow.co.uk and some other stuff. I have no idea why I'm blue on this photo though but I like it!
I loved Hamfatter – They’re just the sort of band I’d love to invest in – I’d probably lose a lot of money though, as I’d invest in every band I liked the sound of, regardless of marketability.
It was really the weird and wacky pitches today, with stupid pitches for a sticky bean-bag, fence panels with photos on, a £700 dehumidifier that you drink the water from and a bedsheet with a line drawn on it, before James and Duncan finally invested in a talking tree!
Definitely one of my favourite episodes. The best moments for me were Theo telling the guy to stick to ASDA in a very cruel way and the chap from the water company asking Peter Jones how much money he had in the bank (not a great idea)!!!
Hamfatter were on GMTV this morning so things are already kicking off for them.
Hamfatter 1 min playing your music during prime time on the BBC – Brilliant way of market your band and we will properly see more bands trying next series.
D4M most defiantly for the cooperate market instead of Red letter days….. talking tree for my birthday or
Sports Car Driving Thrill, not much of a choice for me
Brilliant episode, great start to the series.
Peter Jones was desperately trying to big up the band on Radio 1 this morning, but Chris Moyles was too busy taking the mickey out of the investment and playing some other band’s awful rendition of Final Countdown. Very funny but I reckon a worthwhile investment – they just need to ensure the quality of the music is as good as the publicity they’re getting.
I thought Hamfatter came across really well last night – by far my favourite Dragon’s Den participants. Peter Jones, while the best choice for them in terms of investment, did a truly terrible job of promoting them on Radio 1 this morning – can’t believe he didn’t even know where people could download the track! Maybe he should stick to the money side of it. The song’s great though, and hopefully they’ll do well from it all.
Agreed it was a good episode indeed.
Look out for next weeks episode where my school friend Richard Mire gets torn apart by Theo.
James
Good review of the show as I missed the first part! Great to see it back although I wish it wasn’t quite so predictable. They seem to have settled into a formula where the last business up always gets the investment which spoils it a bit.
any1 else not like the guy with the cushion? i failed many times to sleep in the car so i think hes onto a winner with that thing
As an investor in start ups, watching DD fascinates me, as it surprises me each week how those pitching don’t learn from the earlier pitches…
But Hamfatter did well – they didn’t just get airtime on DD, but also on GMTV and in the press before and after the show – so great publicity – exactly what a new band needs.
Though TV dos not always guarantee success and I wonder how many businesses apply thinking it’s the best way to get started – but looking forward to the next episodes.
I thot the asda guy had a cool idea with that travel cushion n i bet he will have the last laugh like some of the others from last series