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The Apprentice (UK)
Encyclopedia
The Apprentice is a British reality television series in which a group of aspiring young businessmen and women compete for the chance to win a £100,000-a-year job as an apprentice
to the British business magnate Lord Sugar
(previously known as "Sir Alan Sugar") in series one to six. Those winners went on to work at Amstrad
, an electronics manufacturing company founded by Sugar (but since sold to BSkyB), or one of Sugar's other companies, Viglen
, Amsprop
or Amshold.
In series seven, the prize changed to a £250,000 investment in a business of the candidate's creation, with Lord Sugar as a 50% owner. The Apprentice, billed as a "job interview from hell", is very similar in format to the American series of the same name
, which stars entrepreneur Donald Trump
. On 5 July 2011, a show source detailed that the "interview" round will feature in the final show and that instead of the usual two finalists, there will be four.
Both American and British versions of The Apprentice are produced by Mark Burnett
.
The first and second series aired on BBC Two
in 2005 and 2006 respectively and the third series
ran on BBC One
in early 2007, the success of which led the BBC to commission two more series. The fourth series
began in March 2008 and the fifth
began in March 2009. A sixth
series ran from October to December 2010, and the most recent seventh
series ran from May to July 2011.
The programme has spawned three spin-offs
, The Apprentice: You're Fired!
(a studio-based programme which acts as a companion to the regular series), plus celebrity versions for Comic Relief
and Sport Relief
. Occasional 60-minute special episodes, often concentrating on particular candidates and their stories, also air. Apprentice-related merchandising
includes a magazine, podcast
, and official books. The programme has led other production companies to produce shows that follow a similar format, including Tycoon
, Beat the Boss
. and Election
. It has also been compared to another BBC series, Dragons' Den
.
before a season begins, attracting thousands of applicants. About 75 candidates are called back for a second round in London
, for assessment in groups, asked to do various exercises to test their business skills and how they work in a team. After this, between 20 to 30 candidates are assessed by a psychologist, references are taken and other checks made. It is from this group that the final line-up is chosen. The first and second season featured 14 candidates, increased to 16 in the third and fourth. The fifth season was also meant to have 16 candidates, but went ahead with only 15 after a last-minute withdrawal. The BBC Comedy website published a spoof video at the beginning of Season 6 revealing more about the candidate selection process.
to act as the team leader for the duration of the task, though in later episodes the project managers are sometimes nominated by Sugar himself. The teams are followed in the execution of their tasks by Lord Sugar's advisers, Nick Hewer
and Karren Brady
.
Each team within the apprentice candidates will create their own team name and that name will remain for the rest of the season.
Lord Sugar's aide for the first five seasons, Margaret Mountford, did not appear in the sixth season as she had decided to continue her studies (PhD) in papyrology
.
The team members are usually first asked to comment on the performance of their team leader, and the team leaders are asked how their team members performed. Sugar's assistants then reveal which team has won, based on whatever criteria were used. Members of the winning team are then told by Sugar that he has laid on a special treat for them such as a dinner at a fancy restaurant or a music recital, and they leave the boardroom.
The losing team are dispatched outside and usually convene at the Bridge Café where they generally discuss their failures in the task. When they return to the boardroom they are subjected to a further detailed examination by Sugar, after which the team's project manager is required to choose two team members to accompany him or her into a final round of interrogation. These are nominally the two poorest performing members of the team, but in practice the project manager may act treacherously and seek to remove more able members of the competition, or make choices based on personality. The discussions often become acrimonious as each candidate tries to divert blame towards the others. Finally, Lord Sugar dismisses one of the three with the catchphrase, "You're fired!", and that candidate is eliminated from the competition. On four occasions, two candidates have been fired in a single episode.
The fired candidate is then shown being despatched into a waiting taxi for the 'journey home'.
As the fired candidate enters the taxi the 'For Hire' light goes out. This is a dramatic device as the taxi is pre-booked and would not have been for hire.
The fired candidate is then briefly interviewed in the taxi to reflect on his or her rejection from the competition. The surviving candidates are sent back to the accommodation that is provided for the duration of the show.
, resulting in the selection of two finalists. These two proceed to the Grand Finale and perform one last task with teams chosen from the previously fired contestants, after which one is told, "You're hired!", and wins the highly-paid executive job working with Lord Sugar. The person to be hired is not always the person who won the final task, as the decision is based on all the tasks. In Junior Apprentice, the format for the final was slightly different: instead of two, there were four contestants in the final, with each team having two joint project managers. At the end, the project managers of the losing team were automatically fired, leaving Sugar to choose which of the remaining two contestants can win.
In fact, two versions of the final boardroom sequence are filmed—showing each of the finalists winning. Between filming and transmission—a period of about six months—both finalists work for Lord Sugar in temporary jobs. Lord Sugar does not reveal his decision about who he is going to hire until shortly before transmission, and this determines which ending is shown. The BBC has issued contradictory statements about the decision procedure. The first version of events is that Lord Sugar makes his decision on the day that the final boardroom sequence is filmed, based on the contestants' performance in the final task, and keeps it secret until just before transmission. The second version is that Lord Sugar decides after the six-month trial period. Former contestant Saira Khan
also stated that "His final decision is not based on the programme that people see. His final decision is based on these two people [who] have been working with him for the six months."
The candidates live together in a large rented house or apartment for the duration of the competition. Owing to the twelve-week broadcast schedule, the audience is given the impression that the candidates stay for 12 weeks in the house and that there are breaks between tasks. The season is actually filmed in about two months, and the filming schedule means that the tasks are generally performed one after the other.
Compared to the US series, the British version has a more rigid format that requires twelve episodes per season and at least four candidates for the final round of interviews. This meant that in the first two season multiple firings were not allowed at all (which was acknowledged in the second season when Lord Sugar expressed his desire to fire both Alexa Tilley and Syed Ahmed
, but could only get rid of the former), and subsequent season allow Lord Sugar to conduct either two double firings or one treble firing, the latter of which has occurred in the interview weeks, albeit not yet in the regular tasks.
. Both BBC Two and Channel 4
bid for the show’s rights – the BBC was eventually successful. On 18 May 2004, Sir Alan Sugar was confirmed as the star of the new series. He said he was "delighted" to take part in the programme. Reportedly, the BBC's first choice was Philip Green
, who was busy in early 2004 organising the takeover of Marks and Spencer. Michael O'Leary
, boss of Irish airline Ryanair
, has also said he was approached but declined as it was "too much of a distraction".
The first series began on February 2005 and lasted for twelve episodes. The viewer ratings climbed to almost 4 million viewers for the final episode on 4 May 2005. The winner was Tim Campbell, who had previously worked as a Senior Planner within the Marketing and Planning Department of London Underground
. After his victory he went on to become Project Director of Amstrad's new Health and Beauty division, but has subsequently left the company to pursue other interests. He started the Bright Ideas Trust
in 2008 which offers funding and support for young people wishing to start their own business.
In August 2008, the American cable channel CNBC
began to present the first series on Monday nights. However, the programme aired in disparate time slots or not at all due to the network's abrupt shifting of their programme schedule in order to cover developments regarding the global financial crisis of 2008–2009. The series did not air in full, and eventually as CNBC decided to focus their prime time schedule on financial news programming, the programme's rights moved to BBC America
, where it started transmission on 5 May 2009.
The opening theme was "Montagues and Capulets".
, called The Apprentice: You're Fired!
and hosted by Adrian Chiles
.
The second series finished with a record 5.7 million viewers tuning in to see Michelle Dewberry
defeat Ruth Badger
in the final. Dewberry briefly took up a post under Sugar but left in September 2006 after a series of personal problems.
. Series Three ran from 28 March 2007 to 13 June 2007, starting with 4.5 million viewers, with the audience increasing throughout the run to peak with 6.8 million people watching the final. The series was won by Simon Ambrose
, who was chosen over Kristina Grimes. Ambrose went on to work at Sugar's property company Amsprop
. Unlike previous series, there were 16 candidates (rather than 14).
and Birmingham
(interviews were also to have been held in Bristol
but these were subsequently moved to London). A record 20,000 applications were received.
Series Four began airing on BBC One on 26 March 2008, and ran for twelve weekly episodes. It debuted with 6.4 million viewers. This series saw a change in the boardroom design and it was the first series where the candidates were not allowed to visit the house before the tasks commenced, instead beginning the first task immediately after the first boardroom briefing. This has subsequently been the case in Series Five. The series was won by Lee McQueen, who beat Claire Young, Helene Speight and Alex Wotherspoon in the final. The final saw a new record of 8.9 million viewers, and a peak of 9.7 million viewers during the final 15 minutes.
over the runner up Kate Walsh.
did not return for series six. Karren Brady
was named as Mountford's replacement on 30 August 2009.
It was confirmed by the BBC that series 6 would not be shown in March 2010 (as originally scheduled), but delayed until after the general election as Sugar was the government's "business tsar". Although Sugar stated that he did not view the position as partisan, the running of The Apprentice during the general election could have been a "risk to impartiality". The day after the results of the general election were announced, the BBC began advertising for the new series. Series six commenced on 6 October 2010.
Arcadia Group
director Karren Brady
confirmed in a newspaper interview that the contestants no longer refer to Alan Sugar as 'Sir Alan', but instead must call him 'Lord Sugar', following his elevation to the House of Lords
.
Before the series aired, it was reported that contestant Christopher Farrell was on bail
for fraud
, had been sacked from a previous mortgage company for misconduct and that in September 2009 he had admitted to two charges of possessing an offensive weapon.
It was also reported that contestant Joanna Riley had been convicted for racially abusing three taxi drivers in October 2005 and it was also alleged that contestant Shibby Robati had received a formal warning from the General Medical Council
for "unprofessional behaviour".
The Grand Finale aired on 19 December 2010, in which Lord Sugar hired Stella English over the runner-up Chris Bates.
The seventh series premièred on 10 May 2011. The Series Seven candidates were revealed on 3 May 2011, via the official website and in a press launch.
The Grand Finale aired on 17 July 2011. Like series four, there were four finalists, and unlike any previous series, the semi-final was not based on Interviews. The Final was made of the Interviews, and did not feature fired candidates. Lord Sugar decided to make Thomas Pellereau his new business partner over runner-up Helen Louise Milligan. He did mention that had the setting been of someone getting a job, Helen would have walked away with it. Susan, the other finalist, was praised, and Lord Sugar commented that he will be looking forward to be partner in business with her.
briefly took up a post under Sugar but left in September 2006 after a series of personal problems.
, who went on to work at Sugar's property company Amsprop. He left in 2010.
over the runner up Kate Walsh. Weeks after taking the job she started a relationship with fellow development manager 31-year-old Andrew Hepburn and became pregnant. She is currently on maternity leave.
She quit the job in May 2011, saying that she was just a "glorified PA". She recently joined BBC-backed connected TV company Youview, a company also associated with Sugar, after a dispute at Viglen, and is currently working in their strategy team.
and Margaret Mountford
took on these roles. Mountford resigned at the end of season 5 and was replaced by Karren Brady
in season 6. Lord Sugar and his two advisors constitute "The Board"—the panel that evaluates the teams' performance.
Alan Sugar is a businessman and the founder of electronics company Amstrad
. He has an estimated fortune of £830m and was ranked 84th in the Sunday Times Rich List 2007
. Sugar was knighted in 2000 for services to business and holds two honorary Doctorate of Science degrees, awarded in 1988 by City University
and in 2005 by Brunel University
. He is a donor to the British Labour Party
and has given money to charities such as Jewish Care
and Great Ormond Street Hospital
. In July 2007, Sugar sold his stake in Amstrad to BSkyB and has since left the business.
Early season of the show made frequent reference to Sugar's connection with Amstrad, but in the fourth season, following the deal with BSkyB, reference to Amstrad was dropped. Sugar is now billed simply as controlling a "vast business empire" (most of which is actually in property). In a change of format, future winners will start a new business in a 50:50 split with Lord Sugar.
Nick Hewer
is a former public relations officer
. His involvement with Lord Sugar began when his company was chosen to represent Amstrad in 1983. Hewer's role was as a PR manager, working with the media and press. He also became an integral part of Amstrad’s corporate management. He lives in France.
Margaret Mountford
has worked with Sugar as one of his main advisers for 20 years, and is a non-executive director of Amstrad
. She has many years corporate law experience as a partner in the law firm Herbert Smith
, where she met Sugar when working on Amstrad's flotation. She retired from the firm in March 1999, and was appointed to the Amstrad board on 22 September 1999. She is also a non-executive director at Georgica PLC. In her column for the Daily Telegraph on 1 June 2009, Margaret announced that season 5 would be her last appearance on the show, as she intends to devote more time to her studies. She is currently studying for a PhD in papyrology at University College London, studying documents found in Egypt and written in ancient Greek.
Karren Brady
is best known for being the former managing director of Birmingham City
Football Club. She was appointed in March 1993, when only 23 years old. She was responsible for the company's flotation in 1997, thus becoming the youngest managing director of a British plc
. In 2007, Brady took part in Comic Relief Does The Apprentice where she was chosen as a team leader and took the women to victory, raising over £1,000,000 for charity. She has since made recurring appearances on The Apprentice' s sister show, You're Fired!
. In January 2010 she was appointed vice-chairman of West Ham United following a change of ownership of the club.
. A location in Hampstead Heath
was used in Series Two and another in Notting Hill
for the third series. In Series Four, the candidates' accommodation was a converted glass factory in Battersea
and in Series 5, the candidates lived in a penthouse house at Portobello Lofts, Ladbroke Grove
. In Series 6, the candidates lived at 52 Bedford Square, London.
The Apprentice regularly features clips of aerial footage over the skyscrapers of the Square Mile
and Canary Wharf
financial districts, such as the 180-metre Gherkin
, HSBC Tower
, One Canada Square
, and the Citigroup Centre, although neither Amstrad or Alan Sugar has offices in any of these locations. For the series introduction, and for the post-firing "walk of shame" exit sequences the Amstrad HQ building in Brentwood
was used in Series 1-3. Following Amstrad's sale to BSkyB in 2007 this changed to the Viglen
HQ building in St Albans
, Hertfordshire
from Series 4 onward - this location is also used for the Week 11 interviews task.
The "boardroom" (and the reception area outside) is in fact a custom-built set in a West London television studio, and the boardroom receptionist ("Frances" in Series One, Three, Four and Five, "Jenny" in Series Two) is an employee at the production company Talkback Thames, not Sugar's real secretary. However, Sugar's actual PA is called Frances.
