
Dragons' Den star leaves fans ‘gutted' after revealing bosses ‘forced' them to axe new role away from hit BBC show
A DRAGONS' Den star has left fans feeling 'gutted' after revealing that bosses 'forced' them to axe their new role away from the hit BBC show.
Evan Davis, who hosts BBC Dragons' Den, teamed up with Bean Beanland to talk about the positives and negatives of heat pumps.
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But he has told his followers that their Happy Heat Pump Podcast will be coming to an end after only 20 episodes.
The podcast was first launched in November 2024 and growing a following of fans, with over 900 subscribers on YouTube.
However, Evan has now said the podcast will no longer produce episodes.
Posting on social media, the BBC radio host wrote: "Sorry to say that after about 20 episodes, we're drawing it to a close at the request of the BBC, which worries it may be seen as steering into areas of public controversy.
"The BBC legitimately regulates its presenters' external activities.
"And for good reason, they like us to avoid stepping into live arguments.
"Thanks to the thousands of folks who've listened. The episodes will remain online.. a great introduction to heat pumps."
His followers were shocked at the announcement and one person said: "This is shocking! I thought the move to heat pumps was inevitable so where's the controversy?"
"How the hell are heat pumps controversial? This says more about the BBC to be honest." added another.
A third exclaimed: "Controversial? Are heat pumps seen as left wing? I think this is more a reflection of the BBC than anything else."
Dragons' Den's Evan Davis reveals brutal reason he was chosen by BBC bosses to host hit show ahead of new series
While another added: "This is sad news, that the BBC seems to be scared of its own shadow.
"The only way to enable people to take an informed view on controversial matters such a net zero is to provide fact based advice.
"This podcast seems very much in keeping with those BBC values."
"The BBC kowtowing to vested interests...THAT'S the controversy. That's the bias" added another follower.
Dragons' Den stars - past and present
Dragons' Den has been on our screens since 2005 and sees entrepreneurs enter the Den to try and win investment for their businesses from the Dragons.
Over the years there have been many wealthy investors sitting in the famous seats, here's a rundown of them all and how long they were on the show for.
Peter Jones - series 1 - present
Deborah Meaden - series 3 - present
Touker Suleyman - series 13 - present
Sara Davies - series 17 - present
Steven Bartlett - series 19 - present
Duncan Bannatyne - series 1 - 12
Rachel Elnaugh - series 1 and 2
Doug Richard - series 1 and 2
Simon Woodroffe - series 1
Theo Paphitis - series 2 -10
Richard Farleigh - series 3 and 4
James Caan - series 5-8
Hilary Devey - series 9 and 10
Kelly Hoppen - series 11 and 12
Piers Linney - series 11 and 12
Nick Jenkins - series 13 and 14
Sarah Willingham - series 13 and 14
Jenny Campbell - series 15 and 16
Tej Lalvani - series 15 - 18
Emma Grede and Gary Neville were guest Dragons during series 21.
Evan's official description of the podcast on YouTube reads: "It's a UK objective to replace gas boilers over the coming two decades, with heat pumps being seen as the obvious alternative.
"It will be a massive project to change the way we heat our homes - we might be installing 25 million of these devices in the next three decades.
"So what are they? What do they cost? What are the positives and negatives of heat pumps?
"Always curious about the scale of the transition upon which we are set to embark, Evan will be looking at heat pumps in a dispassionate way, with Bean helping along the way… hoping to inform you if you're thinking of buying one.
"Or if you work in the industry, or if you are simply interested in the journey to net zero."
"Please do get in touch with any questions and we will try to answer them in future episodes happyheatpumppod@gmail.com or please leave a happy comment."
