What Investment? Dragons’ Den Star Says Show ‘Paid A Pittance’ And Didn’t Pay Expenses

Entrepreneur and former Dragons’ Den star Hilary Devey has revealed that the TV show paid her a pittance, and didn’t even cover her expenses during filming. In an interview with The Telegraph, the entrepreneur said that the show paid poorly for her time on-air and the heavy filming schedule: “It’s a pittance. I can’t remember precisely but it’s something like £15,000 to do 12 episodes – and each episode means a 14/15-hour day. It doesn’t even cover your expenses. You make your money out of what you invest in.” Despite making her first million by the age of 40, the Pall-Ex founder revealed she made her worst money mistake in 2010 – by marrying her last partner property developer Philip Childs:  “The worst [money] mistake I ever made was getting married – certainly the last marriage in 2010. And I’m still paying the price for that. The divorce cost me a lot of money.” Devey blamed the divorce and personal problems on her ultimate reason for quitting the show, telling the interview: “I was filming the last series I did of Dragons’ Den during the time [my marriage broke down] which is probably one of the reasons I left the show. It was so hard to put that mask on and be filmed for 12 hours every day. I tried to focus but my mind simply was elsewhere. I felt I was doing a disservice to the BBC and the programme.” The former investor hasn’t ruled out a return to the show, but said she would wait to see who else had signed up to the programme.