Gary Neville has been pictured on set for next season’s Dragons Den with his ‘new bestie’ – and fellow Dragon – Sara Davies.
It was confirmed, on Tuesday, that the former Manchester United full-back will appear on the BBC’s hit TV show as a guest Dragon in the series.
Neville played more than 600 times for Manchester United in a stellar career and won eight Premier League titles, three FA Cups, three League Cups and two Champions League crowns.
The 48-year-old later moved into media work after retiring and is now a high profile and highly respected pundit and co-commentator for Sky Sports.
Neville, along with businesswoman Emma Grede, will join the 21st series of the Dragons’ Den programme, with filming currently taking place in Manchester, and the pair marked the news with a selfie together.
Gary Neville was seen with fellow Dragon Sara Davies as they filmed for the next season of the BBC’s hit TV programme
Regular Dragon Davies took to social media to insist that Neville is already ‘like one the gang’
Neville will appear as a guest Dragon for the programme’s 21st series later this year
Now, a picture of the 48-year-old on set has gone viral on social media as Neville appeared in good spirits alongside one of his new co-stars.
Davies took to Twitter to share a selfie of the two Dragons – with Neville showing off a wide smile – before claiming the former Red Devil is ‘one of the gang’.
Posting on her page, Davies wrote: ‘I’ve got a new bestie! @GNev2 He’s on set filming with us as a guest dragon for next season of Dragons’ Den (will be out early next year) but he’s already fit in like one of the gang after just one pitch!’.
Davies did a follow-up Tweet to confirm that Neville’s guest appearances wouldn’t see another Dragon get replaced and, instead, ‘a sixth chair’ will be used.
The 48-year-old moved into media work after retiring and is now a high profile and highly respected pundit and co-commentator for Sky Sports.
Speaking about the move, Neville said: ‘I am excited to join the Dragons, and to meet the entrepreneurs brave enough to face us in the Den.
‘I hope my personal journey shows that you can take the experiences you’ve had in one part of your career and use them to do something entirely different and make it a success.
‘Business is all about managing people and managing yourself and I’m looking forward to sharing my experience to help the entrepreneurs we’ll meet in the Den reach their potential.’
He also jointly owns League Two side Salford City alongside former United team-mates Ryan Giggs, Paul Scholes, Nicky Butt and brother Phil, and started out as a property developer while still playing for the Red Devils.
Neville played more than 600 times for Manchester United in a stellar career and won eight Premier League titles, three FA Cups, three League Cups and two Champions League crowns.
Neville has been heavily involved in media work since retiring from professional football
As Neville prepares to make his debut on the show, another Dragon is preparing to bow out of their role in the BBC’s hit TV show.
Steven Bartlett confirmed the news to his fans in a lengthy post on social media, where he claimed it had been an ‘honour’ to star on the show.
On his Instagram story, the 30-year-old wrote: ‘It’s not lost on me what an honour it has been to be asked to participate in this show. A 12 year old childhood dream come true! To sit between two of my childhood role models @deborahmeaden @peterionescbe has been one of the most surreal experiences of my life.
‘Thank you to @saradaviescc & @touker_suleyman too, they’ve been kind, supportive and hilarious since before I stepped on set 2-3 years ago! Dragon’s Den is an important piece of British treasure.
‘My goal is to leave this platform better than I found it so that all the kids out there that are sat watching it at home – like I was once upon a time get a valuable window into entrepreneurship that might empower them to create businesses of their own!
‘The show is thriving. Views have climbed ‘year over year’, the show is innovating, it feels fresh and the pitches are getting better and better. Hope you enjoy this season, it’s my favourite. And thanks to the BBC for having me.’
Steven Bartlett confirmed on Wednesday that he will be stepping away from the show at the end of the upcoming season
The business mogul and podcast owner took to social media to confirm that it was his ‘last day’ on set for the hit BBC TV show
That means that Neville will join the panel alongside regular Dragons Peter Jones, Deborah Meaden, Touker Suleyman and Davies.
On Neville’s addition, executive producer Samantha Davies said: ‘For the first time in the show’s 21 series there will be a sixth chair in the Den as we welcome our first guest Dragons.
‘And what better additions to our established line-up than business juggernauts Emma Grede and Gary Neville.
‘Gary is a great example of someone who took an alternative route into commerce and used his unique skillset to grow a successful portfolio of companies.