The candidates' "walk of shame" exit sequences are actually filmed at the beginning of the series, at the same time as the scene in which they are shown entering the headquarters building at the start of the first episode. This explains why the clothes worn by fired candidates in their exit sequences sometimes differ from those worn in the boardroom scene ostensibly filmed only moments earlier. In more noticeable cases, hairstyles have also been different. The post-firing taxi ride merely takes the candidate around the block to allow their taxi interview to be filmed. They are then taken to a local hotel to stay the night and finally leave after packing their belongings from the house.
and features guests who informally interview the most recently fired candidate and analyse their performance. It has been running since the second series of The Apprentice and originally aired on BBC Three
. Dara Ó Briain
presents the shows running alongside the sixth series of The Apprentice, after Chiles took a contract with ITV
. The shows are recorded at Riverside Studios
. Celebrities who have appeared on the show include those from the worlds of television, radio and business, such as Dominic Littlewood
, Vince McMahon
, Trevor Nelson
and Michelle Mone
.
called The Apprenticast, and a radio programme on BBC Five Live
, both hosted by former Blue Peter
presenter Richard Bacon and running for thirty minutes. Both programmes featured former candidates being questioned by members of the public, comedians, and those who work in business. Some critics have described Bacon's performance as better than that of Adrian Chiles
, who presented the similar, but television-based, programme The Apprentice: You're Fired!
For the 2009 series, an independent weekly podcast was also released, hosted by first series contestant James Max
, in conjunction with London talk station LBC
(on which Max hosts his own show).
and was recorded on 15 December 2006. It aired in two parts on 15 March and 16 March 2007. Five male and five female celebrities took part in the programme which featured only one task. Piers Morgan
, a former editor
of the Daily Mirror, was the celebrity fired by Sir Alan Sugar during the Red Nose Day telethon after the "boys' team" lost. The other celebrities participating in the programme were Alastair Campbell
, Cheryl Cole
, Danny Baker
, Jo Brand
, Karren Brady
, Maureen Lipman
, Ross Kemp
, Rupert Everett
, Tim Campbell and Trinny Woodall
. Tim Campbell, winner of the first series of The Apprentice, was not in the original line-up, but was brought in when Everett decided to leave after the first day. The celebrities managed to raise over £1 million for charity.
Another Comic Relief Does The Apprentice celebrity special aired on 12 and 13 March 2009. The "boys' team" were Alan Carr
, Jack Dee
, Gerald Ratner
, Jonathan Ross
and Gok Wan
, and the "girls' team" Michelle Mone
, Patsy Palmer
, Fiona Phillips
, Carol Vorderman
and Ruby Wax
. At the time the show was recorded, Jonathan Ross was suspended by the BBC over a prank telephone call row
, but he was nevertheless permitted to appear since the programme would not be aired until after the suspension had been lifted. Alan Carr was eventually fired for being "too happy", relieving him from the "two grumpy ones", Dee and Ratner.
. Once again, five male and five female celebrities competed for charity to sell the most celebrity memorabilia. Viewers saw Hardeep Singh Kohli
get fired by Sugar. The other celebrities participating in this edition were Phil Tufnell
, Nick Hancock, Lembit Öpik
, Kelvin MacKenzie
, Lisa Snowdon
, Jacqueline Gold
, Louise Redknapp
, Clare Balding
and Kirstie Allsopp
. The show aired on BBC1 on 12 March and 14 March 2008 and was won by the girls' team.
Order of being fired:
Instead of the six figure salary and job working for Lord Sugar, the winner - 17 year old Arjun Rajyagor - received £25,000 in funding for his future prospects and further education.
The first series started on BBC One
on 12 May 2010. Margaret Mountford's replacement, Karren Brady, made her debut on Junior Apprentice, having begun appearing on the adult version on 10 May 2011 in series seven.
On 28 August 2010 the BBC confirmed that a second series of the Junior Apprentice had been commissioned. The new series will once again feature 16 to 17 year olds and will feature an extended 8 episode format, but with the title being changed to Young Apprentice. It will be airing on BBC1 Monday 24th October at 9pm.
's health and beauty division, his task was to market a new anti-wrinkle product, named The Integra. The programme also documented the reaction of Campbell's family, including mother Una Campbell, fiancée Jasmine Johnson, and daughter Kayla Campbell. As a result of his impressive performance, he was offered a permanent position within Amstrad. Sir Alan Sugar later said that Campbell's job would not have been in danger had he failed to make the product a success, and that the project was a "joint responsibility".
The Apprentice: Beyond the Boardroom was a one-off special shown on BBC Two on 2 June 2007. The programme featured interviews with the final five candidates from Series Three
. Nick Hewer
and Margaret Mountford
also gave their opinions on the final five, along with some of the previously fired candidates. The programme spoke about the candidates' private lives, revealing that Kristina Grimes was sent to a convent
at age 17 owing to her pregnancy, Tre Azam once fell asleep whilst driving and nearly died, Simon Ambrose was bullied as a child and has an IQ of 174, Katie Hopkins managed to complete the New York Marathon whilst she was pregnant. Friends of the candidates and members of their families, including parents, children, and partners, aired their views.
The Apprentice: The Worst Decisions Ever was a one-off special which was screened on BBC Two on 3 April 2008. It revisited some of the poor decisions made by candidates in previous series.
The Apprentice: Motor Mouths was a one-off special which was screened on BBC Two on 18 April 2008 in which celebrity fans and former contenders remembered those "motor mouth" candidates who only just failed to become "The Apprentice".
An Apprentice Special of The Weakest Link
aired on BBC One on 30 May 2008. It featured memorable candidates from past series of The Apprentice along with Apprentice narrator Mark Halliley replacing Jon Briggs as gameplay commentator.
The Apprentice: The Final Five were documentaries about the remaining final five contestants. It has its debut in series 4.Young Apprentice is currently on television, 15-11-11.
newspaper has called it "The thinking man's reality show", and The Daily Mirror
described it as "jaw-dropping viewing". Broadsheet newspapers have given the programme a similarly positive reception, with The Daily Telegraph
calling it "The most addictive show in years", and The Guardian
saying that it provided "A salutary lesson in aggressive buying and selling, hiring and firing". The Sunday Times
said that it was "not just a game show: it's a business school." The Evening Standard was also favourable, describing the programme as "terribly compelling".
of The Independent
newspaper, for example, said that he believed that the programme falsely linked success with being "nasty, disloyal, greedy and selfish". Talk show host Sir Michael Parkinson has also expressed misgivings about the programme, describing it as being "full of vulgar, loud people who, for all the wrong reasons, are dobbing each other in".
The premise of the show itself has been called into question by some members of the business world. Steve Carter, the head of recruitment firm Nigel Lynn, described the "brutality" of the recruitment process as being unrealistic. In response to these criticisms, a spokesperson for The Apprentice has been quoted as saying "The show isn't designed as a tool for recruiters... but it does highlight and thoroughly test key business skills such as leadership, teamwork, dedication and strategic thinking – integral skills most recruiters are looking for".
Former contestant and runner-up Saira Khan
has criticised the programme because the final two candidates both work with Sir Alan Sugar for a few months before he decides whom he will hire. Khan stated that "[Sir Alan Sugar's] final decision is not based on the programme that people see, his final decision is based on these two people who have been working with him for the six months." Khan also said that the show is more concerned with giving viewers a rags-to-riches ending than employing the most able candidate, and that the show promotes bullying in the workplace.
Former contestants Lucinda Ledgerwood and James Max
have criticised the tasks on the show as being too heavily sales-focused and designed for entertainment rather than as tests of all-round business skills.
A number of people have criticised the show's editing and production methods. Contestants Syed Ahmed
and Tre Azam accused the show of dumbing down their appearances for entertainment. Gerri Blackwood said that her boardroom scene was filmed again to make it look better. Alan Sugar himself revealed in his autobiography (but did not criticise) that the boardroom scenes are edited to create tension. Jokes and light hearted encounters are cut out, and Alan is seen “banging the table”.
Media Watch
has voiced concerns over inclusion of company names and products such as Chrysler
in the programme, accusing the producers of breaking BBC policy. Despite these claims, Talkback Thames has denied any suggestion of product placement
.
The show received criticism from viewers during series six after it was revealed that orders placed in the programme were not genuine.
, and some films, such as Ali G Indahouse
, which were airing on rival channels at the time. Series Two achieved 4.4 million viewers on average, with a peak audience of 5.95 and a 27% audience share. Episodes of this series achieved higher ratings than the 2005 UEFA Cup Final
and the film Pearl Harbor
. Series Three, airing on the "more mainstream" BBC One, attracted 6.8 million viewers at its peak, with a 27% audience share. This series managed to attract more viewers than City Lights
, Grand Designs
and Big Brother
. Prior to the airing of the third series, Comic Relief Does The Apprentice attracted 6.72 million viewers, becoming the fifth most-watched programme on BBC One the week it aired. The fourth series opened to 6.4 million viewers, and the series peaked at 9.7 million during the last episode.
The first episode of series five of The Apprentice averaged 8.11m (33.3% share). The previous highest-rating instalment was the opening programme of series four, which achieved 6.4m (25.6%) on 26 March 2008. The Apprentice: You're Fired! garnered 3.01m (15.2%) for BBC Two in the 30 minutes from 10:00 pm.
(BAFTA) for "Best Feature" during the 2006 awards
, beating Top Gear
, Ramsay's Kitchen Nightmares
and Dragons' Den
. It was also nominated for a BAFTA for "Best Feature" at the 2007 awards
, but was beaten by The Choir.
Other awards that the programme has won include:
programme Harry Hill's TV Burp
. It was also mocked in the BBC impression programme Dead Ringers
, in which Sir Alan Sugar turns fired contestants into frogs and the candidates are portrayed as failed applicants of Strictly Come Dancing
and Big Brother
who are seeking their 15 minutes of fame
. Several parodies have been uploaded onto the popular video publishing website, YouTube
, notably Michael Sophocles' overexaggerated celebration in Sir Alan's boardroom from Series Four.
Rory Bremner
did an impression of Sir Alan on the show Bremner Bird and Fortune; he was in the boardroom with the main London Mayoral candidates, Boris Johnson
, Ken Livingstone
and Brian Paddick
, and after each of the candidates failed to get a single vote according to his results, he hired himself for the job claiming he "would make a profit on City Hall". In Dead Ringers Bremner also impersonated a Sir Alan with magic powers castigating a contestant over an event akin to what occurred to The Sorcerer's Apprentice
.
In early 2007, the show was mocked in the television programme Kombat Opera Presents The Applicants. The series has been lampooned on the Boleg Bros website, where it is shot in Lego
. Paul Merton
and Ian Hislop
also parodied the show during a promotional advert for the 2007 and 2008 series of Have I Got News for You
.
In June 2007, shortly after the conclusion of Series Three of The Apprentice, rival UK channel ITV
began airing Tycoon
, described in The Times as "a shameless rip-off of The Apprentice". Mark Thompson
, The BBC's director general, accused ITV of "copycatting" and said that Tycoon was "very like The Apprentice, and there's possibly a bit of Dragons' Den in there". The series followed Dragons' Den
star Peter Jones'
search for a new business tycoon. It proved relatively unsuccessful and was removed from a prime time slot on Tuesdays after achieving fewer than 2 million viewers, over 2.5 million below the channel's average. The final episode attracted just 1.3 million viewers. The programme's winner, Iain Morgan, won a prize of over £200,000.
In the fourth series of Charlie Brooker's Screenwipe
, Brooker
parodied The Apprentice, with Brooker taking on the role of a Sugar-like character dressed in a crown and gown, and replacing the catchphrase, "You're fired" with "You're fucked."
, interviews with candidates from the programme and other Apprentice-related features.
The Apprentice has included various pieces of classical and popular music throughout. Numerous pieces from film soundtracks are used as well as music featured in the BBC TV series Doctor Who
. Examples of the music used include the opening theme ("Dance of the Knights" from Romeo and Juliet
by Prokofiev
) and "The Boardroom", "You're Fired" and "Closing Credits" from The Apprentice (Original Theme) by Dru Masters
. An official soundtrack was released on 4 June 2007. At the beginning of the first episode of Series 6, the iconic string phrase from the first movement of Gustav Mahler's Sixth Symphony can be heard in, one might surmise, a numerological nod. Further episodes in Series 6, include an extract from a piece by the French composer and pianist, Erik Satie, (from his "Gymnopédies No 1"), music from the Disney-Pixar 2009 film, Up
, composed by Michael Giacchino, and a famous extract from Benjamin Britten's opera, Peter Grimes. A number of episodes also featured brief snippets of several tracks from The Sims
series of games, such as the neighborhood theme from The Sims 3
, was briefly used in the last episode of series 6 and one of the build tracks from Makin' Magic was used in Series 7 episode 8.
In 2009, a DVD called "The Apprentice: The Best of Series 1–4" was released.
Apprenticeship
Apprenticeship is a system of training a new generation of practitioners of a skill. Apprentices or protégés build their careers from apprenticeships...
to the British business magnate Lord Sugar
Alan Sugar
Alan Michael Sugar, Baron Sugar is a British entrepreneur, media personality and political advisor. From humble origins in the East End of London, Sugar now has an estimated fortune of £770m , and was ranked 89th in the Sunday Times Rich List 2011...
(previously known as "Sir Alan Sugar") in series one to six. Those winners went on to work at Amstrad
Amstrad
Amstrad is a British electronics company, now wholly owned by BSkyB. As of 2006, Amstrad's main business is manufacturing Sky Digital interactive boxes....
, an electronics manufacturing company founded by Sugar (but since sold to BSkyB), or one of Sugar's other companies, Viglen
Viglen
Viglen Ltd provides IT products and services, including storage systems, servers, workstations and data/voice communications equipment and services.- History :...
, Amsprop
Amsprop
Amsprop is the property company of Alan Sugar. Amsprop now holds the majority of Sugar's £800 million wealth and owns several office building freeholds in Mayfair and other parts of London...
or Amshold.
In series seven, the prize changed to a £250,000 investment in a business of the candidate's creation, with Lord Sugar as a 50% owner. The Apprentice, billed as a "job interview from hell", is very similar in format to the American series of the same name
The Apprentice (U.S. TV series)
The Apprentice is an American reality television show hosted by real estate magnate, businessman and television personality Donald Trump, created by Mark Burnett and broadcast on NBC...