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The Guardian
31 minutes ago
- The Guardian
The radio debut of the House of Commons: ‘there could be a long-running series here' – archive, 1975
Permanent radio broadcasts from the House of Commons began on 3 April 1978, and from the House of Lords on 4 April. Television broadcasts began on 21 November 1989. 10 June 1975 Ed Boyle, the commercial radio commentator for the first broadcast of parliament, yesterday spent two hours cooped up in a tiny glass box at a temperature of nearly 90 degrees, wearing a jacket, tie, and buttoned up collar, suffering from a particularly ferocious type of dysentery which has already brought his weight down to eight stone. Just to add a touch of challenge to the job, he was operating a new type of microphone kindly supplied by the BBC with operating instructions entirely in Japanese. In spite of this, Mr Boyle and his BBC colleague, David Holmes, who were trapped together in the same tiny glass box, managed somehow to give composed and informative account of the proceedings. Mr Holmes admitted afterwards that the heat had been so great that at times he had thought he would not be able to carry on, and though listeners may have noticed his voice fading occasionally, he always remained strikingly coherent and apparently in command. Mr Boyle now intends to make a few swift changes to make life slightly more bearable. Apart from sartorial changes to Bermuda shorts, for himself, he plans to make commentating easier by fading out some members when the discussion gets too technical. 'Some of the questions are really on very minor and erudite issues, and I guess the MPs won't mind if we turn them down occasionally so as to explain to the listeners what is happening.' Yesterday the two broadcasters were blessed by a good chunk of pungent topical debates, with Tony Benn using industry questions as the chance to prove himself a good Euro-democrat, and with splendid quotations like: 'If the opposition wants any head on a charger, the leader of the Conservative party will have to be a lot more seductive as a Salome than she has been so far.' At the same time, there were highly complex questions about, for example, the funding of the new pod for the stretched version of the Rolls-Royce RB 211 – a matter of great importance, but one which cannot be explained in the few seconds between question and answer. Both commentators had to trim down their remarks to within a second or so either way: Mr Holmes reckoned that if he did not spot immediately whether the speaker was calling an MP for a supplementary or for the next question on the order paper, he would lose two of the four or five vital seconds of explaining time. Time was so tight that Mr Boyle had to make a definite policy decision to give the first name of each MP as well as his surname and party. Often their time was so limited they could only say: 'This is a question about Europe' or, 'This is about British Leyland.' Mr Holmes hopes to grab a few more seconds of talking time while MPs are laughing and cheering between answers. But both men were pleased with the way things had gone, and came out of the box easier in mind if not in body than they had been when they went in. 'What's encouraging is that it looks as if we can do a proper job without the house having to change its way of going about business or even the tempo of its debates, so no one need feel that we are interfering in any way,' said Mr Holmes. The commercial company plans to use more material than the BBC will use, with prime minister's questions live every Tuesday and Thursday, plus special debates. It will also have an hour of extracts and highlights each morning – twice as long as the BBC – with an instant feedback service from a panel of MPs who took part in the debate; and possibly a Saturday morning edition giving chunks of the week's committees. Val Arnold-Forster, our radio critic, adds: It was a lucky day for broadcasters, according to David Holmes at the end of the transmission – audibly breathing a sigh of relief. It was too, it was a well or luckily chosen parliamentary day. At first, both Holmes and his opposite number, Ed Boyle of IRN, seemed to feel a trifle defensive about parliament. Well they might, for BBC listeners anyway missed not only some of Woman's Hour and a play, but since political events always seem to invade children's entertainment, they also missed Listen with Mother. Before the actual live broadcast started, both political editors showed us round like keen members of a parent-teachers association displaying their school: eager to tell us about the hallowed tradition, the problems that the whole institution had in a changing society, and the usefulness of the work done. The leader of the house, Edward Short, appeared on both channels in his headmasterly capacity to say that this was a particularly noisy House of Commons, but he hoped that the MPs would be on their best behaviour. A bit unruly, he thought, and not only the MPs either. There would have been more room, said Mr Short, in the tiny broadcaster's box if IRN and BBC had done the decent thing and agreed to a joint transmission. Nobody need have worried: from the moment question time started we were in capable hands. Both David Holmes and Ed Boyle chipped into the debate sotto voce, to identify and give party allegiances and explanations. Both tried valiantly to feed the listener with the details that make the House of Commons come alive. 'Mr Bidwell, chairman of the Tribune Group … Mr Denis Skinner, always a lively performer … Mr Benn is smiling to himself.' But they need not really have bothered: the proceedings were jolly enough. For those of us used to hearing politicians debating cautiously in front of untried audiences or answering laboured questions and phone-ins, it was an entertaining experience to hear such skilful parliamentary technicians as Harold Wilson and Tony Benn, parrying questions, riposting, joking, and scolding. The jokes were not always very good, but that's true of other radio comedians. Perhaps the laughter and applause sometimes seemed excessive but the barbed retorts were well placed and, as in other radio shows, what seemed like impromptu repartee must have been rehearsed, if only in the bath. 'I do not require lessons in political morality from an honourable member who regularly signs the oath of allegiance and snipes continually at the royal family,' snapped Tony Benn to Willie Hamilton. The uproar which worried Edward Short was cheerful mostly. The general cosiness, which came through strikingly as everyone complimented everyone else on performances in the referendum debate, seemed as easy to grasp as the Archers: we could become as familiar with William Whitelaw's idiosyncrasies as Walter Gabriel's. Final verdict: early days yet, but there could be a compulsive, long-running series here.


