Thousands of budding darts players from all over the world descended on Manchester with the aim of qualifying to play world darts champion Luke Littler and potentially pocket £501,000. The 19-year-old from Warrington is inviting amateur players to take him on as part of a new television show, Beat Luke Littler.
Sixteen-times World Darts Champion Phil "The Power" Taylor was a judge at the second and final audition at Manchester Central Convention Complex, which attracted entries from as far afield as Australia. Taylor said the talent across the two auditions – with the first one held in London last weekend – had been "incredible" and said Littler would have his work cut out to stay undefeated.
Taylor said: "We are seeing people complete the qualifying legs in 11 and 12 darts - with big finishes - so the quality of the 20 finalists is going to be extremely high. I don't think people appreciate how hard this challenge is for Luke. He is going to have to play at World Championship level to stay undefeated." The now-retired star added the auditions had proved that darts has "never been more popular in the UK".
The audition process started with participants trying to complete a leg of 501 in 24 darts or fewer. Successful players then progressed to an interview with the show's producers before a final stage assessment with a judging panel, which included Matchroom founder Barry Hearn and professional darts player and TV pundit Laura Turner as well as Taylor. The producers, with input from the expert panel, will now select the final 20 competitors who will face Littler on 30 October at Manchester Central Convention Complex.
Littler announced the event in a video message in July, saying: "Reckon you could beat me in a game of darts? Let's go." Luke "The Nuke" Littler shot to fame in 2024 when, aged 16, he reached the final of the PDC World Darts Championship. He later won the Premier League and Grand Slam of Darts and became the youngest world champion in history by winning the 2025 world title at the age of 17.