, which stars entrepreneur Donald Trump
Donald Trump
Donald John Trump, Sr. is an American business magnate, television personality and author. He is the chairman and president of The Trump Organization and the founder of Trump Entertainment Resorts. Trump's extravagant lifestyle, outspoken manner and role on the NBC reality show The Apprentice have...
. On 5 July 2011, a show source detailed that the "interview" round will feature in the final show and that instead of the usual two finalists, there will be four.
Both American and British versions of The Apprentice are produced by Mark Burnett
Mark Burnett
Mark Burnett is a British television producer and executive producer, based in the United States. He currently is the executive producer of five network television series with seven hours of network programming. Works with which Burnett is associated have won multiple awards and recognition...
.
The first and second series aired on BBC Two
BBC Two
BBC Two is the second television channel operated by the British Broadcasting Corporation in the United Kingdom. It covers a wide range of subject matter, but tending towards more 'highbrow' programmes than the more mainstream and popular BBC One. Like the BBC's other domestic TV and radio...
in 2005 and 2006 respectively and the third series
The Apprentice (UK Series Three)
Series Three of The Apprentice was a television series which aired in the UK on BBC One. The series began on 28 March 2007 and finished on 13 June 2007, with Simon Ambrose as the winner. Ambrose's prize was to work on a project to develop a hotel and golfing complex near Stansted Airport, whilst...
ran on BBC One
BBC One
BBC One is the flagship television channel of the British Broadcasting Corporation in the United Kingdom. It was launched on 2 November 1936 as the BBC Television Service, and was the world's first regular television service with a high level of image resolution...
in early 2007, the success of which led the BBC to commission two more series. The fourth series
The Apprentice (UK Series Four)
Series Four of The Apprentice was a British reality television series, which was won by Lee McQueen. The series began on BBC One on 26 March 2008, and ran for twelve weekly episodes. Auditions and interviews are reported to have taken place during the first two weeks of July 2007 in London,...
began in March 2008 and the fifth
The Apprentice (UK series five)
Series Five of The Apprentice was a British reality television series which was won by Yasmina Siadatan. The series began airing on BBC One on 25 March 2009 and ran for twelve weekly hour-long episodes, as in all previous years. Auditions and interviews took place during July 2008 in London,...
began in March 2009. A sixth
The Apprentice (UK series six)
Series Six of The Apprentice is a British reality television series. The series started on BBC One on 6 October 2010 and ran for twelve weekly hour-long episodes, as in all previous years...
series ran from October to December 2010, and the most recent seventh
The Apprentice (UK series seven)
Series Seven of The Apprentice is a British reality television series. The series started on BBC One on 10 May 2011, and ran for 12 hour-long weekly episodes, as in all previous years...
series ran from May to July 2011.
The programme has spawned three spin-offs
Spin-off (media)
In media, a spin-off is a radio program, television program, video game, or any narrative work, derived from one or more already existing works, that focuses, in particular, in more detail on one aspect of that original work...
, The Apprentice: You're Fired!
The Apprentice: You're Fired!
The Apprentice: You're Fired!, sometimes named You're Fired!, The Apprentice: You're Hired! or You're Hired!, is a British television show made by the BBC and filmed at Riverside Studios as a spin-off from the reality TV hit The Apprentice...
(a studio-based programme which acts as a companion to the regular series), plus celebrity versions for Comic Relief
Comic Relief Does The Apprentice
Comic Relief Does The Apprentice is a special celebrity version of British reality television series The Apprentice, produced to raise money for Comic Relief. The first edition aired in March 2007, and the second in March 2009. Five male celebrities and five female celebrities took part in the show...
and Sport Relief
Sport Relief Does The Apprentice
Sport Relief Does The Apprentice was a celebrity version of the British reality television series The Apprentice, produced in 2008 to raise money for Sport Relief. Five male celebrities and five female celebrities took part in the show to complete a business-themed task...
. Occasional 60-minute special episodes, often concentrating on particular candidates and their stories, also air. Apprentice-related merchandising
Merchandising
Merchandising is the methods, practices, and operations used to promote and sustain certain categories of commercial activity. In the broadest sense, merchandising is any practice which contributes to the sale of products to a retail consumer...
includes a magazine, podcast
Podcast
A podcast is a series of digital media files that are released episodically and often downloaded through web syndication...
, and official books. The programme has led other production companies to produce shows that follow a similar format, including Tycoon
Tycoon (TV series)
Tycoon was an ITV reality television show, based on the existing Peter Jones/Simon Cowell production American Inventor, which began on 19 June 2007 at 9.00pm. It was fronted by Peter Jones, who searched for entrepreneurs with ideas that he helped turn into profit-making companies. The winner was...
, Beat the Boss
Beat the Boss
Beat the Boss is a BBC TV programme in the UK, presented by Cameron Johnson and previously Saira Khan.Two teams, one kids team named "The Bright Sparks", and one adult team named "The Big Shots", have to create a product that will appeal to the kid's market...
. and Election
Election (CBBC)
Election is a BAFTA award-winning political reality show on BBC Television won by Quincy Washington, presented by Angellica Bell and judged by Jonathan Dimbleby. It first aired on Thursday 16 October 2008...
. It has also been compared to another BBC series, Dragons' Den
Dragons' Den (UK)
Dragons' Den is a British television series, hosted by Evan Davis. The format of the show is owned by Sony Pictures and is based on the original Japanese series, which has been sold around the world...
.
Candidate selection
Open auditions and interviews are held across the countryUnited Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
before a season begins, attracting thousands of applicants. About 75 candidates are called back for a second round in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, for assessment in groups, asked to do various exercises to test their business skills and how they work in a team. After this, between 20 to 30 candidates are assessed by a psychologist, references are taken and other checks made. It is from this group that the final line-up is chosen. The first and second season featured 14 candidates, increased to 16 in the third and fourth. The fifth season was also meant to have 16 candidates, but went ahead with only 15 after a last-minute withdrawal. The BBC Comedy website published a spoof video at the beginning of Season 6 revealing more about the candidate selection process.
Tasks
The successful candidates are split into two teams, initially by gender (as candidate numbers are whittled down, the composition of the teams is periodically rearranged). The teams are then given a season of business-themed tasks designed to test their skills in salesmanship, negotiation, requisitioning, leadership, teamwork and organisation, with each episode covering a single task. At the start of each episode, the teams each choose a project managerProject manager
A project manager is a professional in the field of project management. Project managers can have the responsibility of the planning, execution, and closing of any project, typically relating to construction industry, architecture, computer networking, telecommunications or software...
to act as the team leader for the duration of the task, though in later episodes the project managers are sometimes nominated by Sugar himself. The teams are followed in the execution of their tasks by Lord Sugar's advisers, Nick Hewer
Nick Hewer
Nicholas Radbourn "Nick" Hewer is a British former public relations consultant turned television personality, who lives in Northamptonshire, England. He is probably best known for his role as Alan Sugar's advisor on the UK version of the popular BBC television show The Apprentice...
and Karren Brady
Karren Brady
Karren Brady is an English sporting executive, television broadcaster, newspaper columnist, author and novelist. She is the former managing director of Birmingham City Football Club and current vice-chairman of West Ham United...
.
Each team within the apprentice candidates will create their own team name and that name will remain for the rest of the season.
Lord Sugar's aide for the first five seasons, Margaret Mountford, did not appear in the sixth season as she had decided to continue her studies (PhD) in papyrology
Papyrology
Papyrology is the study of ancient literature, correspondence, legal archives, etc., as preserved in manuscripts written on papyrus, the most common form of writing material in the ancient civilizations of Egypt, Greece, and Rome...
.
Boardroom
After completion of the task, the teams report back to the "boardroom", a studio mock-up of a real company boardroom. Here Lord Sugar, with the help of his advisers, reveals the results and discusses the teams' performance, exposing flaws in the candidates' strategies and personalities. Sugar, who is introduced in the programme as "Britain's most belligerent boss", frequently delivers scathing criticisms couched in colourful language ("that was a total bloody disaster" ... "you haven't got a bloody clue" ... "I'll fire the whole bloody lot of you if I have to").The team members are usually first asked to comment on the performance of their team leader, and the team leaders are asked how their team members performed. Sugar's assistants then reveal which team has won, based on whatever criteria were used. Members of the winning team are then told by Sugar that he has laid on a special treat for them such as a dinner at a fancy restaurant or a music recital, and they leave the boardroom.
The losing team are dispatched outside and usually convene at the Bridge Café where they generally discuss their failures in the task. When they return to the boardroom they are subjected to a further detailed examination by Sugar, after which the team's project manager is required to choose two team members to accompany him or her into a final round of interrogation. These are nominally the two poorest performing members of the team, but in practice the project manager may act treacherously and seek to remove more able members of the competition, or make choices based on personality. The discussions often become acrimonious as each candidate tries to divert blame towards the others. Finally, Lord Sugar dismisses one of the three with the catchphrase, "You're fired!", and that candidate is eliminated from the competition. On four occasions, two candidates have been fired in a single episode.
The fired candidate is then shown being despatched into a waiting taxi for the 'journey home'.
As the fired candidate enters the taxi the 'For Hire' light goes out. This is a dramatic device as the taxi is pre-booked and would not have been for hire.
The fired candidate is then briefly interviewed in the taxi to reflect on his or her rejection from the competition. The surviving candidates are sent back to the accommodation that is provided for the duration of the show.
Interviews and Grand Finale
When only four candidates remain (or five in later season), they undergo individual interviews with trusted aides of Lord Sugar, including Claude Litner and Bordan TkachukBordan Tkachuk
Bordan Tkachuk is a British business executive , the current CEO of Viglen, also known from his appearances on the BBC-produced British version of The Apprentice, interviewing for his boss Lord Sugar.-Career:...
, resulting in the selection of two finalists. These two proceed to the Grand Finale and perform one last task with teams chosen from the previously fired contestants, after which one is told, "You're hired!", and wins the highly-paid executive job working with Lord Sugar. The person to be hired is not always the person who won the final task, as the decision is based on all the tasks. In Junior Apprentice, the format for the final was slightly different: instead of two, there were four contestants in the final, with each team having two joint project managers. At the end, the project managers of the losing team were automatically fired, leaving Sugar to choose which of the remaining two contestants can win.
In fact, two versions of the final boardroom sequence are filmed—showing each of the finalists winning. Between filming and transmission—a period of about six months—both finalists work for Lord Sugar in temporary jobs. Lord Sugar does not reveal his decision about who he is going to hire until shortly before transmission, and this determines which ending is shown. The BBC has issued contradictory statements about the decision procedure. The first version of events is that Lord Sugar makes his decision on the day that the final boardroom sequence is filmed, based on the contestants' performance in the final task, and keeps it secret until just before transmission. The second version is that Lord Sugar decides after the six-month trial period. Former contestant Saira Khan
Saira Khan
Saira Khan is a British television personality and was the runner-up on the first UK series of reality TV show The Apprentice in 2005.-Television career:...
also stated that "His final decision is not based on the programme that people see. His final decision is based on these two people [who] have been working with him for the six months."
Schedule
Unlike most reality television programmes, the whole of The Apprentice is pre-recorded; typically the season is shot during the autumn for transmission the following year.The candidates live together in a large rented house or apartment for the duration of the competition. Owing to the twelve-week broadcast schedule, the audience is given the impression that the candidates stay for 12 weeks in the house and that there are breaks between tasks. The season is actually filmed in about two months, and the filming schedule means that the tasks are generally performed one after the other.
Compared to the US series, the British version has a more rigid format that requires twelve episodes per season and at least four candidates for the final round of interviews. This meant that in the first two season multiple firings were not allowed at all (which was acknowledged in the second season when Lord Sugar expressed his desire to fire both Alexa Tilley and Syed Ahmed
Syed Ahmed
Syed Ahmed is a British-Bangladeshi entrepreneur, businessman and television personality. He is the founder and CEO of the hand and body drier company SA Vortex. He is best known for his 2006 appearance in the second UK series of the BBC reality television show The Apprentice, in which contestants...
, but could only get rid of the former), and subsequent season allow Lord Sugar to conduct either two double firings or one treble firing, the latter of which has occurred in the interview weeks, albeit not yet in the regular tasks.
