ITV viewers have declared that Freddie Flintoff’s Bullseye is much better than Holly Willoughby‘s own reboot of You Bet.

The cricketing legend, 47, has has replaced original host Jim Bowen, who led the charge from 1981 to 1995, and fans claim he was ‘perfect’ and ‘a natural’ in the role following Sunday’s special one-off episode as they begged for a full series.

Meanwhile You Bet which is fronted by Holly and Stephen Mulhern and followed the darts themed game show in the schedule, was branded ‘low energy’ and a ‘waste of ITV’s money’.

Taking to X viewers wrote: ‘They did a much better job with the Bullseye reboot than You Bet, Freddie was a great choice of host’: ‘What a parcel of s**t You bet is on ITV. Back in the day, Matthew Kelly at least out some energy into it and the theme kept you engaged. Bullseye tonight on the other hand, was full of energy with Freddie, despite modernising it and they kept the theme tune, if it’s ain’t broke’.

‘Bullseye better reboot than You Bet! Kept original theme tune, had Freddie as host avoiding over used hosts ITV seem stuck using. And worked well as new Sunday night show, get it commissioned for full series give it regular Sunday slot’. ‘To be fair this Bullseye reboot is quite good, why they threw all that money at that s***e You Bet remake is a mystery’.

However some viewers were left disappointed by one aspect of Bullseye when the new opening omitted the original cartoon of Bully The Bull driving a bus.

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ITV viewers have declared that Freddie Flintoff’s Bullseye is much better than Holly Willoughby’s own reboot of You Bet

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Meanwhile You Bet which is fronted by Holly and Stephen Mulhern (C) and followed the darts themed game show in the schedule, was branded ‘low energy’ and a ‘waste of ITV’s money’

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The cricketing legend, 47, has has replaced original host Jim Bowen, who led the charge from 1981 to 1995, and fans claim he was ‘perfect’ in the role following Sunday’s one-off episode

While beloved character did appear along with the famous theme tune it instead transitioned into a contemporary song for Freddie’s entrance.

Fans complained: ‘Already ruined Bullseye with the music’: ‘No crap animated opening sequence, This has fallen at the first hurdle’: ‘One minute into the Bullseye reboot and already disappointed that the opening credits didn’t have the cow driving the bus’.

Freddie was joined on the show by 17-year-old darts sensation Luke Littler, who is currently competing in the World Darts Championship.

He was asked by the host  if he was aware of how many treble twenties he has hit in his professional career.

The darts star admitted he was uncertain, with Freddie then informing him that he has hit over seven thousand treble twenties, which prompted much applause from the crowd.

Luke was then asked to step up to the oche and, perhaps unsurprisingly, proceeded to hit three treble twenties in quick succession.

Freddie was then asked to hit the bullseye, with the former England all-rounder stating that doing so would be his finest sporting achievement.

After being given ten seconds to try and hit the bullseye, the cricket star missed his first and second attempts but then managed to hit the target at the third time of asking.

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Fans begged for the show to return for a full series (Freddie, R, pictured with darks champion Luke Littler, L)

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Jim Bowen pictured on Bullseys in 1984

Taking to X viewers wrote: ‘They did a much better job with the Bullseye reboot than You Bet, Freddie was a great choice of host’

Bullseye sees teams made up of an amateur dart player, known as the ‘thrower’, and their team partner, the ’knower’ – and they must work together to be in with a chance of winning prizes.

They try and rack up as many points as possible, including throwing for that elusive Bullseye, with a studio audience watching on.

Alongside skills on the board, the teams will also need to answer questions for ‘points and prizes’.

Freddie said he was delighted to be on board in bringing back one of the best loved shows of the 80s and 90s back to ITV1 and ITVX, for this very exciting one-off episode.

‘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!’.

In December 2022, Freddie was involved in a crash while filming Top Gear. He was airlifted to hospital, with reports in October 2023 stating that BBC Studios had reached a £9million financial settlement to compensate him for his injuries.

The cricketer-turned-broadcaster has been rarely seen in public since the incident, after his devoted wife Rachael, 42, reportedly ‘begged’ him to stay off work and take time to recover.

However, the broadcaster, which apologised to him in March 2023 for his injuries, brought him back for the new series of Freddie Flintoff’s Field of Dreams, which sees him take a group of youngsters on a cricket tour to India.

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However some viewers were left disappointed by one aspect of Bullseye when the new opening omitted the original cartoon of Bully The Bull driving a bus

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While beloved character did appear along with the famous theme tune it instead transitioned into a contemporary song for Freddie’s entrance (1989 Jim Bowen pictured)

Fans complained: ‘Already ruined Bullseye with the music’: ‘No crap animated opening sequence, This has fallen at the first hurdle’

In the show he emotionally revealed the consequences of the incident with follow him ‘for the rest of my life’ and admits he has to deal with nightmares and flashbacks to the fateful day.

He told the camera: ‘Week-and-a-half after my accident. Genuinely, should not be here with what happened.

‘It’s going to be a long road back and I’ve only just started and I am struggling already and I need help. I really am.’

He added: ‘I’m not the best at asking for it. I need to stop crying every two minutes. I am looking forward to seeing the lads and being around them. I really am.’

‘Got to look on the positive: I’m still here. I’ve got another chance and I’ve got a go at it. I am seeing that as how it is – a second go.’

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Meanwhile Holly, 43, made her own TV comeback with You Bet after leaving her role at This Morning in October 2023 and sees ordinary people bet they can do extraordinary thing

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The show was originally hosted by the late great Sir Bruce Forsyth (pictured in 1989 with onscreen assistant Ellis Ward)before Matthew Kelly took on the role and later Darren Day

Holly and Stephen present new game show ‘You Bet’

When one of the young cricketers on the tour with him asks him if he is 100 per cent now, he replies: ‘Not really. I don’t know if I will again to be honest. I am better than I was.’

He adds: ‘I don’t know what completely better is. I am what I am now. I’m different to what I was. It’s something I will probably have to deal with for the rest of my life. So…better? No, different.’

Meanwhile Holly, 43, made her own TV comeback with You Bet after leaving her role at This Morning in October 2023 and sees ordinary people bet they can do extraordinary thing.

The show was originally hosted by the late great Sir Bruce Forsyth, before Matthew Kelly took on the role and later Darren Day.