[Reel Deal]

That sounds a lot more like a copyright than a patent... patents, at least here in the U.S. (and I would think in the U.K.), are very expensive and time consuming to obtain. You have to have a patent lawyer (a specialist that must pass the patent bar) file your application with the U.S. Patent Office and then it gets examined and only goes to registration if it's patentable and does not infringe any existing patents. Not something you can do via mail order or on-line (copyright however you can do that, it's a much more simple process).

In any event, I would really suggest that you get them to sign a confidentiality agreement with a non-compete clause because I'm now pretty certain that the intellectual property rights in your idea are not as locked up as you might think.