Series
| The Apprentice | |
| The Board | |
Lord Sugar Alan Sugar Alan Michael Sugar, Baron Sugar is a British entrepreneur, media personality and political advisor. From humble origins in the East End of London, Sugar now has an estimated fortune of £770m , and was ranked 89th in the Sunday Times Rich List 2011... (series 1-) Nick Hewer Nick Hewer Nicholas Radbourn "Nick" Hewer is a British former public relations consultant turned television personality, who lives in Northamptonshire, England. He is probably best known for his role as Alan Sugar's advisor on the UK version of the popular BBC television show The Apprentice... (series 1-) Margaret Mountford Margaret Mountford Margaret Mountford is a British lawyer, businesswoman and television personality known for her role in The Apprentice.-Biography:Mountford is originally from Holywood in Northern Ireland... (series 1–5) Karren Brady Karren Brady Karren Brady is an English sporting executive, television broadcaster, newspaper columnist, author and novelist. She is the former managing director of Birmingham City Football Club and current vice-chairman of West Ham United... (series 6-) |
|
| Series One | |
Hired: Tim Campbell Runner-up: Saira Khan Saira Khan Saira Khan is a British television personality and was the runner-up on the first UK series of reality TV show The Apprentice in 2005.-Television career:... Other candidates: Paul, James, Miriam, Raj, Ben, Sebastian, Rachel, Matthew, Adele, Miranda, Lindsay, Adenike |
|
| Series Two | |
Hired: Michelle Dewberry Michelle Dewberry Michelle Louise Faye Dewberry is a British reality television contestant and businessperson from Hull, East Riding of Yorkshire. Dewberry first came into the public eye in 2006 as the winner of the second series of British television programme The Apprentice.-Background:Dewberry was born on 9... Runner-up: Ruth Badger Ruth Badger Ruth Badger is a British businesswoman, best known as the 2006 runner-up in the second series of the UK version of reality TV show The Apprentice, in which contestants compete for a £100,000-a-year job working for British business magnate Sir Alan Sugar... Other candidates: Ansell, Paul, Syed Ahmed Syed Ahmed Syed Ahmed is a British-Bangladeshi entrepreneur, businessman and television personality. He is the founder and CEO of the hand and body drier company SA Vortex. He is best known for his 2006 appearance in the second UK series of the BBC reality television show The Apprentice, in which contestants... , Tuan, Sharon, Samuel, Jo, Mani, Alexa, Karen, Nargis, Ben |
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| Series Three The Apprentice (UK Series Three) Series Three of The Apprentice was a television series which aired in the UK on BBC One. The series began on 28 March 2007 and finished on 13 June 2007, with Simon Ambrose as the winner. Ambrose's prize was to work on a project to develop a hotel and golfing complex near Stansted Airport, whilst... |
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Hired: Simon Ambrose Simon Ambrose Simon Ambrose was the 2007 winner of the third series of the British version of reality TV show The Apprentice, in which contestants compete for a £100,000-a-year job working for British business magnate Sir Alan Sugar... Runner-up: Kristina Grimes Other candidates: Katie Katie Hopkins Katie Hopkins is a British reality television contestant, businesswoman and journalist, best known for her 2007 appearance on the third UK series of TV reality programme The Apprentice, in which contestants compete for a £100,000-a-year job working for British businessman Sir Alan Sugar. Hopkins... , Tre, Lohit, Naomi, Jadine, Ghazal, Adam, Paul, Natalie, Sophie, Gerri, Rory, Ifti, Andy |
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| Series Four The Apprentice (UK Series Four) Series Four of The Apprentice was a British reality television series, which was won by Lee McQueen. The series began on BBC One on 26 March 2008, and ran for twelve weekly episodes. Auditions and interviews are reported to have taken place during the first two weeks of July 2007 in London,... |
|
Hired: Lee McQueen Runner-up: Claire Young Other candidates: Helene, Alex, Lucinda, Michael, Raef, Sara, Jennifer, Jenny, Kevin, Lindi, Simon, Ian, Shazia, Nicholas |
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| Series Five The Apprentice (UK series five) Series Five of The Apprentice was a British reality television series which was won by Yasmina Siadatan. The series began airing on BBC One on 25 March 2009 and ran for twelve weekly hour-long episodes, as in all previous years. Auditions and interviews took place during July 2008 in London,... |
|
Hired: Yasmina Siadatan Yasmina Siadatan Yasmina Siadatan is a British businesswoman of mixed British and Iranian descent. She was the winner of the fifth series of the British television show The Apprentice. As the winner she was offered a job working for businessman Sir Alan Sugar , who presents the show.-Early life:Siadatan was... Runner-up: Kate Walsh Other candidates: Debra, Lorraine, James, Howard, Ben, Mona, Philip, Noorul, Kimberly, Paula, Majid, Rocky, Anita, Adam |
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| Series Six The Apprentice (UK series six) Series Six of The Apprentice is a British reality television series. The series started on BBC One on 6 October 2010 and ran for twelve weekly hour-long episodes, as in all previous years... |
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Hired: Stella English Runner-up: Chris Bates Other candidates: Jamie, Joanna, Stuart, Liz, Laura, Christopher, Sandeesh, Alex, Paloma, Melissa, Shibby, Joy, Raleigh, Dan |
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| Series Seven The Apprentice (UK series seven) Series Seven of The Apprentice is a British reality television series. The series started on BBC One on 10 May 2011, and ran for 12 hour-long weekly episodes, as in all previous years... |
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Hired / Business Partner: Thomas Pellerau Runner-up: Helen Louise Milligan Candidates: Susan, Jim, Natasha, Melody, Zoe, Leon, Glen, Edna, Vincent, Ellie, Felicity, Gavin, Alex, Edward |
Series One
Rumours of a UK version of The Apprentice were confirmed in early 2004 by FremantleMediaFremantleMedia
FremantleMedia, Ltd. is the content and production division of Bertelsmann's RTL Group, Europe's second largest TV, radio, and production company...
. Both BBC Two and Channel 4
Channel 4
Channel 4 is a British public-service television broadcaster which began working on 2 November 1982. Although largely commercially self-funded, it is ultimately publicly owned; originally a subsidiary of the Independent Broadcasting Authority , the station is now owned and operated by the Channel...
bid for the show’s rights – the BBC was eventually successful. On 18 May 2004, Sir Alan Sugar was confirmed as the star of the new series. He said he was "delighted" to take part in the programme. Reportedly, the BBC's first choice was Philip Green
Philip Green
Sir Philip Green is a British businessman. Green was born into a Jewish family in 1952, beginning as a businessman at the age of 15. The first and last quoted company Green took lead of was "Amber Day", from which he stepped down as CEO and Chairman in 1992...
, who was busy in early 2004 organising the takeover of Marks and Spencer. Michael O'Leary
Michael O'Leary (Ryanair)
Michael O'Leary is an Irish businessman and the Chief Executive Officer of the Irish airline Ryanair. He is one of Ireland's wealthiest businessmen.-Early life:...
, boss of Irish airline Ryanair
Ryanair
Ryanair is an Irish low-cost airline. Its head office is at Dublin Airport and its primary operational bases at Dublin Airport and London Stansted Airport....
, has also said he was approached but declined as it was "too much of a distraction".
The first series began on February 2005 and lasted for twelve episodes. The viewer ratings climbed to almost 4 million viewers for the final episode on 4 May 2005. The winner was Tim Campbell, who had previously worked as a Senior Planner within the Marketing and Planning Department of London Underground
London Underground
The London Underground is a rapid transit system serving a large part of Greater London and some parts of Buckinghamshire, Hertfordshire and Essex in England...
. After his victory he went on to become Project Director of Amstrad's new Health and Beauty division, but has subsequently left the company to pursue other interests. He started the Bright Ideas Trust
Bright Ideas Trust
Bright Ideas Trust is a registered charity founded by former The Apprentice winner Tim Campbell, established to help people aged 16-30 build their own businesses.-Target group:...
in 2008 which offers funding and support for young people wishing to start their own business.
In August 2008, the American cable channel CNBC
CNBC
CNBC is a satellite and cable television business news channel in the U.S., owned and operated by NBCUniversal. The network and its international spinoffs cover business headlines and provide live coverage of financial markets. The combined reach of CNBC and its siblings is 390 million viewers...
began to present the first series on Monday nights. However, the programme aired in disparate time slots or not at all due to the network's abrupt shifting of their programme schedule in order to cover developments regarding the global financial crisis of 2008–2009. The series did not air in full, and eventually as CNBC decided to focus their prime time schedule on financial news programming, the programme's rights moved to BBC America
BBC America
BBC America is an American television network, owned and operated by BBC Worldwide, and available on both cable and satellite.-History:The channel launched on March 29, 1998, broadcasting comedy, drama and lifestyle programs from BBC Television and other British television broadcasters like ITV and...
, where it started transmission on 5 May 2009.
The opening theme was "Montagues and Capulets".
Series Two
The day after the conclusion of Series One, the BBC confirmed that a second series would be broadcast in early 2006 and, despite initial doubts, Sugar's involvement was confirmed soon afterwards. The second series began on 22 February 2006 and a spin-off programme was introduced on BBC ThreeBBC Three
BBC Three is a television network from the BBC broadcasting via digital cable, terrestrial, IPTV and satellite platforms. The channel's target audience includes those in the 16-34 year old age group, and has the purpose of providing "innovative" content to younger audiences, focusing on new talent...
, called The Apprentice: You're Fired!
The Apprentice: You're Fired!
The Apprentice: You're Fired!, sometimes named You're Fired!, The Apprentice: You're Hired! or You're Hired!, is a British television show made by the BBC and filmed at Riverside Studios as a spin-off from the reality TV hit The Apprentice...
and hosted by Adrian Chiles
Adrian Chiles
Adrian Chiles is a British television and radio presenter, currently working for ITV Sport presenting football coverage....
.
The second series finished with a record 5.7 million viewers tuning in to see Michelle Dewberry
Michelle Dewberry
Michelle Louise Faye Dewberry is a British reality television contestant and businessperson from Hull, East Riding of Yorkshire. Dewberry first came into the public eye in 2006 as the winner of the second series of British television programme The Apprentice.-Background:Dewberry was born on 9...
defeat Ruth Badger
Ruth Badger
Ruth Badger is a British businesswoman, best known as the 2006 runner-up in the second series of the UK version of reality TV show The Apprentice, in which contestants compete for a £100,000-a-year job working for British business magnate Sir Alan Sugar...
in the final. Dewberry briefly took up a post under Sugar but left in September 2006 after a series of personal problems.
Series Three
When a third series was announced, it was revealed that it would be shown on BBC One, which is aimed at a more "mainstream audience," and that The Apprentice: You’re Fired! would move from BBC Three to BBC Two. The third series attracted 10,000 applicants and promised "tougher tasks and better people" — Sugar had expressed concerns that the show was becoming Big BrotherBig Brother (UK)
Big Brother UK is the British version of the Dutch Big Brother television format, which takes its name from the character in George Orwell's 1948 novel Nineteen Eighty-Four...
. Series Three ran from 28 March 2007 to 13 June 2007, starting with 4.5 million viewers, with the audience increasing throughout the run to peak with 6.8 million people watching the final. The series was won by Simon Ambrose
Simon Ambrose
Simon Ambrose was the 2007 winner of the third series of the British version of reality TV show The Apprentice, in which contestants compete for a £100,000-a-year job working for British business magnate Sir Alan Sugar...
, who was chosen over Kristina Grimes. Ambrose went on to work at Sugar's property company Amsprop
Amsprop
Amsprop is the property company of Alan Sugar. Amsprop now holds the majority of Sugar's £800 million wealth and owns several office building freeholds in Mayfair and other parts of London...
. Unlike previous series, there were 16 candidates (rather than 14).
Series Four
In May 2007, a fourth and fifth series were commissioned by the BBC, and prospective candidates were invited to apply for the fourth series through the official website. Auditions and interviews were held during the first two weeks of July 2007 in London, ManchesterManchester
Manchester is a city and metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. According to the Office for National Statistics, the 2010 mid-year population estimate for Manchester was 498,800. Manchester lies within one of the UK's largest metropolitan areas, the metropolitan county of Greater...
and Birmingham
Birmingham
Birmingham is a city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands of England. It is the most populous British city outside the capital London, with a population of 1,036,900 , and lies at the heart of the West Midlands conurbation, the second most populous urban area in the United Kingdom with a...
(interviews were also to have been held in Bristol
Bristol
Bristol is a city, unitary authority area and ceremonial county in South West England, with an estimated population of 433,100 for the unitary authority in 2009, and a surrounding Larger Urban Zone with an estimated 1,070,000 residents in 2007...
but these were subsequently moved to London). A record 20,000 applications were received.
Series Four began airing on BBC One on 26 March 2008, and ran for twelve weekly episodes. It debuted with 6.4 million viewers. This series saw a change in the boardroom design and it was the first series where the candidates were not allowed to visit the house before the tasks commenced, instead beginning the first task immediately after the first boardroom briefing. This has subsequently been the case in Series Five. The series was won by Lee McQueen, who beat Claire Young, Helene Speight and Alex Wotherspoon in the final. The final saw a new record of 8.9 million viewers, and a peak of 9.7 million viewers during the final 15 minutes.
Series Five
Series Five began its run on BBC One on 25 March 2009 with 15 contestants. A sixteenth participant pulled out the day before filming began. Sir Alan commented that it was due to "pressure". The Grand Finale aired on 7 June 2009, where Sir Alan hired Yasmina SiadatanYasmina Siadatan
Yasmina Siadatan is a British businesswoman of mixed British and Iranian descent. She was the winner of the fifth series of the British television show The Apprentice. As the winner she was offered a job working for businessman Sir Alan Sugar , who presents the show.-Early life:Siadatan was...
over the runner up Kate Walsh.
Series Six
In May 2009, after an episode of The Apprentice: You're Fired!, it was announced that the application process had begun for a sixth UK series to be filmed in Autumn 2009. Margaret MountfordMargaret Mountford
Margaret Mountford is a British lawyer, businesswoman and television personality known for her role in The Apprentice.-Biography:Mountford is originally from Holywood in Northern Ireland...
did not return for series six. Karren Brady
Karren Brady
Karren Brady is an English sporting executive, television broadcaster, newspaper columnist, author and novelist. She is the former managing director of Birmingham City Football Club and current vice-chairman of West Ham United...
was named as Mountford's replacement on 30 August 2009.
It was confirmed by the BBC that series 6 would not be shown in March 2010 (as originally scheduled), but delayed until after the general election as Sugar was the government's "business tsar". Although Sugar stated that he did not view the position as partisan, the running of The Apprentice during the general election could have been a "risk to impartiality". The day after the results of the general election were announced, the BBC began advertising for the new series. Series six commenced on 6 October 2010.
Arcadia Group
Arcadia Group
The Arcadia Group Limited a British company that owns the high street clothing retailers Burton, Dorothy Perkins, Evans, Miss Selfridge, Topman, Topshop, Wallis and BHS, and the out of town chain Outfit, which sells lines from the other group chains...
director Karren Brady
Karren Brady
Karren Brady is an English sporting executive, television broadcaster, newspaper columnist, author and novelist. She is the former managing director of Birmingham City Football Club and current vice-chairman of West Ham United...
confirmed in a newspaper interview that the contestants no longer refer to Alan Sugar as 'Sir Alan', but instead must call him 'Lord Sugar', following his elevation to the House of Lords
House of Lords
The House of Lords is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminster....
.
Before the series aired, it was reported that contestant Christopher Farrell was on bail
Bail
Traditionally, bail is some form of property deposited or pledged to a court to persuade it to release a suspect from jail, on the understanding that the suspect will return for trial or forfeit the bail...
for fraud
Fraud
In criminal law, a fraud is an intentional deception made for personal gain or to damage another individual; the related adjective is fraudulent. The specific legal definition varies by legal jurisdiction. Fraud is a crime, and also a civil law violation...
, had been sacked from a previous mortgage company for misconduct and that in September 2009 he had admitted to two charges of possessing an offensive weapon.
It was also reported that contestant Joanna Riley had been convicted for racially abusing three taxi drivers in October 2005 and it was also alleged that contestant Shibby Robati had received a formal warning from the General Medical Council
General Medical Council
The General Medical Council registers and regulates doctors practising in the United Kingdom. It has the power to revoke or restrict a doctor's registration if it deems them unfit to practise...
for "unprofessional behaviour".
