Yahoo News 'Why I didn't trust anyone on The Apprentice before I was fired'
The Apprentice's Paul Bowen admits he would have sacked himself
Paul Bowen - who runs a successful business Bowen Pies - was the second person to be fired from The Apprentice. He speaks to Yahoo about his experience on the show.
Catch The Apprentice on Thursdays, 9pm on BBC One and BBC iPlayer.
At times it was quite difficult to work with everybody on The Apprentice, because nobody trusts each other.
You don't trust anybody in business anyway. So you're not going to trust someone who potentially is going to steal £250,000 from you. Everyone's fighting to be top dog.
During the show, we all picked each other up to tell you the truth because everybody made a mistake on the boys team. We all had to back each other. Although we were all after the £250,000 - and would have pushed each other off a cliff - we would have done it nicely.
To come out early doors, it's always a gutter, but there are some strong candidates in there. Every one of them has got really good attributes, but I genuinely thought I could win it.
I said it from the start, we're a £1.5m company Bowen Pies. We've been growing every year and we are a successful business. I could potentially get a loan of that value almost tomorrow but what I was really after was Lord Sugar's expertise and knowledge.
We do good business, but what does big business look like? What does having stores across the UK look like? Lord Sugar comes with a one point whatever billion pound of knowledge. And for me, that mentoring was far more valuable than getting the £250,000.
Watching it back now, I think I would have sacked me. I just almost give up.
Everyone who watches the show will probably say, 'why did you bang on about chocolate?' But in business, I stick to what I know and I still think I made the right decision. I don't think I argued it correctly and I think having had a bit more fight in me, I might still be there. Lord Sugar is looking for an all rounder who fights their corner. You can make mistakes but you must know you they made the mistake and what you can learn from it.
When I met Lord Sugar, I honestly felt - at 34 years old - that I was back in primary school. You know when you were at school and the teacher would tell you off? Lord Sugar lays down the law. He's a bit of a nasty pasty - but he's also a good guy. I'll always look up to him.
I'm sat in the boardroom thinking I've watched this on telly. It almost felt like a bit of a dream. You're in an almost out of body experience. Lord Sugar is just sat there. Maybe that's why I messed up as well - because I'm just thinking, is this real?
I called him Lord of the Pies - and I called him mate as well. It was an on the spot thing. Cameras have got something special in them that just makes you chat a bit of nonsense. But Lord of the Pies was the best thing I could come up with at the time, so that's what I stuck with.
The biggest lesson? Don't do anything wrong! Looking back at the episode, I really do think I need to work on my confidence. I know I come across as a confident guy and quite funny but I often hide behind my humour.
Yes I did make mistakes but personally I didn't see them as mistakes because I still made profit. I still got a good deal. Ultimately, that's what business is all about. It is about making money, and that is exactly what I did. I'm not ashamed of what I did and I don't regret it. I absolutely loved the experience.
When you watch the boardroom on telly you think, 'Ooo I'd handle that'. And because you automatically think that you're never going to make a mistake, you think everything will be easy, or that Lord Sugar's not going to shout at you. But when he does, you're like: 'Oh I've done something wrong.' I did bow down.
I’ve done First Dates. Now I've done The Apprentice. Maybe I could go on Love Island next - just joking! I am getting married, so that one is out of the window. But if TV calls my name and people haven't been fed up with a strong Chorley accent, then yeah I'll roll on a few films. I can see me next to Tom Cruise.
At the end of the day, I got on the show, which is a huge achievement. Going through the audition process I thought I'm going to win this, but that was before I got the pressure of Lord Sugar breathing on me.
Meeting different people from different backgrounds was a highlight for me. I'm from Chorley, it's a small town. I'd like to see Virdi Mazaria win. He was my guy to be fair, so full of energy, he's really positive, he picks you up.
Also, I think the dentist Dr Paul Midha carries some really good characteristics. He did a negotiation off camera and oh my god, I thought I was the best salesman going around, but he taught me a new level.
And obviously, Phil Turner, do it for the pies.
