’80s and ’90s Game Show Rebooted for Permanent Return

A beloved game show from the ‘80s and ‘90s is coming back for good. The Sun reports that British game show Bullseye is being rebooted at ITV. The darts-themed series initially ran from 1981 to 1995 and briefly came back in 2006 on the British free-to-air network Challenge. Bullseye aired a Christmas special last December, hosted by Freddie Flintoff, and following the success, ITV was convinced to bring it back full-time.

“This was a no-brainer for ITV but they knew that a big part of the success of the Christmas special was down to its new host,” a TV insider said. “So they’ve spent the past two months trying to convince him to take the plunge, and it looks like Freddie is ready to make the commitment.” The special wound up being ITV’s most-watched program during the week it aired, with over 3.3 million tuning in.

The late Jim Bowen served as the original host of Bullseye, with Dave Spikey taking the reins for the revived version in 2006. Flintoff, meanwhile, is no stranger to game shows, having been a presenter and participant on several game shows and other reality shows throughout the years. As of now, a premiere date has yet to be revealed for the new revival, but fans will surely be looking forward to it. Plenty of people took to social media to share their thoughts on the new Bullseye, and the consensus is that they loved it.

“This already deserves a new series commissioned,” one X user wrote. “They haven’t messed with the original format whatsoever and it shows. Flintoff absolutely class too. Get it sorted ASAP please ITV.” Meanwhile, another user wrote, “Loved the Bullseye reboot. Freddie Flintoff is a great presenter and as handsome as ever.”

Bullseye follows eight contestants as they try to hit the titular Bullseye through a series of challenging obstacles. It may just be a darts game show, but it seems to be just enough to keep viewers captivated for years and now that it’s making a comeback, who knows what kind of challenges that will be included. Considering its popularity across the pond, it’s always possible that an American version will be made in the future, but for now, those lucky enough to experience it in the UK will be more than happy to know that Bullseye will be coming back to ITV in the near future.