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Former England right-back Gary Neville has left many social media users upset after it was confirmed that he has joined the Dragons’ Den line-up.
Along with Emma Grede, Neville will appear as a guest judge at some point in the upcoming 21st series of the BBC show.
He’ll be hoping to invest some of his cash in the budding entrepreneurs, while resident Dragons Peter Jones, Deborah Meaden, Touker Suleiman, Sarah Davies and Steven Bartlett will join him in the den.
“It’s a pleasure to join the Dragons as a guest for the new series and to see some amazing pitches from emerging entrepreneurs from different walks of life,” Neville told the Beeb.
He added: “It was a privilege to share my knowledge and guidance with the brave entrepreneurs entering the DEN, but you will have to wait and see if I commit to an investment!”
But the move was ridiculed and criticized by many, who mocked the hypocrisy of Neville flaunting his wealth with a panel of multi-millionaires.
Gary Neville has joined the Dragons’ Den line-up
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On
Another quipped, “Socialist Gary again,” while a third simply said: “You can’t be serious,” followed by a series of laughing emojis.
“Have I woken up in an alternate universe,” wondered another while a fifth said: “Shame, I loved this show.”
There has been some support for the decision as one I feel like watching it again.”
And Neville’s new co-star Meaden praised him after the news was revealed, tweeting: “First time in @BBCDragonsden next year we have some guest dragons… first up is @GNev2 who was absolutely brilliant And he was the owner of that chair!!”
The reaction to Neville following his decision to join the Dragons’ Den line-up resulted from his frequent criticism of the Conservative government and outspoken opinions on issues such as the current cost of living crisis.
Neville has branded the Conservatives as a “cancer on the UK”, while he joined Keir Starmer’s Labor Party in January 2022.
He even appeared on stage with Starmer at the party conference in Liverpool last year, although he insisted he had “no intention” of entering the world of politics.
While he would be willing to invest thousands of pounds on the BBC, Neville has spoken publicly about his stance on issues such as nurses’ pay and the living wage in the UK.
Emma Grede (third from left) also joins Dragons’ Den as a guest dragon
BBC
Speaking on ITV before his controversial stint as part of the World Cup punditry team for Ben in Qatar last year, he said: “We should hate low pay, we should hate poor housing and working conditions .
“This is something that we can never accept in this region or in any region. And it is worth mentioning that in our own country we have a current government that is defunding railway workers, ambulance workers and, horrifyingly, nurses. She is insulting.
“So in our country we have to look at workers’ rights, but certainly wherever football goes, we have to raise workers’ rights because people have to be equal, they have to be treated equally.
“We can’t pay people very low wages to work, in accommodation that is unpleasant. With the money we have here it shouldn’t be happening, but in our own country it shouldn’t be what our nurses are having to fight for An extra pound or two pounds or so.”