The Grand Finale aired on 19 December 2010, in which Lord Sugar hired Stella English over the runner-up Chris Bates.
Series Seven
In April 2010, applications were made for series seven to be aired in 2011. Lord Sugar announced a change to the prize for the 2011 series of The Apprentice, where the winner would go into business with Lord Sugar as a partner, with the investment by Lord Sugar of £250,000.The seventh series premièred on 10 May 2011. The Series Seven candidates were revealed on 3 May 2011, via the official website and in a press launch.
The Grand Finale aired on 17 July 2011. Like series four, there were four finalists, and unlike any previous series, the semi-final was not based on Interviews. The Final was made of the Interviews, and did not feature fired candidates. Lord Sugar decided to make Thomas Pellereau his new business partner over runner-up Helen Louise Milligan. He did mention that had the setting been of someone getting a job, Helen would have walked away with it. Susan, the other finalist, was praised, and Lord Sugar commented that he will be looking forward to be partner in business with her.
Summary of subsequent activity of winning candidates
None of the winners of series one to four and series six has stayed with Sugar long-term. The winner of series five is currently on maternity leave. In this light the Apprentice seems more of an entertainment show with no real aspect of business to it.Series One
The winner was Tim Campbell, who became Project Director of Amstrad's new Health and Beauty division. He has since left the company to pursue other interests.Series Two
Michelle DewberryMichelle Dewberry
Michelle Louise Faye Dewberry is a British reality television contestant and businessperson from Hull, East Riding of Yorkshire. Dewberry first came into the public eye in 2006 as the winner of the second series of British television programme The Apprentice.-Background:Dewberry was born on 9...
briefly took up a post under Sugar but left in September 2006 after a series of personal problems.
Series Three
The series was won by Simon AmbroseSimon Ambrose
Simon Ambrose was the 2007 winner of the third series of the British version of reality TV show The Apprentice, in which contestants compete for a £100,000-a-year job working for British business magnate Sir Alan Sugar...
, who went on to work at Sugar's property company Amsprop. He left in 2010.
Series Four
The series was won by Lee McQueen, who initially worked for Sugar's company AMSHOLD where he famously phoned in sick on his first day. He then went on to work for AMSCREEN as development director, reporting to Sir Alan's son, Simon Sugar. He left Sugar's employment in 2010.Series Five
Sugar hired Yasmina SiadatanYasmina Siadatan
Yasmina Siadatan is a British businesswoman of mixed British and Iranian descent. She was the winner of the fifth series of the British television show The Apprentice. As the winner she was offered a job working for businessman Sir Alan Sugar , who presents the show.-Early life:Siadatan was...
over the runner up Kate Walsh. Weeks after taking the job she started a relationship with fellow development manager 31-year-old Andrew Hepburn and became pregnant. She is currently on maternity leave.
Series Six
The series was won by Stella English, beating runner-up Chris Bates. After winning, English worked at Sugar's company ViglenViglen
Viglen Ltd provides IT products and services, including storage systems, servers, workstations and data/voice communications equipment and services.- History :...
She quit the job in May 2011, saying that she was just a "glorified PA". She recently joined BBC-backed connected TV company Youview, a company also associated with Sugar, after a dispute at Viglen, and is currently working in their strategy team.
Series Seven
Series seven of the Apprentice was won by 31 year old inventor Tom Pellereau with Helen Louise Milligan coming second.The Board
Along with "the boss," Alan Sugar, two advisors follow the contestants during their weekly activities. In season 1–5, Nick HewerNick Hewer
Nicholas Radbourn "Nick" Hewer is a British former public relations consultant turned television personality, who lives in Northamptonshire, England. He is probably best known for his role as Alan Sugar's advisor on the UK version of the popular BBC television show The Apprentice...
and Margaret Mountford
Margaret Mountford
Margaret Mountford is a British lawyer, businesswoman and television personality known for her role in The Apprentice.-Biography:Mountford is originally from Holywood in Northern Ireland...
took on these roles. Mountford resigned at the end of season 5 and was replaced by Karren Brady
Karren Brady
Karren Brady is an English sporting executive, television broadcaster, newspaper columnist, author and novelist. She is the former managing director of Birmingham City Football Club and current vice-chairman of West Ham United...
in season 6. Lord Sugar and his two advisors constitute "The Board"—the panel that evaluates the teams' performance.
Alan Sugar is a businessman and the founder of electronics company Amstrad
Amstrad
Amstrad is a British electronics company, now wholly owned by BSkyB. As of 2006, Amstrad's main business is manufacturing Sky Digital interactive boxes....
. He has an estimated fortune of £830m and was ranked 84th in the Sunday Times Rich List 2007
Sunday Times Rich List 2007
The Sunday Times Rich List 2007 was published on 29 April 2007. The online edition was published on 30 April 2007.Since 1989 the UK national Sunday newspaper The Sunday Times has published an annual magazine supplement to the newspaper called the Sunday Times Rich List...
. Sugar was knighted in 2000 for services to business and holds two honorary Doctorate of Science degrees, awarded in 1988 by City University
City University, London
City University London , is a public research university located in London, United Kingdom. It was founded in 1894 as the Northampton Institute and became a university in 1966, when it adopted its present name....
and in 2005 by Brunel University
Brunel University
Brunel University is a public research university located in Uxbridge, London, United Kingdom. The university is named after the Victorian engineer Isambard Kingdom Brunel....
. He is a donor to the British Labour Party
Labour Party (UK)
The Labour Party is a centre-left democratic socialist party in the United Kingdom. It surpassed the Liberal Party in general elections during the early 1920s, forming minority governments under Ramsay MacDonald in 1924 and 1929-1931. The party was in a wartime coalition from 1940 to 1945, after...
and has given money to charities such as Jewish Care
Jewish Care
Jewish Care is a British charity, working mainly in London and South East England, providing health and social welfare support services for vulnerable members of the Jewish community. Tony Blair, when he was British Prime Minister, said of the charity: "Jewish Care is not just Jewish values in...
and Great Ormond Street Hospital
Great Ormond Street Hospital
Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children is a children's hospital located in London, United Kingdom...
. In July 2007, Sugar sold his stake in Amstrad to BSkyB and has since left the business.
Early season of the show made frequent reference to Sugar's connection with Amstrad, but in the fourth season, following the deal with BSkyB, reference to Amstrad was dropped. Sugar is now billed simply as controlling a "vast business empire" (most of which is actually in property). In a change of format, future winners will start a new business in a 50:50 split with Lord Sugar.
Nick Hewer
Nick Hewer
Nicholas Radbourn "Nick" Hewer is a British former public relations consultant turned television personality, who lives in Northamptonshire, England. He is probably best known for his role as Alan Sugar's advisor on the UK version of the popular BBC television show The Apprentice...
is a former public relations officer
Chief communications officer
The chief communications officer is a job title for the head of communications, public relations, and/or public affairs within an organization...
. His involvement with Lord Sugar began when his company was chosen to represent Amstrad in 1983. Hewer's role was as a PR manager, working with the media and press. He also became an integral part of Amstrad’s corporate management. He lives in France.
Margaret Mountford
Margaret Mountford
Margaret Mountford is a British lawyer, businesswoman and television personality known for her role in The Apprentice.-Biography:Mountford is originally from Holywood in Northern Ireland...
has worked with Sugar as one of his main advisers for 20 years, and is a non-executive director of Amstrad
Amstrad
Amstrad is a British electronics company, now wholly owned by BSkyB. As of 2006, Amstrad's main business is manufacturing Sky Digital interactive boxes....
. She has many years corporate law experience as a partner in the law firm Herbert Smith
Herbert Smith
Herbert Smith LLP is an international law firm headquartered in London, United Kingdom. The firm has offices in Europe, the Middle East and Asia. The firm was founded in the City of London in 1882 by Norman Herbert Smith and today has 240 partners and 1,300 fee-earners.-History:The firm was...
, where she met Sugar when working on Amstrad's flotation. She retired from the firm in March 1999, and was appointed to the Amstrad board on 22 September 1999. She is also a non-executive director at Georgica PLC. In her column for the Daily Telegraph on 1 June 2009, Margaret announced that season 5 would be her last appearance on the show, as she intends to devote more time to her studies. She is currently studying for a PhD in papyrology at University College London, studying documents found in Egypt and written in ancient Greek.
Karren Brady
Karren Brady
Karren Brady is an English sporting executive, television broadcaster, newspaper columnist, author and novelist. She is the former managing director of Birmingham City Football Club and current vice-chairman of West Ham United...
is best known for being the former managing director of Birmingham City
Birmingham City F.C.
Birmingham City Football Club is a professional association football club based in the city of Birmingham, England. Formed in 1875 as Small Heath Alliance, they became Small Heath in 1888, then Birmingham in 1905, finally becoming Birmingham City in 1943.They were relegated at the end of the...
Football Club. She was appointed in March 1993, when only 23 years old. She was responsible for the company's flotation in 1997, thus becoming the youngest managing director of a British plc
Public limited company
A public limited company is a limited liability company that sells shares to the public in United Kingdom company law, in the Republic of Ireland and Commonwealth jurisdictions....
. In 2007, Brady took part in Comic Relief Does The Apprentice where she was chosen as a team leader and took the women to victory, raising over £1,000,000 for charity. She has since made recurring appearances on The Apprentice
The Apprentice: You're Fired!
The Apprentice: You're Fired!, sometimes named You're Fired!, The Apprentice: You're Hired! or You're Hired!, is a British television show made by the BBC and filmed at Riverside Studios as a spin-off from the reality TV hit The Apprentice...
. In January 2010 she was appointed vice-chairman of West Ham United following a change of ownership of the club.
Filming locations
The tasks are mostly filmed in and around the London area, though the contestants have on occasion been sent as far afield as France, the Mediterranean and Morocco. In Series One, the team house was located in ChiswickChiswick
Chiswick is a large suburb of west London, England and part of the London Borough of Hounslow. It is located on a meander of the River Thames, west of Charing Cross and is one of 35 major centres identified in the London Plan. It was historically an ancient parish in the county of Middlesex, with...
. A location in Hampstead Heath
Hampstead Heath
Hampstead Heath is a large, ancient London park, covering . This grassy public space sits astride a sandy ridge, one of the highest points in London, running from Hampstead to Highgate, which rests on a band of London clay...
was used in Series Two and another in Notting Hill
Notting Hill
Notting Hill is an area in London, England, close to the north-western corner of Kensington Gardens, in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea...
for the third series. In Series Four, the candidates' accommodation was a converted glass factory in Battersea
Battersea
Battersea is an area of the London Borough of Wandsworth, England. It is an inner-city district of South London, situated on the south side of the River Thames, 2.9 miles south-west of Charing Cross. Battersea spans from Fairfield in the west to Queenstown in the east...
and in Series 5, the candidates lived in a penthouse house at Portobello Lofts, Ladbroke Grove
Ladbroke Grove
Ladbroke Grove is a road in west London, in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea. It is also sometimes the name given informally to the immediate area surrounding the road. Running from Notting Hill in the south to Kensal Green in the north, it is located in North Kensington and straddles...
. In Series 6, the candidates lived at 52 Bedford Square, London.
The Apprentice regularly features clips of aerial footage over the skyscrapers of the Square Mile
City of London
The City of London is a small area within Greater London, England. It is the historic core of London around which the modern conurbation grew and has held city status since time immemorial. The City’s boundaries have remained almost unchanged since the Middle Ages, and it is now only a tiny part of...
and Canary Wharf
Canary Wharf
Canary Wharf is a major business district located in London, United Kingdom. It is one of London's two main financial centres, alongside the traditional City of London, and contains many of the UK's tallest buildings, including the second-tallest , One Canada Square...
financial districts, such as the 180-metre Gherkin
30 St Mary Axe
30 St Mary Axe, the Swiss Re Building , is a skyscraper in London's main financial district, the City of London, completed in December 2003 and opened at the end of May 2004...
, HSBC Tower
HSBC Tower, London
8 Canada Square is a skyscraper located at Canary Wharf in London Docklands, Borough of Tower Hamlets...
, One Canada Square
One Canada Square
One Canada Square is a skyscraper in Canary Wharf in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. It is the tallest completed building in the United Kingdom since 1991, standing at above ground level and containing 50 storeys...
, and the Citigroup Centre, although neither Amstrad or Alan Sugar has offices in any of these locations. For the series introduction, and for the post-firing "walk of shame" exit sequences the Amstrad HQ building in Brentwood
Brentwood, Essex
Brentwood is a town and the principal settlement of the Borough of Brentwood, in the county of Essex in the east of England. It is located in the London commuter belt, 20 miles east north-east of Charing Cross in London, and near the M25 motorway....
was used in Series 1-3. Following Amstrad's sale to BSkyB in 2007 this changed to the Viglen
Viglen
Viglen Ltd provides IT products and services, including storage systems, servers, workstations and data/voice communications equipment and services.- History :...
HQ building in St Albans
St Albans
St Albans is a city in southern Hertfordshire, England, around north of central London, which forms the main urban area of the City and District of St Albans. It is a historic market town, and is now a sought-after dormitory town within the London commuter belt...
, Hertfordshire
Hertfordshire
Hertfordshire is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the East region of England. The county town is Hertford.The county is one of the Home Counties and lies inland, bordered by Greater London , Buckinghamshire , Bedfordshire , Cambridgeshire and...
from Series 4 onward - this location is also used for the Week 11 interviews task.
The "boardroom" (and the reception area outside) is in fact a custom-built set in a West London television studio, and the boardroom receptionist ("Frances" in Series One, Three, Four and Five, "Jenny" in Series Two) is an employee at the production company Talkback Thames, not Sugar's real secretary. However, Sugar's actual PA is called Frances.
The candidates' "walk of shame" exit sequences are actually filmed at the beginning of the series, at the same time as the scene in which they are shown entering the headquarters building at the start of the first episode. This explains why the clothes worn by fired candidates in their exit sequences sometimes differ from those worn in the boardroom scene ostensibly filmed only moments earlier. In more noticeable cases, hairstyles have also been different. The post-firing taxi ride merely takes the candidate around the block to allow their taxi interview to be filmed. They are then taken to a local hotel to stay the night and finally leave after packing their belongings from the house.
The Apprentice: You're Fired!