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Metro
6 hours ago
- Metro
Persona 4 remake, Keeper, High On Life 2 and the best of Xbox Games Showcase
Persona 4 Revival is real! (YouTube) Microsoft's Xbox Games Showcase has revealed a host of new multiformat games, including Resonance: A Plague Tale Legacy, Super Meat Boy 3D, and Grounded 2. The June Xbox Games Showcase has been on a roll since its inception, repeatedly showing up Sony's attempts to fill the E3 gap. Even though this year is a relatively quiet one for Xbox, it was still generally more interesting than the PlayStation State of Play last week. It's still unclear if there'll be a Nintendo Direct this month, given the Switch 2 has only just launched, but there was no mention of the new console at Microsoft's event, especially when it came to Call Of Duty: Black Ops 7. Arguably the biggest reveal of the show (despite the fact it had been leaked previously) was the two new ROG Xbox Ally portable devices, but there was also plenty of other traditional news, as you can see from this bountiful selection of trailers below. The format of the Xbox Games Showcase has always been the same, with an hour or so of various different first and third party titles, followed by a 30 minute showcase of a specific game. Previously that's been Starfield and Black Ops 6, but this year it was The Outer Worlds 2, followed by a bonus 30 minutes on the newly revealed Grounded 2 – also by Obsididan Entertainment. Oh, and before you ask, Hollow Knight: Silksong was not featured, although Xbox exec Sarah Bond did mention in passing that it was still coming out this year. Although we'll believe that when we see it. Expert, exclusive gaming analysis Sign up to the GameCentral newsletter for a unique take on the week in gaming, alongside the latest reviews and more. Delivered to your inbox every Saturday morning. High On Life 2 Somewhat surprisingly, given what happened to creator Justin Roiland, there is going to be a sequel to comedy first person shooter High On Life. Roiland quit developer Squanch Games in 2023 (apart from anything he was the voice of the main character) but the sequel will carry on regardless, with the pre-rendered reveal trailer featuring a range of new weapons but surprisingly few jokes. It's actually out this winter too, for Xbox Series X/S, PlayStation 5, and PC. Resonance: A Plague Tale Legacy Leaked a few hours before the show itself, a third entry in the Plague Tale series is now confirmed for sometime next year, on Xbox Series X/S, PlayStation 5, and PC. Although the trailer makes it unclear when the game is set exactly, it apparently tells the origin story of Sophia. Although there's obviously a lot of references to the myth of Theseus and the minotaur from Ancient Greece, as well as what looks like a Roman amphitheatre. Strangely, there's no rats at all, nor any obvious sign that part of the game will be set in the modern day, which was hinted at by the ending of the previous entry. Super Meat Boy 3D One of a few genuine surprises during the showcase, there hasn't been a new Super Meat Boy game since the disastrous Super Meat Boy Forever in 2021. Developer Team Meat are back though, with a new game that is 3D in the sense of Super Mario 3D World rather than Super Mario Odyssey. It seems to have captured the look and feel of the originals perfectly, but as the previous title showed getting the right balance between difficult and head-gnawingly frustrating is not easy. It'll be out on Xbox Series X/S, PlayStation 5, and PC next year. Ninja Gaiden 4 Microsoft has long seen Ninja Gaiden as one of the few Japanese-made franchises that is inextricably linked to Xbox, despite its many multiformat releases, and they're probably right. Although the game had been revealed earlier in the year the big news here was that it's out – on Xbox Series X/S, PlayStation 5, and PC – on October 21 (the same day as Jurassic World Evolution 3, which also featured in the showcase, just in case you wanted further proof of how terrible publishers are at scheduling). Indiana Jones And The Order Of The Giants The only obvious hook for DLC in Indiana Jones And The Great Circle was a sub-villain that didn't get killed. There's no obvious sign that they're involved in this first expansion, so maybe they're