Frank Miller - Push the Wall
Frank Miller - Push the Wall

Headlines

Deal or No Deal Returns to ITV in November with Three Primetime Celebrity Specials

Published

on

Time For New Deals

For years, Deal or No Deal stood as a staple of daytime television in the UK. Then, all of a sudden, it was gone. The loveable Noel Edmonds and his show of numbered boxes left the Channel 4 schedule, never to return. That was, of course, until late 2023, when ITV saw an opportunity.

Riding the popularity of Stephen Mulhern as their go-to game show host, ITV tentatively revived Deal or No Deal. It landed well enough to commission a second run and a handful of celebrity specials. Now, as we approach the end of 2025, it looks as though Deal or No Deal is, once again, a firm fixture for British television…

Recapturing the Magic of the Original

Deal or No Deal would remain an instantly recognisable game show even if ITV hadn’t successfully revived it a couple of years ago. The red boxes and banker’s telephone made for a supremely simple but ridiculously tense experience for those on the show and viewers at home.

The original run of the British rendition of the show – which was based on a Dutch game show – lasted from 2005 to 2016, earning heaps of awards and, for a time, upholding some of the strongest daytime TV viewing figures around. Then, with almost 3,000 episodes in the bag, C4 pulled the plug and commissioned a farewell tour.

Deal or No Deal as a UK brand didn’t conclude in 2016, however – it just found a new home. The inherently luck-based game was seen as the perfect fit for the growing iGaming space. So, real money versions of the game and some additional variants were made. To this day, they populate the selection of games at the casino UK users can play.

As it stands, the British online casino boasts ten unique Deal or No Deal games based on the classic Channel 4 show as well as one that’s based on the US version. The most recent addition to the collection, Deal or No Deal: Banker’s Boost Jackpot King even offers the chance to win a prize that’s bigger than the top prize of the game show itself.

Keeping the Hot Streak Going on ITV

As it turns out, ITV struck gold in bringing back the classic TV game show. In January 2024, the free-to-view channel announced that the series was critically acclaimed and reached 13.7 million viewers across all devices while its stream count hit five million. This put it 38 per cent up on the slot average.

So, it was an easy call to run the show out again at the close of 2024 into 2025, and now, a third run is on the way. Stephen Mulhern will return once again to host, and the new series will once again feature celebrity specials. This time, though, the number of these will be cut from four to three.

Through to 21 November 2025, anyone can apply to feature on the upcoming series of Deal or No Deal, which is expected to start airing this November, too. So, fans don’t have long to wait for the iconic game of numbered boxes to return, but those who want a shot at the jackpot don’t have too long to apply for a spot on the show!