This 30-minute programme is broadcast on BBC Two immediately following an airing of The Apprentice. It was hosted by Adrian ChilesAdrian Chiles
Adrian Chiles is a British television and radio presenter, currently working for ITV Sport presenting football coverage....
and features guests who informally interview the most recently fired candidate and analyse their performance. It has been running since the second series of The Apprentice and originally aired on BBC Three
BBC Three
BBC Three is a television network from the BBC broadcasting via digital cable, terrestrial, IPTV and satellite platforms. The channel's target audience includes those in the 16-34 year old age group, and has the purpose of providing "innovative" content to younger audiences, focusing on new talent...
. Dara Ó Briain
Dara Ó Briain
Dara Ó Briain is an Irish stand-up comedian and television presenter, noted for hosting topical panel shows such as The Panel and Mock the Week....
presents the shows running alongside the sixth series of The Apprentice, after Chiles took a contract with ITV
ITV
ITV is the major commercial public service TV network in the United Kingdom. Launched in 1955 under the auspices of the Independent Television Authority to provide competition to the BBC, it is also the oldest commercial network in the UK...
. The shows are recorded at Riverside Studios
Riverside Studios
Riverside Studios is a production studio, theatre and independent cinema on the banks of the River Thames in Hammersmith, London, England. It plays host to contemporary and international dramatic and dance performance, film, visual art exhibitions and television production.-History:In 1933, the...
. Celebrities who have appeared on the show include those from the worlds of television, radio and business, such as Dominic Littlewood
Dominic Littlewood
Dominic Littlewood is an English television presenter and journalist.-Biography:Littlewood attended St Thomas More High School for Boys, Westcliff-on-Sea from 1981 to 1986. Littlewood was diagnosed as diabetic in his teenage years, and takes insulin to keep his diabetes under control...
, Vince McMahon
Vince McMahon
Vincent Kennedy "Vince" McMahon is an American professional wrestling promoter, announcer, commentator, film producer, actor and former occasional professional wrestler. McMahon is the current Chairman, CEO and Chairman of the Executive Committee of professional wrestling promotion WWE...
, Trevor Nelson
Trevor Nelson
Trevor Nelson MBE is an English DJ and presenter.Born in Hackney to a family of St Lucian heritage, he attended Central Foundation Boys' Grammar School in Cowper St, Islington, London EC2 and Westminster Kingsway College...
and Michelle Mone
Michelle Mone
Michelle Mone OBE is a Scottish entrepreneur and model, who is best known as being the CEO of Ultimo.-Success with Ultimo:...
.
The Apprenticast
The beginning of the third series saw the launch of a weekly podcastPodcast
A podcast is a series of digital media files that are released episodically and often downloaded through web syndication...
called The Apprenticast, and a radio programme on BBC Five Live
BBC Radio 5 Live
BBC Radio 5 Live is the BBC's national radio service that specialises in live BBC News, phone-ins, and sports commentaries...
, both hosted by former Blue Peter
Blue Peter
Blue Peter is the world's longest-running children's television show, having first aired in 1958. It is shown on CBBC, both in its BBC One programming block and on the CBBC channel. During its history there have been many presenters, often consisting of two women and two men at a time...
presenter Richard Bacon and running for thirty minutes. Both programmes featured former candidates being questioned by members of the public, comedians, and those who work in business. Some critics have described Bacon's performance as better than that of Adrian Chiles
Adrian Chiles
Adrian Chiles is a British television and radio presenter, currently working for ITV Sport presenting football coverage....
, who presented the similar, but television-based, programme The Apprentice: You're Fired!
The Apprentice: You're Fired!
The Apprentice: You're Fired!, sometimes named You're Fired!, The Apprentice: You're Hired! or You're Hired!, is a British television show made by the BBC and filmed at Riverside Studios as a spin-off from the reality TV hit The Apprentice...
For the 2009 series, an independent weekly podcast was also released, hosted by first series contestant James Max
James Max
James Max is a journalist and radio presenter specialising in business issues. He currently presents programmes for London speech radio station LBC 97.3. He was a semi-finalist on the first series of the British version of The Apprentice television programme.- Pre-Apprentice :Born in London in May...
, in conjunction with London talk station LBC
LBC
LBC Radio operates two London-based radio stations, with news and talk formats. LBC was Britain's first legal commercial Independent Local Radio station, providing a service of news and information to London. It began broadcasting on 8 October 1973, a week ahead of Capital Radio...
(on which Max hosts his own show).
Comic Relief Does The Apprentice
Between the airing of the second and third series of The Apprentice, it was announced that a celebrity version of the programme was to be recorded in aid of the charity Comic Relief. The programme was entitled Comic Relief Does The ApprenticeComic Relief Does The Apprentice
Comic Relief Does The Apprentice is a special celebrity version of British reality television series The Apprentice, produced to raise money for Comic Relief. The first edition aired in March 2007, and the second in March 2009. Five male celebrities and five female celebrities took part in the show...
and was recorded on 15 December 2006. It aired in two parts on 15 March and 16 March 2007. Five male and five female celebrities took part in the programme which featured only one task. Piers Morgan
Piers Morgan
Piers Stefan Pughe-Morgan , known professionally as Piers Morgan, is a British journalist and television presenter. He is editorial director of First News, a national newspaper for children....
, a former editor
Editing
Editing is the process of selecting and preparing written, visual, audible, and film media used to convey information through the processes of correction, condensation, organization, and other modifications performed with an intention of producing a correct, consistent, accurate, and complete...
of the Daily Mirror, was the celebrity fired by Sir Alan Sugar during the Red Nose Day telethon after the "boys' team" lost. The other celebrities participating in the programme were Alastair Campbell
Alastair Campbell
Alastair John Campbell is a British journalist, broadcaster, political aide and author, best known for his work as Director of Communications and Strategy for Prime Minister Tony Blair between 1997 and 2003, having first started working for Blair in 1994...
, Cheryl Cole
Cheryl Cole
Cheryl Ann Cole is an English pop and R&B recording artist, songwriter, dancer, actress and model. She rose to fame in late 2002 when she auditioned for the reality television show Popstars: The Rivals on ITV. The programme announced that Cole had won a place as a member of the girl group, Girls...
, Danny Baker
Danny Baker
Danny Baker is an English comedy writer, journalist, radio DJ and screenwriter. Since the late 1970s, he has worked for a wide range of publications and broadcasters including NME, LWT, the BBC, and Talk Radio....
, Jo Brand
Jo Brand
Josephine Grace "Jo" Brand is a BAFTA winning British comedian, writer, and actor.- Early life :Jo Brand was born 23 July 1957 in Wandsworth, London. Her mother was a social worker. Brand is the middle of three children, with two brothers...
, Karren Brady
Karren Brady
Karren Brady is an English sporting executive, television broadcaster, newspaper columnist, author and novelist. She is the former managing director of Birmingham City Football Club and current vice-chairman of West Ham United...
, Maureen Lipman
Maureen Lipman
Maureen Diane Lipman CBE is a British film, theatre and television actress, columnist and comedienne.-Early life:Lipman was born in Hull in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England, the daughter of Maurice Julius Lipman and Zelma Pearlman. Her father was a tailor; he used to have a shop between the...
, Ross Kemp
Ross Kemp
Ross James Kemp is a BAFTA award-winning British actor, author and journalist, who rose to prominence in the role of Grant Mitchell in the BBC soap opera, EastEnders...
, Rupert Everett
Rupert Everett
Rupert James Hector Everett is an English actor. He first came to public attention in 1981, when he was cast in Julian Mitchell's play and subsequent film Another Country as an openly gay student at an English public school, set in the 1930s...
, Tim Campbell and Trinny Woodall
Trinny Woodall
Trinny Woodall is an English fashion advisor and designer, television presenter and author. She was raised in a wealthy family and was privately educated...
. Tim Campbell, winner of the first series of The Apprentice, was not in the original line-up, but was brought in when Everett decided to leave after the first day. The celebrities managed to raise over £1 million for charity.
Another Comic Relief Does The Apprentice celebrity special aired on 12 and 13 March 2009. The "boys' team" were Alan Carr
Alan Carr
Alan Carr is an English comedian and television personality. Born in Weymouth, he was raised in Northampton before moving to Manchester during his early 20's....
, Jack Dee
Jack Dee
James Andrew Innes "Jack" Dee is an English stand-up comedian, actor and writer known for his sardonic, curmudgeonly, and deadpan style.-Early life:...
, Gerald Ratner
Gerald Ratner
Gerald Irving Ratner , is a British businessman. He was formerly chief executive of the major British jewellery company Ratners Group...
, Jonathan Ross
Jonathan Ross
Jonathan Ross may refer to:* Jonathan Ross , English television and radio personality* Jonathan Ross , United States Senator, Justice of the Vermont Supreme Court* Jonathon Ross , former Australian rules footballer...
and Gok Wan
Gok Wan
Gok Wan is a British fashion consultant, author and television presenter of British Chinese heritage. He is known for his appearances on many television programmes , for providing fashion advice to celebrities and for contributing his views to fashion magazines published internationally.-Early...
, and the "girls' team" Michelle Mone
Michelle Mone
Michelle Mone OBE is a Scottish entrepreneur and model, who is best known as being the CEO of Ultimo.-Success with Ultimo:...
, Patsy Palmer
Patsy Palmer
Patsy Palmer is an English actress. Palmer made an early television appearance on the children's drama show Grange Hill, but is best known for playing Bianca Jackson in the popular British television soap opera EastEnders. Originally in the cast from 1993–1999, Palmer returned to EastEnders in...
, Fiona Phillips
Fiona Phillips
Fiona Phillips is an English journalist, broadcaster and television presenter.-Early life:Phillips was born in Kent and Canterbury Hospital in 1961. Her grandparents ran the Duke's Head pub in Church Street St. Paul's. Phillips attended Kingsmead Primary School...
, Carol Vorderman
Carol Vorderman
Carol Jean Vorderman MBE is a British media personality, best known for co-hosting the popular game show Countdown for 26 years from 1982 to 2008. In September 2011 she became a co-anchor of the ITV1 panel show Loose Women....
and Ruby Wax
Ruby Wax
Ruby Wax is a BAFTA nominated American comedian who made a career in the United Kingdom as part of the alternative comedy scene in the 1980s.-Early life:...
. At the time the show was recorded, Jonathan Ross was suspended by the BBC over a prank telephone call row
Russell Brand Show prank telephone calls row
The Russell Brand Show prank telephone calls row concerned a series of voice messages that English entertainers Russell Brand and Jonathan Ross left on the answering machine of actor Andrew Sachs, which were labelled obscene by many media commentators and politicians...
, but he was nevertheless permitted to appear since the programme would not be aired until after the suspension had been lifted. Alan Carr was eventually fired for being "too happy", relieving him from the "two grumpy ones", Dee and Ratner.
Sport Relief Does The Apprentice
After the first celebrity version proved to be successful, the BBC decided to schedule a second celebrity edition in March 2008, to raise money for Sport ReliefSport Relief
Sport Relief is a biennial charity event from Comic Relief, in association with BBC Sport, which brings together the worlds of sport and entertainment to raise money to help vulnerable people in both the UK and the world's poorest countries...
. Once again, five male and five female celebrities competed for charity to sell the most celebrity memorabilia. Viewers saw Hardeep Singh Kohli
Hardeep Singh Kohli
Hardeep Singh Kohli is a British writer and radio and television presenter.-Background:Kohli was born in London and moved to Glasgow in Scotland when he was four. His parents came to the UK from India in the 1960s. The family's roots lie in the Punjab. His mother was a social worker, and his...
get fired by Sugar. The other celebrities participating in this edition were Phil Tufnell
Phil Tufnell
Philip Clive Roderick Tufnell is a former English cricketer turned television personality. A slow left-arm orthodox spin bowler, "Tuffers" as he was known played 42 Tests and 20 One Day International matches for England, as well as playing for Middlesex from 1986 to 2002...
, Nick Hancock, Lembit Öpik
Lembit Öpik
Lembit Öpik is a British Liberal Democrat politician. He was the Member of Parliament for the constituency of Montgomeryshire in Wales from 1997 until he lost his seat in the 2010 General Election...
, Kelvin MacKenzie
Kelvin MacKenzie
Kelvin Calder MacKenzie is an English media executive and former newspaper editor. He is best known for being editor of The Sun newspaper between 1981 and 1994, an era in which the paper was established as Britain's best selling newspaper.- Biography :MacKenzie was educated at Alleyn's School...
, Lisa Snowdon
Lisa Snowdon
Lisa Snowdon is an English fashion model, television personality and presenter. She was the host of the reality television show Britain's Next Top Model from 2006 until 2009...
, Jacqueline Gold
Jacqueline Gold
Jacqueline Gold is a British business woman, and is currently Chief Executive of the Gold Group International companies Ann Summers and Knickerbox. She is the 16th richest woman in Britain.-Early life:...
, Louise Redknapp
Louise Redknapp
Louise Elizabeth Redknapp is an English singer and media personality. She was a member of the girl group Eternal from 1992 to 1995, before becoming a solo singer . She has presented several television shows and served as a judge on the UK version of So You Think You Can Dance...
, Clare Balding
Clare Balding
Clare Balding is a BBC sports presenter, journalist and jockey.-Early life:In 1989 and 1990, Balding was a leading amateur flat jockey and Champion Lady Rider in 1990....
and Kirstie Allsopp
Kirstie Allsopp
Kirstie Mary Allsopp is a British TV presenter known for the Channel 4 property programmes: Location, Location, Location; Relocation, Relocation; Location Revisited; The Property Chain; Kirstie's Homemade Home and Kirstie's Handmade Britain...
. The show aired on BBC1 on 12 March and 14 March 2008 and was won by the girls' team.
Young Apprentice
In May 2009, after episode 5 of The Apprentice: You're Fired!, it was announced that the application process had begun for a new spin-off for candidates aged sixteen and seventeen. The show consisted of 10 candidates – 5 boys and 5 girls.Order of being fired:
- Jordan
- Hibah
- Rhys and Adam (ill)
- Hannah
- Emma
- Zoe and Kirsty (losing finalists)
- Tim (runner up)
- Arjun (winner)
Instead of the six figure salary and job working for Lord Sugar, the winner - 17 year old Arjun Rajyagor - received £25,000 in funding for his future prospects and further education.