being saved for the next. As it is, this is set in Rome (so expect some nods to The Last Crusade) and involves exploring the origins of the giants from the main game, possibly incorporating the secret ending from the original. Although the fact that actor Tony Todd has sadly died since then, may have changed MachineGames' plans. The DLC will be out on September 4 for Xbox Series X/S, PlayStation 5, and PC. Beast Of Reincarnation The idea of Pokémon developer Game Freak making multiformat games is not a new thing, although usually they tend to have a similarly family friendly appeal. This looks to be a more serious affair – some manner of action adventure that almost has a Soulslike feel to it. It also features robots, samurai, and a pet wolf so we're immediately interested. But if Game Freak can put out graphics like this for a side project they're going to have even less excuse if the next Pokémon game is the usual broken mess of low-tech visuals. Beast Of Reincarnation is out next year on Xbox Series X/S, PlayStation 5, and PC. Clockwork Revolution One of the longest gameplay trailers of the evening was this new action role-player from Wasteland developer inXile Entertainment. Its tone is awkwardly similar to The Outer Worlds but with a neat set of time-altering powers and lots of steampunk style gadgets and world design. It's being co-developed by new studio Shapeshifter Games, who are made up of a lot of Saints Row veterans. It's also one of the few games in the showcase that is not coming to PlayStation 5, likely because the studios are quite small and they started work on the game before Microsoft began their current multiformat policy. Grounded 2 Another genuine surprise was a sequel to Obsidian's pint-sized survival game, which will also be making heavy use of early access to evolve its design. It's the same basic idea as before – of trying to survive as one of a group of tweens shrunk to smaller than ant size – but this time in a local park instead of a back garden, plus now you can use various creepy crawlies as mounts. The original Grounded was one of the first of Microsoft's games to go multiformat (including on Switch), but the sequel will only be on Xbox Series X/S and PC, at least when it launches on Xbox Game Preview on July 29. Cronos: The New Dawn Developer Bloober Team went from zero to hero with the remake of Silent Hill 2, so if they can pull it out the bag a second time, for this new original IP, they will have established themselves as one of the most important horror game developers of the moment. Cronos seems to have something of a Dead Space vibe going on, as well as perhaps influences from Returnal, at least in terms of the story. It's due out this autumn on Xbox Series X/S, PlayStation 5, and PC. Aphelion Don't Nod's mountain climbing adventure Jusant is an underappreciated gem, so if this sci-fi adventure ends up being a spiritual successor we will be more than happy. That's certainly what it looks like, although with a less laidback atmosphere and what sounds like some considerably more dangerous monsters. It's coming to Xbox Series X/S, PlayStation 5, and PC next year. Aphelion means the point at which a planet or moon is furthest from its star, which we guess explains all the snow. There Are No Ghosts At The Grand One of the best surprises of the showcase was this bizarre new game from a previously unknown studio in Bristol, called Friday Sundae. The set-up is that you've inherited a hotel, as well as a bunch of implausible gadgets that are used to repair and prettify it and the rest of the town. However, they can also be used to bust ghosts at night, as you battle a Lovecraftian invasion. And on top of that it's a musical. It's due out next year, but only for Xbox Series X/S and PC, which implies Microsoft must have put up some of the budget. Planet Of Lana 2: Children Of The Leaf We weren't as impressed by 2023's Limbo inspired platformer Planet Of Lana as some people but there's no doubting it was a very pretty game. There's also no doubt that the sequel looks to be even prettier, especially with its new underwater sequences. Whether the gameplay and storytelling proves to be any more substantial though, remains to be seen. It'll be out on Xbox One, PlayStation 4, Nintendo Switch, Xbox Series X/S, PlayStation 