Gary Lineker Unveils The Box Celebrity Line-Up — Featuring A Surprise Dragons' Den Favourite
Gary Lineker has lifted the lid on The Box, revealing a 10-strong celebrity line-up ready to battle it out on his new game show.
ITV is literally putting celebrities in boxes and shipping them to a mystery location for Gary Lineker's new game show, The Box. The first 10 names are locked in, and the mix is delightfully random: TV, sport, music, and yes, even politics. The show hits ITV in 2026, so consider this your early heads-up.
What is The Box?
Think I am a Celebrity... Get Me Out of Here meets SAS: Who Dares Wins, then add bright yellow crates. Each episode drops the cast into a secret setting where they face challenges that swing from athletic to brainy to just plain ridiculous. At the end of every episode, the two weakest performers square off in something called The Duel. One stays. One goes. Very simple. Very stressful.
The first 10 heading into the Box
- Sara Davies
- Graeme Souness
- Ellie Taylor
- John Bercow
- Shakira Khan
- JB Gill
- Ranvir Singh
- Jenny Ryan
- Danny Aarons
- Joey Essex
That is an eclectic group by design. You have entertainment, sport, music, and a politician in the same sandbox. Or yellow box. You get the idea.
Lineker era, take two
This is Lineker's next big move after leaving Match of the Day and the BBC earlier this year following more than two decades fronting the show. He is also coming in hot off beating Ant & Dec at the NTAs earlier this month, which, if you follow UK TV, is not a small thing.
"From my experience, the most successful teams are built on a mix of strengths and abilities, and that is exactly what we have got with this line-up. I am excited to be on the sideline with a front row seat to see all the action unfold!"
Behind the scenes
The Box started life in Norway in January and is now coming through ITV Studios via Twofour, the production company making the UK version. Twofour's chief content officer, Dan Adamson, says the cast brings a mash-up of skills and smarts, and the fun is seeing who can climb out of their literal and metaphorical yellow box to win it all. ITV's entertainment boss Katie Rawcliffe is promising a range of reactions and strategies that should make for compulsive viewing. Translation: expect chaos, comedy, and a few surprisingly competent performances.
The Box lands on ITV in 2026. Yes, that is a wait. Consider it a slow-burn tease with a very bright color palette.