Andrew 'Freddie' Flintoff to present Bullseye reboot
Flintoff is hosting a Christmas special of Bullseye
- Published
Andrew 'Freddie' Flintoff will present a reboot of the darts-themed quiz show Bullseye for ITV.
The former England cricket captain and presenter has signed up for a special Christmas episode.
Flintoff, 46, said Bullseye "was one of my favourite shows as a kid" and added that he "can't quite believe" he has secured the hosting gig.
It is not yet known whether a full series has been commissioned.
Jim Bowen presented Bullseye from 1981 to 1995 - alongside mascot Bully
Bullseye was originally broadcast on ITV between 1981 and 1995, fronted by the late comedian Jim Bowen.
It features three pairs of contestants, with each team made up of one darts player and one quizzer who work together to win prizes.
The show also had a mascot called Bully, who Flintoff referenced in his hosting announcement.
"You can't beat a bit of Bully!" he said, which was also Bowen's famous catchphrase.
Bullseye often attracted audiences of 20 million during its peak, moving from an initial slot of Monday nights in 1981 to Sunday afternoons in 1982, and then to Saturday afternoons between 1993 and 1995 - when its run ended.
After eleven years off-air, the show returned for a new series in 2006 on the channel Challenge. Old episodes still air on the digital channel each evening.
Not much is known about whether the format for Bullseye will remain the same, but darts is certainly having a renaissance in 2024.
It has been helped by big personalities in the professional darts world, such as 17-year-old Luke Littler, who won the World Series of Darts finals earlier this year.
A difficult few years
Flintoff has been steadily returning to screens after recovering from an incident that occurred during filming for Top Gear in 2022.
He was left with facial and rib injuries after crashing a vehicle at the show's test track at Dunsfold Aerodrome in Surrey.
The details of what happened have not been shared in public, while the BBC has said Top Gear is being "rested" as a format for the time being.
In Flintoff's recent BBC series Field of Dreams, he said recovery had been "a lot harder than I thought" and that he was suffering with anxiety and flashbacks.
He has also made a return to cricket, joining the England coaching team for the T20 series against the West Indies, and taking on the role of head coach for the Northern Superchargers in The Hundred.