The first series started on BBC One
BBC One
BBC One is the flagship television channel of the British Broadcasting Corporation in the United Kingdom. It was launched on 2 November 1936 as the BBC Television Service, and was the world's first regular television service with a high level of image resolution...
on 12 May 2010. Margaret Mountford's replacement, Karren Brady, made her debut on Junior Apprentice, having begun appearing on the adult version on 10 May 2011 in series seven.
On 28 August 2010 the BBC confirmed that a second series of the Junior Apprentice had been commissioned. The new series will once again feature 16 to 17 year olds and will feature an extended 8 episode format, but with the title being changed to Young Apprentice. It will be airing on BBC1 Monday 24th October at 9pm.
One-Offs
The Apprentice: Tim in the Firing Line was an hour-long documentary which aired on 19 February 2006, days before the launch of the second series. It followed Tim Campbell, the winner of Series One, during the first twelve months of the job that he won on The Apprentice. Working within AmstradAmstrad
Amstrad is a British electronics company, now wholly owned by BSkyB. As of 2006, Amstrad's main business is manufacturing Sky Digital interactive boxes....
's health and beauty division, his task was to market a new anti-wrinkle product, named The Integra. The programme also documented the reaction of Campbell's family, including mother Una Campbell, fiancée Jasmine Johnson, and daughter Kayla Campbell. As a result of his impressive performance, he was offered a permanent position within Amstrad. Sir Alan Sugar later said that Campbell's job would not have been in danger had he failed to make the product a success, and that the project was a "joint responsibility".
The Apprentice: Beyond the Boardroom was a one-off special shown on BBC Two on 2 June 2007. The programme featured interviews with the final five candidates from Series Three
The Apprentice (UK Series Three)
Series Three of The Apprentice was a television series which aired in the UK on BBC One. The series began on 28 March 2007 and finished on 13 June 2007, with Simon Ambrose as the winner. Ambrose's prize was to work on a project to develop a hotel and golfing complex near Stansted Airport, whilst...
. Nick Hewer
Nick Hewer
Nicholas Radbourn "Nick" Hewer is a British former public relations consultant turned television personality, who lives in Northamptonshire, England. He is probably best known for his role as Alan Sugar's advisor on the UK version of the popular BBC television show The Apprentice...
and Margaret Mountford
Margaret Mountford
Margaret Mountford is a British lawyer, businesswoman and television personality known for her role in The Apprentice.-Biography:Mountford is originally from Holywood in Northern Ireland...
also gave their opinions on the final five, along with some of the previously fired candidates. The programme spoke about the candidates' private lives, revealing that Kristina Grimes was sent to a convent
Convent
A convent is either a community of priests, religious brothers, religious sisters, or nuns, or the building used by the community, particularly in the Roman Catholic Church and in the Anglican Communion...
at age 17 owing to her pregnancy, Tre Azam once fell asleep whilst driving and nearly died, Simon Ambrose was bullied as a child and has an IQ of 174, Katie Hopkins managed to complete the New York Marathon whilst she was pregnant. Friends of the candidates and members of their families, including parents, children, and partners, aired their views.
The Apprentice: The Worst Decisions Ever was a one-off special which was screened on BBC Two on 3 April 2008. It revisited some of the poor decisions made by candidates in previous series.
The Apprentice: Motor Mouths was a one-off special which was screened on BBC Two on 18 April 2008 in which celebrity fans and former contenders remembered those "motor mouth" candidates who only just failed to become "The Apprentice".
An Apprentice Special of The Weakest Link
The Weakest Link
The Weakest Link is a television game show which first appeared in the United Kingdom on BBC Two on 14 August 2000 and will end its run in 2012 when its host Anne Robinson ends her contract. The original British version of the show airs around the world on BBC Entertainment...
aired on BBC One on 30 May 2008. It featured memorable candidates from past series of The Apprentice along with Apprentice narrator Mark Halliley replacing Jon Briggs as gameplay commentator.
Series
The Apprentice: Why I Fired Them were documentaries in which Sir Alan Sugar looks back over the series so far, discussed the merits and shortcomings of the candidates, and explained in more detail why he fired each candidate when he did. It featured the former participants' views of their time on the programme and what they had learnt from the experience. Sugar's assistants Nick Hewer and Margaret Mountford also spoke about the former contestants. At the end of the programme, Sugar reviews the performances of the two finalists. It had its debut in series 3. However, it did not broadcast during series 7 and was replaced by How To Get Hired, presented by Dara O Brian.The Apprentice: The Final Five were documentaries about the remaining final five contestants. It has its debut in series 4.Young Apprentice is currently on television, 15-11-11.
Praise
The programme has been given positive reviews by several newspapers. In the popular press, The SunThe Sun (newspaper)
The Sun is a daily national tabloid newspaper published in the United Kingdom and owned by News Corporation. Sister editions are published in Glasgow and Dublin...
newspaper has called it "The thinking man's reality show", and The Daily Mirror
The Daily Mirror
The Daily Mirror is a British national daily tabloid newspaper which was founded in 1903. Twice in its history, from 1985 to 1987, and from 1997 to 2002, the title on its masthead was changed to read simply The Mirror, which is how the paper is often referred to in popular parlance. It had an...
described it as "jaw-dropping viewing". Broadsheet newspapers have given the programme a similarly positive reception, with The Daily Telegraph
The Daily Telegraph
The Daily Telegraph is a daily morning broadsheet newspaper distributed throughout the United Kingdom and internationally. The newspaper was founded by Arthur B...
calling it "The most addictive show in years", and The Guardian
The Guardian
The Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
saying that it provided "A salutary lesson in aggressive buying and selling, hiring and firing". The Sunday Times
The Sunday Times
The Sunday Times is a British Sunday newspaper.The Sunday Times may also refer to:*The Sunday Times *The Sunday Times *The Sunday Times *The Sunday Times...
said that it was "not just a game show: it's a business school." The Evening Standard was also favourable, describing the programme as "terribly compelling".
Criticism
The programme has been criticised in the British media for suggesting that success in the business world requires possession of unsavoury qualities. Terence BlackerTerence Blacker
Terence Blacker is an English author, columnist, journalist, and publisher. He is the son of General Sir Cecil Hugh Blacker, and the brother of sculptor Philip Blacker....
of The Independent
The Independent
The Independent is a British national morning newspaper published in London by Independent Print Limited, owned by Alexander Lebedev since 2010. It is nicknamed the Indy, while the Sunday edition, The Independent on Sunday, is the Sindy. Launched in 1986, it is one of the youngest UK national daily...
newspaper, for example, said that he believed that the programme falsely linked success with being "nasty, disloyal, greedy and selfish". Talk show host Sir Michael Parkinson has also expressed misgivings about the programme, describing it as being "full of vulgar, loud people who, for all the wrong reasons, are dobbing each other in".
The premise of the show itself has been called into question by some members of the business world. Steve Carter, the head of recruitment firm Nigel Lynn, described the "brutality" of the recruitment process as being unrealistic. In response to these criticisms, a spokesperson for The Apprentice has been quoted as saying "The show isn't designed as a tool for recruiters... but it does highlight and thoroughly test key business skills such as leadership, teamwork, dedication and strategic thinking – integral skills most recruiters are looking for".
Former contestant and runner-up Saira Khan
Saira Khan
Saira Khan is a British television personality and was the runner-up on the first UK series of reality TV show The Apprentice in 2005.-Television career:...
has criticised the programme because the final two candidates both work with Sir Alan Sugar for a few months before he decides whom he will hire. Khan stated that "[Sir Alan Sugar's] final decision is not based on the programme that people see, his final decision is based on these two people who have been working with him for the six months." Khan also said that the show is more concerned with giving viewers a rags-to-riches ending than employing the most able candidate, and that the show promotes bullying in the workplace.
Former contestants Lucinda Ledgerwood and James Max
James Max
James Max is a journalist and radio presenter specialising in business issues. He currently presents programmes for London speech radio station LBC 97.3. He was a semi-finalist on the first series of the British version of The Apprentice television programme.- Pre-Apprentice :Born in London in May...
have criticised the tasks on the show as being too heavily sales-focused and designed for entertainment rather than as tests of all-round business skills.
A number of people have criticised the show's editing and production methods. Contestants Syed Ahmed
Syed Ahmed
Syed Ahmed is a British-Bangladeshi entrepreneur, businessman and television personality. He is the founder and CEO of the hand and body drier company SA Vortex. He is best known for his 2006 appearance in the second UK series of the BBC reality television show The Apprentice, in which contestants...
and Tre Azam accused the show of dumbing down their appearances for entertainment. Gerri Blackwood said that her boardroom scene was filmed again to make it look better. Alan Sugar himself revealed in his autobiography (but did not criticise) that the boardroom scenes are edited to create tension. Jokes and light hearted encounters are cut out, and Alan is seen “banging the table”.
Media Watch
Mediawatch-uk
Mediawatch-uk, formerly known as the National Viewers' and Listeners' Association, is a pressure group in the United Kingdom, which campaigns against the publication and broadcast of media content that it views as harmful and offensive, such as violence, profanity, sex, homosexuality and...
has voiced concerns over inclusion of company names and products such as Chrysler
Chrysler
Chrysler Group LLC is a multinational automaker headquartered in Auburn Hills, Michigan, USA. Chrysler was first organized as the Chrysler Corporation in 1925....
in the programme, accusing the producers of breaking BBC policy. Despite these claims, Talkback Thames has denied any suggestion of product placement
Product placement
Product placement, or embedded marketing, is a form of advertisement, where branded goods or services are placed in a context usually devoid of ads, such as movies, music videos, the story line of television shows, or news programs. The product placement is often not disclosed at the time that the...
.
The show received criticism from viewers during series six after it was revealed that orders placed in the programme were not genuine.
Viewing figures
The Apprentice has received high rating figures in its run. The first series, broadcast in 2005, achieved an average of 2.5 million viewers, with a peak of 3.8 million people watching throughout the series. It had an 11% share of the audience and some episodes managed to beat more popular programmes, such as Desperate HousewivesDesperate Housewives
Desperate Housewives is an American television comedy-drama series created by Marc Cherry and produced by ABC Studios and Cherry Productions. Executive producer Cherry serves as Showrunner. Other executive producers since the fourth season include Marc Cherry, Bob Daily, George W...
, and some films, such as Ali G Indahouse
Ali G Indahouse
Ali G Indahouse is a British comedy film directed by Mark Mylod and starring the fictional character Ali G, who is performed by British comedian Sacha Baron Cohen...
, which were airing on rival channels at the time. Series Two achieved 4.4 million viewers on average, with a peak audience of 5.95 and a 27% audience share. Episodes of this series achieved higher ratings than the 2005 UEFA Cup Final
UEFA Cup 2004-05
The 2004–05 UEFA Cup season was won by CSKA Moscow, coming from behind in the final against Sporting Clube de Portugal. It was the first win by a Russian side in any European competition, and was even more impressive considering that the final was held at the José Alvalade Stadium, the home of...
and the film Pearl Harbor
Pearl Harbor (film)
Pearl Harbor is a 2001 American action drama war film directed by Michael Bay and produced by Jerry Bruckheimer and Randall Wallace, who wrote the screenplay...
. Series Three, airing on the "more mainstream" BBC One, attracted 6.8 million viewers at its peak, with a 27% audience share. This series managed to attract more viewers than City Lights
City Lights (ITV series)
City Lights is a British comedy-drama broadcast on ITV starring Robson Green and Mark Benton. The show is a sequel to the 2006 series Northern Lights .-Plot:...
, Grand Designs
Grand Designs
Grand Designs is a British television series produced by Talkback Thames and broadcast on Channel 4 which features unusual and often elaborate architectural home-building projects....
and Big Brother
Big Brother (UK)
Big Brother UK is the British version of the Dutch Big Brother television format, which takes its name from the character in George Orwell's 1948 novel Nineteen Eighty-Four...
. Prior to the airing of the third series, Comic Relief Does The Apprentice attracted 6.72 million viewers, becoming the fifth most-watched programme on BBC One the week it aired. The fourth series opened to 6.4 million viewers, and the series peaked at 9.7 million during the last episode.
The first episode of series five of The Apprentice averaged 8.11m (33.3% share). The previous highest-rating instalment was the opening programme of series four, which achieved 6.4m (25.6%) on 26 March 2008. The Apprentice: You're Fired! garnered 3.01m (15.2%) for BBC Two in the 30 minutes from 10:00 pm.
Awards
The Apprentice won the British Academy of Film and Television ArtsBritish Academy of Film and Television Arts
The British Academy of Film and Television Arts is a charity in the United Kingdom that hosts annual awards shows for excellence in film, television, television craft, video games and forms of animation.-Introduction:...
(BAFTA) for "Best Feature" during the 2006 awards
British Academy Television Awards 2006
The 2006 British Academy Television Awards were held on Sunday 7 May at the Grosvenor House Hotel in London. The ceremony was broadcast on the ITV Network, hosted by television presenter Davina McCall...
, beating Top Gear
Top Gear (current format)
Top Gear is a British television series about motor vehicles, primarily cars. It began in 1977 as a conventional motoring magazine show. Over time, and especially since a relaunch in 2002, it has developed a quirky, humorous style...
, Ramsay's Kitchen Nightmares
Ramsay's Kitchen Nightmares
Ramsay's Kitchen Nightmares is a television programme featuring British celebrity chef Gordon Ramsay. The BAFTA and Emmy Award-winning programme debuted on Channel 4 in 2004....
and Dragons' Den
Dragons' Den
Dragons' Den is a series of reality television programmes featuring entrepreneurs pitching their business ideas in order to secure investment finance from a panel of venture capitalists. The show originated in Japan as "Manē no Tora"...
. It was also nominated for a BAFTA for "Best Feature" at the 2007 awards
British Academy Television Awards 2007
The 2007 British Academy Television Awards were held on Sunday 20 May at the London Palladium Theatre in London. They were broadcast live on BBC One in the UK...
, but was beaten by The Choir.
Other awards that the programme has won include:
- 2009 Televisual Bulldog Awards – Best Reality Event
- 2009 Televisual Bulldog Awards – Best in Show
- 2009 Broadcasting Press GuildBroadcasting Press GuildThe Broadcasting Press Guild is a British association of journalists who specialise in writing and broadcasting about television, radio and the media generally....
– Best Factual Entertainment Programme - 2009 Media GuardianThe GuardianThe Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
Edinburgh International TV FestivalEdinburgh International Television FestivalThe Edinburgh International Television Festival, founded in 1976, is held annually over the British August bank holiday weekend at the Edinburgh International Conference Centre....