5, and PC next year. At Fate's End As attractive as Planet Of Lana 2 might be, this new game from the makers of Spiritfarer looks even better, with some really gorgeous animation. We're not entirely sure what's going on with the playing cards but it's clearly not just a simple action game. If this ends up playing as good as it looks it's going to be amazing; it's out next year on Xbox Series X/S, PlayStation 5, and PC. Gears Of War: Reloaded It's already had one remaster but this new version of the first Gears of War will also be released on PlayStation 5 (but not Switch 2 – in fact, there wasn't a single game for Nintendo's new console in the whole showcase). The release date was already announced as August 26, with confirmation of 4K resolution, 120fps support, and modernised multiplayer with cross-play and cross-progression across all formats. Persona 4 Revival It's been rumoured for ages, and it's always been pretty obvious it was real, but Atlus chose the Xbox Games Showcase as the venue to announce their remake of Persona 4. Not much was shown but it seemed a pretty major glow up in terms of graphics, although it's unclear if there'll be any substantial new gameplay or story elements. There's no indication of a release date, but it'll be released on Xbox Series X/S, PlayStation 5, and PC. Invincible Vs All of a sudden, superhero themed 2D fighters are all the rage but there seems to be a gulf of difference between this, from unknown developer Quarter Up, and Marvel Tōkon: Fighting Souls from genre masters Arc System Works. Maybe it'll be good though; it certainly seems bloody enough to be authentic, although there's something a bit off about the visuals that doesn't really match the look of the show. It's out next year on Xbox Series X/S, PlayStation 5, and PC. Final Fantasy 7 Remake Intergrade and Final Fantasy 16 It was always inevitable that these two would end up on Xbox Series X/S sooner or later, but while Final Fantasy 16 is out now there's no date for Final Fantasy 7 Remake other than later this year. That practically guarantees that Rebirth, and the third game, will follow eventually. Many fans had hoped that Square Enix would announce the final chapter this month but as the Xbox Game Showcase was the last major preview event it looks like that's not going to happen. Keeper Psychonauts developer Double Fine were rumoured to be about to unveil their next game but, funnily enough, no one guessed that it would involve a sentient, preambulatory lighthouse, whose best friend is a bird. Despite the wonderfully weird visuals and fantastical designs the game is apparently set on a 'post-human' Earth and features no dialogue of any kind. We sense something of an early era Pixar vibe but it won't be long until we know for sure, as it's out on October 17, for Xbox Series X/S and PC – again, a PlayStation 5 version will probably follow later. The Outer Worlds 2 Although the 2019 original didn't seem to set the world on fire the sequel to Obsidian's satirical sci-fi role-player is looking considerably more refined. Although they've made plenty of games in their time, including this year's Avowed, we've never heard Obsidian compare one of their games quite so much to Fallout: New Vegas before. That's clearly intentional and the original certainly did have a Fallout vibe, in terms of its critique of capitalism and the hubris of humanity. It was never quite as funny as Obsidian seemed to think but it appears that aspect may also have improved in the sequel. The guns certainly have, and we really like the look of that BFG style one towards the end. The game's out on Xbox Series X/S, PlayStation 5, and PC on October 29… a week before Ninja Gaiden 4, which is just four days after Keeper. So, very impressive showcase, typically moronic release scheduling. Email gamecentral@ leave a comment below, follow us on Twitter. To submit Inbox letters and Reader's Features more easily, without the need to send an email, just use our Submit Stuff page here. For more stories like this, check our Gaming page. Arrow MORE: Best new mobile games on iOS and Android – June 2025 round-up Arrow MORE: Best of Summer Game Fest 2025 trailers – Mortal Shell 2, Game Of Thrones and more Arrow MORE: Resident Evil Requiem trailer reveals release date and new main character