Freddie Flintoff is reportedly returning to host a full time reboot of 1980s show Bullseye after the popular game show returned for a one-off Christmas special.
The cricketing legend, 47, fronted the darts-themed show as it returned for a special one-off festive special last year to huge acclaim.
Now, Freddie is set to take on hosting duties full-time as talks are underway for Bullseye to return to TV screens permanently, according to The Sun.
The success of the Christmas special reportedly persuaded ITV bosses to revive the show, though its fate depended on whether Freddie would sign on.
A TV insider has claimed that Freddie is close to signing a deal after two months of negotiations as they credited him with the special’s success.
‘[ITV] have spent the past two months trying to convince him to take the plunge and it looks like Freddie is ready to make the commitment,’ they claimed.
Freddie Flintoff is reportedly returning to host a fulltime Bullseye reboot after the popular game show returned for a one-off Christmas special
Daily Mail has contacted ITV and Freddie’s representatives for comment.
Fans had demanded that a full series of Bullseye be commissioned after Freddie won over viewers while fronting the festive reboot of the 1980s game show.
The Christmas special, which aired on December 22, became ITV’s most-watched programme of that weekend with nearly 3.5million viewers tuning in to watch.
The format of the show sees one amateur darts player and a trivia expert go head-to-head against another team to win prizes.
It first aired on 1981 and the late Jim Bowen presented it throughout its original run until 1995.
Dave Spikey stepped into his shoes when it returned to screens for a single run of episodes in 2006, before Freddie took over for the 2024 special.
Darts champion Luke Littler also sent fans wild when he made a very special guest appearance for the Christmas special.
Ahead of the festive broadcast, Freddie said he was delighted to be on board in bringing back one of the best loved shows of the 80s and 90s.
The success of the Christmas special reportedly persuaded ITV bosses to revive the show, though its fate depended on whether Freddie would sign on
Fans demanded that a full series of Bullseye be commissioned after Freddie’s role fronting the festive reboot of the 1980s game show, which also saw Luke Littler make an appearance
The sporting icon said: ‘I love the darts and Bullseye was one of my favourite shows as a kid.
‘Can’t quite believe I’ll get to host this Christmas special. You can’t beat a bit of Bully!’
Freddie is a big fan of darts, having grown up playing the game with his friends and even holds a world record for the longest distance to throw a bullseye.
He made the record breaking attempt in 2012 as part of a Sports Relief challenge, hitting the bullseye from 5.05 metres for a Guinness World Record, before quipping: ‘You can keep your cricket. That’s a real sport right there — darts.’
He also joined Jamie Redknapp, Anthony Joshua and Tom Davis in playing darts in front of 10,000 people at Rotterdam in 2018 for a segment on his show, A League of Their Own.
In 2018, he spoke to Sky Sports about his love of darts, gushing: ‘One of the things I love about it, a lot of sports have got really professional and the public can’t identify with the players, but I think darts has kept that charm.
‘Where you see the crowds get excited and they look at the players and think, he’s just a normal guy, good at what they do.
‘And it’s got to be said, it’s one of the best atmospheres in sport. You see the crowd coming out, they’re dressed up they’ve got the signs. And the drama of it as well! Watching it live is incredible. I’ve liked darts for a long time.’
Freddie has recently returned to TV screens following his horror crash on Top Gear in 2022, which left him with severe facial injuries and several broken ribs
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Darts has seen a resurgence in popularity in recent years and it had previously been rumoured Bullseye would return with Freddie’s former Top Gear co-star Paddy McGuinness at the helm.
Freddie has recently returned to TV screens following his horror crash on Top Gear in 2022, which left him with severe facial injuries and several broken ribs.
In the shock accident, the sports star crashed in a open-topped three-wheel 130mph Morgan Super 3 car, which had no air bags.
Immediately following the accident he was faced with an ‘agonising’ 45-minute wait for the air ambulance to arrive and rush him to hospital, with the BBC later giving the presenter an apology.
Filming on Top Gear was suspended and the future of the show – which he co-hosted alongside comedian Paddy and Chris Harris – remains in question after it was put on indefinite hiatus last November.
Freddie remained out of the public eye for months as he recovered from the accident, after his devoted wife Rachael, 42, reportedly ‘begged’ him to stay off work and take time to recover.
He is believed to have secured a £9million compensation payout from the BBC following the accident. The broadcaster also made an apology to the cricketer.
The BBC have since brought him back for the new series of Freddie Flintoff’s Field of Dreams, which saw him take a group of youngsters on a cricket tour to India.