– Terrestrial Programme of the Year - 2009 TV QuickTV QuickTV Choice, is a British weekly TV listings magazine published by H. Bauer Publishing, the UK subsidiary of family-run German company Bauer Media Group...
/TV Choice Awards – Best Reality - 2009 Broadcast Award – Best Entertainment Programme
- 2008 Media GuardianThe GuardianThe Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
Edinburgh International TV FestivalEdinburgh International Television FestivalThe Edinburgh International Television Festival, founded in 1976, is held annually over the British August bank holiday weekend at the Edinburgh International Conference Centre....
– Terrestrial Programme of the Year - 2008 TV QuickTV QuickTV Choice, is a British weekly TV listings magazine published by H. Bauer Publishing, the UK subsidiary of family-run German company Bauer Media Group...
/TV Choice Awards – Best Reality - 2007 Royal Television SocietyRoyal Television SocietyThe Royal Television Society is a British-based educational charity for the discussion, and analysis of television in all its forms, past, present and future. It is the oldest television society in the world...
(RTS) Award – Features and Factual Entertainment - 2007 Broadcast Award – Best Entertainment Programme
- 2006 BAFTA – Pioneer Award (voted for by the public)
- 2006 National Television AwardsNational Television AwardsThe National Television Awards is a British television awards ceremony, broadcast by the ITV network and initiated in 1995. The National Television Awards are the most prominent ceremony for which the results are voted on by the general public. Because of the way the awards are decided, winners are...
– Most Popular Reality Programme - 2006 Rose d'OrRose d'OrThe Rose d’Or is one of the most important international festivals in entertainment television. It was founded in Montreux in 1961 and has taken place in Lucerne since 2004. Producers, executives from independent and public service broadcasters and heads of production companies from over 40...
– Reality Show - 2006 Televisual Bulldog Awards – Best Factual Reality Show
- 2006 TV QuickTV QuickTV Choice, is a British weekly TV listings magazine published by H. Bauer Publishing, the UK subsidiary of family-run German company Bauer Media Group...
/TV Choice Awards – Best Reality - 2006 The Guild of TV Cameramen Awards – Camera Team Excellence in Photography
- 2006 Banff – Unscripted Entertainment Programme
- 2006 Wincott Business Awards – Best TV Show of the Year
- 2005 National Television AwardsNational Television AwardsThe National Television Awards is a British television awards ceremony, broadcast by the ITV network and initiated in 1995. The National Television Awards are the most prominent ceremony for which the results are voted on by the general public. Because of the way the awards are decided, winners are...
– Most Popular Reality Show - 2005 RTS Craft and Design AwardRoyal Television SocietyThe Royal Television Society is a British-based educational charity for the discussion, and analysis of television in all its forms, past, present and future. It is the oldest television society in the world...
– Tape and Film Editing - 2005 RTS Craft and Design AwardRoyal Television SocietyThe Royal Television Society is a British-based educational charity for the discussion, and analysis of television in all its forms, past, present and future. It is the oldest television society in the world...
– Tape and Film Editing, Entertainment and Situation Comedy - 2005 Grierson Awards – Most Entertaining Documentary
Parodies and imitations
The show has been imitated in the ITVITV
ITV is the major commercial public service TV network in the United Kingdom. Launched in 1955 under the auspices of the Independent Television Authority to provide competition to the BBC, it is also the oldest commercial network in the UK...
programme Harry Hill's TV Burp
Harry Hill's TV Burp
Harry Hill's TV Burp is a British television comedy programme produced by Avalon Television for ITV and hosted by comedian Harry Hill. The show presents a satirical look at the week's television, including extracts from TV shows with added sketches, observational voice-overs, and guest appearances...
. It was also mocked in the BBC impression programme Dead Ringers
Dead Ringers (comedy)
Dead Ringers is a UK radio and television comedy impressions broadcast on BBC Radio 4 and later BBC Two. The programme was devised by producer Bill Dare and developed with Jon Holmes, Andy Hurst and Simon Blackwell. It starred Jon Culshaw, Jan Ravens, Phil Cornwell, Kevin Connelly and Mark Perry...
, in which Sir Alan Sugar turns fired contestants into frogs and the candidates are portrayed as failed applicants of Strictly Come Dancing
Strictly Come Dancing
Strictly Come Dancing is a British television show, featuring celebrities with professional dance partners competing in Ballroom and Latin dances. The title of the show suggests a continuation of the long-running series Come Dancing, with an allusion to the film Strictly Ballroom...
and Big Brother
Big Brother (UK)
Big Brother UK is the British version of the Dutch Big Brother television format, which takes its name from the character in George Orwell's 1948 novel Nineteen Eighty-Four...
who are seeking their 15 minutes of fame
15 minutes of fame
15 minutes of fame is short-lived, often ephemeral, media publicity or celebrity of an individual or phenomenon. The expression was coined by Andy Warhol, who said in 1968 that "In the future, everyone will be world-famous for 15 minutes." The phenomenon is often used in reference to...
. Several parodies have been uploaded onto the popular video publishing website, YouTube
YouTube
YouTube is a video-sharing website, created by three former PayPal employees in February 2005, on which users can upload, view and share videos....
, notably Michael Sophocles' overexaggerated celebration in Sir Alan's boardroom from Series Four.
Rory Bremner
Rory Bremner
Roderick "Rory" Keith Ogilvy Bremner, FKC is a Scottish impressionist, playwright and comedian, noted for his work in political satire...
did an impression of Sir Alan on the show Bremner Bird and Fortune; he was in the boardroom with the main London Mayoral candidates, Boris Johnson
Boris Johnson
Alexander Boris de Pfeffel Johnson is a British journalist and Conservative Party politician, who has been the elected Mayor of London since 2008...
, Ken Livingstone
Ken Livingstone
Kenneth Robert "Ken" Livingstone is an English politician who is currently a member of the centrist to centre-left Labour Party...
and Brian Paddick
Brian Paddick
Brian Leonard Paddick is a British politician, and was the Liberal Democrat candidate for the London mayoral election, 2008, coming third behind Boris Johnson and Ken Livingstone...
, and after each of the candidates failed to get a single vote according to his results, he hired himself for the job claiming he "would make a profit on City Hall". In Dead Ringers Bremner also impersonated a Sir Alan with magic powers castigating a contestant over an event akin to what occurred to The Sorcerer's Apprentice
The Sorcerer's Apprentice
The Sorcerer's Apprentice is the English name of a poem by Goethe, Der Zauberlehrling, written in 1797. The poem is a ballad in fourteen stanzas.-Story:...
.
In early 2007, the show was mocked in the television programme Kombat Opera Presents The Applicants. The series has been lampooned on the Boleg Bros website, where it is shot in Lego
Lego
Lego is a line of construction toys manufactured by the Lego Group, a privately held company based in Billund, Denmark. The company's flagship product, Lego, consists of colorful interlocking plastic bricks and an accompanying array of gears, minifigures and various other parts...
. Paul Merton
Paul Merton
Paul Merton is a British comedian, writer, actor and television presenter. Known for his improvisation skill, his humour is rooted in deadpan, surreal and sometimes dark comedy...
and Ian Hislop
Ian Hislop
Ian David Hislop is a British journalist, satirist, comedian, writer, broadcaster and editor of the satirical magazine Private Eye...
also parodied the show during a promotional advert for the 2007 and 2008 series of Have I Got News for You
Have I Got News for You
Have I Got News for You is a British television panel show produced by Hat Trick Productions for the BBC. It is based loosely on the BBC Radio 4 show The News Quiz, and has been broadcast since 1990, currently the BBC's longest-ever running television panel show...
.
In June 2007, shortly after the conclusion of Series Three of The Apprentice, rival UK channel ITV
ITV
ITV is the major commercial public service TV network in the United Kingdom. Launched in 1955 under the auspices of the Independent Television Authority to provide competition to the BBC, it is also the oldest commercial network in the UK...
began airing Tycoon
Tycoon (TV series)
Tycoon was an ITV reality television show, based on the existing Peter Jones/Simon Cowell production American Inventor, which began on 19 June 2007 at 9.00pm. It was fronted by Peter Jones, who searched for entrepreneurs with ideas that he helped turn into profit-making companies. The winner was...
, described in The Times as "a shameless rip-off of The Apprentice". Mark Thompson
Mark Thompson
Mark John Thompson is Director-General of the BBC, a post he has held since 2004, and a former chief executive of Channel 4...
, The BBC's director general, accused ITV of "copycatting" and said that Tycoon was "very like The Apprentice, and there's possibly a bit of Dragons' Den in there". The series followed Dragons' Den
Dragons' Den
Dragons' Den is a series of reality television programmes featuring entrepreneurs pitching their business ideas in order to secure investment finance from a panel of venture capitalists. The show originated in Japan as "Manē no Tora"...
star Peter Jones'
Peter Jones (entrepreneur)
Peter Jones, CBE is a British entrepreneur and businessman with interests in mobile phones, television, media, leisure, and property. He became a television celebrity through his appearances on the BBC Two show Dragons' Den and on his American television show American Inventor...
search for a new business tycoon. It proved relatively unsuccessful and was removed from a prime time slot on Tuesdays after achieving fewer than 2 million viewers, over 2.5 million below the channel's average. The final episode attracted just 1.3 million viewers. The programme's winner, Iain Morgan, won a prize of over £200,000.
In the fourth series of Charlie Brooker's Screenwipe
Charlie Brooker's Screenwipe
Charlie Brooker's Screenwipe is a British television review programme broadcast on BBC Four by Charlie Brooker. The programme contains reviews of current shows, as well as stories and commentary on how television is produced.-Format:...
, Brooker
Charlie Brooker
Charlton "Charlie" Brooker is a British journalist, comic writer and broadcaster. His style of humour is savage and profane, with surreal elements and a consistent satirical pessimism...
parodied The Apprentice, with Brooker taking on the role of a Sugar-like character dressed in a crown and gown, and replacing the catchphrase, "You're fired" with "You're fucked."
Merchandise
On 10 February 2005, Sir Alan Sugar released a book to coincide with the first series, called The Apprentice: How to Get Hired Not Fired. On 16 February 2006, the book was revised with additional information relating to the second series. An official magazine was first released on 23 May 2007. It includes items about businessBusiness
A business is an organization engaged in the trade of goods, services, or both to consumers. Businesses are predominant in capitalist economies, where most of them are privately owned and administered to earn profit to increase the wealth of their owners. Businesses may also be not-for-profit...
, interviews with candidates from the programme and other Apprentice-related features.
The Apprentice has included various pieces of classical and popular music throughout. Numerous pieces from film soundtracks are used as well as music featured in the BBC TV series Doctor Who
Doctor Who
Doctor Who is a British science fiction television programme produced by the BBC. The programme depicts the adventures of a time-travelling humanoid alien known as the Doctor who explores the universe in a sentient time machine called the TARDIS that flies through time and space, whose exterior...
. Examples of the music used include the opening theme ("Dance of the Knights" from Romeo and Juliet
Romeo and Juliet (Prokofiev)
Romeo and Juliet is a ballet by Sergei Prokofiev based on William Shakespeare's play Romeo and Juliet. It is one of the most enduringly popular ballets...
by Prokofiev
Sergei Prokofiev
Sergei Sergeyevich Prokofiev was a Russian composer, pianist and conductor who mastered numerous musical genres and is regarded as one of the major composers of the 20th century...
) and "The Boardroom", "You're Fired" and "Closing Credits" from The Apprentice (Original Theme) by Dru Masters
Dru Masters
Dru Masters is a British composer, best known for composing television music. He has composed tracks for the British version of The Apprentice and The Unteachables, amongst others...
. An official soundtrack was released on 4 June 2007. At the beginning of the first episode of Series 6, the iconic string phrase from the first movement of Gustav Mahler's Sixth Symphony can be heard in, one might surmise, a numerological nod. Further episodes in Series 6, include an extract from a piece by the French composer and pianist, Erik Satie, (from his "Gymnopédies No 1"), music from the Disney-Pixar 2009 film, Up
Up (2009 film)
Up is a 2009 American computer-animated comedy-adventure film produced by Pixar, distributed by Walt Disney Pictures and presented in Disney Digital 3-D. The film premiered on May 29, 2009 in North America and opened the 2009 Cannes Film Festival, becoming the first animated and 3D film...
, composed by Michael Giacchino, and a famous extract from Benjamin Britten's opera, Peter Grimes. A number of episodes also featured brief snippets of several tracks from The Sims
The Sims
The Sims is a strategic life-simulation computer game developed by Maxis and published by Electronic Arts. Its development was led by game designer Will Wright, also known for developing SimCity...
series of games, such as the neighborhood theme from The Sims 3
The Sims 3
The Sims 3 is a 2009 strategic life simulation computer game developed by The Sims Studio and published by Electronic Arts. It is the sequel to the best-selling computer game, The Sims 2. It was first released on June 2, 2009 simultaneously for Mac OS X and Microsoft Windows...
, was briefly used in the last episode of series 6 and one of the build tracks from Makin' Magic was used in Series 7 episode 8.
In 2009, a DVD called "The Apprentice: The Best of Series 1–4" was released.
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| The Apprentice (UK Series Three) Series Three of The Apprentice was a television series which aired in the UK on BBC One. The series began on 28 March 2007 and finished on 13 June 2007, with Simon Ambrose as the winner. Ambrose's prize was to work on a project to develop a hotel and golfing complex near Stansted Airport, whilst... |
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| The Apprentice (UK Series Four) Series Four of The Apprentice was a British reality television series, which was won by Lee McQueen. The series began on BBC One on 26 March 2008, and ran for twelve weekly episodes. Auditions and interviews are reported to have taken place during the first two weeks of July 2007 in London,... |
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| The Apprentice (UK series five) Series Five of The Apprentice was a British reality television series which was won by Yasmina Siadatan. The series began airing on BBC One on 25 March 2009 and ran for twelve weekly hour-long episodes, as in all previous years. Auditions and interviews took place during July 2008 in London,... |
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| The Apprentice (UK series six) Series Six of The Apprentice is a British reality television series. The series started on BBC One on 6 October 2010 and ran for twelve weekly hour-long episodes, as in all previous years... |
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| The Apprentice (UK series seven) Series Seven of The Apprentice is a British reality television series. The series started on BBC One on 10 May 2011, and ran for 12 hour-long weekly episodes, as in all previous years... |
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