Lewis Jones, the new Master of Ceremonies for the Professional Darts Corporation, has opened up about a viral mistake he made during his debut in Bahrain and the subsequent bout of imposter syndrome.
Jones took over from John McDonald after the World Championships at Alexandra Palace in January 2026. His opening on stage in Bahrain quickly went viral after he muddled the name of the tournament. "It was just awful," he said. "I don't know why, just the name of the tournament got muddled up in my head and I started looking around the stage for it and I couldn't see it. It was just the most, honestly, I felt like the world would fall out my head, that was pretty tough."
Support from peers and predecessor
High-profile mistakes are part of sports, and Jones has had to deal with self-doubt. He received public backing from Vincent Van der Voort and close confidant Luke Humphries. His predecessor John McDonald has also acted as a sounding board. "I don't think I would've been able to do it without the way John was," Jones said. "Originally I came in to start a backup role... Then John retired probably a lot quicker than I think maybe people were expecting."
Jones, affectionately known as 'Lewdog', brings a different approach to the role. He previously worked for MODUS Sports Management. In his five months as main MC, he has grown accustomed to the relentless schedule of Premier League Darts.
Looking ahead to the World Matchplay
Next up on the PDC roadshow is the World Matchplay at Winter Gardens. Jones holds the tournament in high esteem. "I've ticked a lot of them off my sheet but the one for me to do is the main one at the Matchplay," he said. "I've always absolutely loved that tournament... the Winter Gardens, there's something about it... Some of the best matches you've ever seen have been at the World Matchplay."
Jones will MC the World Matchplay main event, having already done the women's event. He will wait until December to MC at Alexandra Palace for the Worlds. "It's an incredibly exciting time. So I'm very, very lucky to be involved at the time it's going on," he added.
