'The Apprentice' hosts defend contestants from 'Love Island' comparison

Series 14 of The Apprentice is about to get under way on BBC One from 3 October, but the show’s hosts are already having to defend this year’s contestants.

Speaking at the launch of this year’s series, Lord Sugar’s right-hand man Claude Littner passionately defended the candidates after members of the audience likened them to Love Island contestants and described them as ‘stupid’.

“Not one of them is actually stupid,” said Littner. “They all working very, very hard and you may be watching them on the TV and thinking ‘I can do that’, but I assure you that you can’t, because it’s a lot more complex than you think. It’s very, very difficult. You get a group, you don’t know each other, they’re fighting for a position – it’s much, much harder than it looks, believe me.”

On the comparisons to Love Island contestants, he said: “People want to look good on television. They want to present themselves, and I think the men and the women actually try and give their best image. You might think there are comparisons with Love Island, but I just think they want to look professional and glamorous and I think there’s nothing wrong with that.”

Meanwhile, Lord Sugar said he’d like to revisit previous winners of the show, to give viewers an update on their progress.

The business behemoth called for the BBC to commission a follow-up programme.

“It’s a shame that the BBC don’t do a follow up programme about ‘where are we now’,” he said. “I’d very much like to see a programme. In fact, I’d like to see more than just one programme – I think there should be six programmes on it.”

Lord Sugar and his trusted advisors Karren Brady and Claude Littner highlighted that, while The Apprentice is entertainment, it’s also a serious process with the genuine intention of finding the right business partner.

However, Sugar added that he thinks the BBC doesn’t understand the impact the show has on young entrepreneurs and its ability to inspire people to get into business.

“With the greatest respect to the BBC, they really do not understand how great this programme is as far as creating enthusiasm amongst young people and encouraging people to get into business. I don’t think they get that, really,” he said.

The BBC One show is returning for its 14th series.

Elsewhere, after being asked about his rivalry with Piers Morgan, Lord Sugar confirmed that we won’t be seeing the Good Morning Britain presenter make a cameo on a future edition of The Apprentice.

“He wouldn’t last two minutes, would he?” he said. “No, he did Celebrity Apprentice about 13 or 14 years ago where he was fired, and he conveniently forgets to mention that. He goes on talking about how he was hired in the American version and forgets how he got hired. I made that happen for him. No, he won’t be.”

The Apprentice will air weekly on Wednesdays at 9pm on BBC One from October 3, followed by You’re Fired at 10pm on BBC Two.

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