MILLIONAIRE businessman Duncan Bannatyne is to put aspiring entrepreneurs to the test in a new BBC show.

Mr Bannatyne, who runs a string of health clubs across the North-East, will be among the judges on Dragons' Den, which starts on January 4 on BBC2.

He will join other successful business figures in assessing the merits of proposals put forward by contestants.

They will be seeking to persuade the judges that their idea or invention would be a money-spinner.

If successful, judges will invest their own cash in trying to launch the idea.

Mr Bannatyne, whose Bannatyne Fitness chain has its headquarters in Darlington, will be one of five judges on the show.

Published: 15/12/2004