July 22nd, 2009 by Lisa McGarry.
As if a year wasn’t long enough to wait for the next series of The Apprentice, the BBC may be forced to postpone their 2010 season due to impartiality worries.
Sir Alan Sugar has become Lord Alan Sugar after he was made a Labour peer and now takes his place as the government’s newly-appointed enterprise champion.
After Sugar’s new role was made public, the BBC were inundated with complaints that his government position could affect their political impartiality. While the BBC trust feel there has been no breach, they do admit that it may be unwise to air the next season close in the months leading up to a general election.
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June 18th, 2009 by Lisa McGarry.
Sir Alan Sugar will be back for next years series of The Apprentice and his new role of Government adviser will “not compromise the BBC’s impartiality”, the BBC said.
Sir Alan said: “I am passionate about business and enterprise and that has always been my motivation for wanting to take on this role.
“I am glad that following detailed discussions, the BBC is satisfied that I will not be doing anything to affect its commitment to impartiality.”
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June 7th, 2009 by Lisa McGarry.
The Conservatives have called for Sir Alan Sugar to quit his TV show ‘The Apprentice’, after he accepted a job from Prime Minister Gordon Brown.
They say his new role as an “enterprise tsar” for the government is “completely incompatible” with BBC rules.
Culture Select Committee chairman and Conservative politician John Whittingdale told The Mail On Sunday: “In my view it is not possible for him to continue to present The Apprentice at the same time as he is so closely identified with the Government.
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April 30th, 2009 by Lisa McGarry.
Sir Alan Sugar has banned the winner of this years Apprentice series from carrying out any tacky or nude photo shoots. Good news if Ben wins, but what if Philip snatches the title?
Sir Alan made the decision after learning that Ben Clarke was hoping to land some lucrative magazine deals and was working on his pectorals, hoping to be offered a topless photo deal.
A source close to the former Amstrad boss told The Sun: “Sir Alan is not happy about Ben’s plans.
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April 27th, 2009 by Lisa McGarry.
Apprentice boss Sir Alan Sugar has insisted that he won’t be running for Mayor Of London, despite claiming that the role would be a walk in the park.
A poll for London’s Evening Standard and ITV London Tonight found that 40 per cent of voters would back Sir Alan if he stood as a candidate, however Sugar told London Tonight the appointment would not be practical.
“To be honest I have no idea what the duties of the London Mayor entails but in observing the past Mayor Livingstone and Boris the current one, I am confident that it would be a walk in the park for me,” he said.
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April 5th, 2009 by Lisa McGarry.
Sir Alan Sugar has managed to offend yet another group of people after he made some jibes about a candidates arthritis.
The Apprentice’s most recent reject, Rocky Andrews told Sir Alan that he started his own business after being forced out of a career in professional football due to an arthritic condition.
Speaking in the boardroom, Sugar announced: “Your career at Middlesbrough was halted. You got taken off the pitch in a stretcher. This time you’re off the pitch in a black cab. Rocky, you’re fired.”
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March 25th, 2009 by Lisa McGarry.
As a new series kicks off on BBC One tonight, Sir Alan Sugar has threatened to quit The Apprentice due to biased editing.
Sir Alan has lashed out at the “outrageous” BBC edit of a trailer for Comic Relief Does The Apprentice and said if similar editing continues he will quit the show completely.
Sugar said: “I am the villain all the time. The idiot that edited it – and I don’t know who’s done it – went through the past five years of archive to find snapshots of me roaring like a deranged lunatic and just stuck them all together.
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March 21st, 2009 by Lisa McGarry.
The new series of The Apprentice hasn’t even kicked off yet and already we hear that two of the candidates couldn’t keep their hands off each other.
The Mirror has reported that licensing development manager Kate Walsh and estate agent Philip Taylor embarked on a romance during their time recording the show and whilst they have since broken up their relationship is said to have continued after the show wrapped.
A show source said: “Kate was flirting with some of the boys from day one and Phillip made it clear he was interested. He made a move and the pair got together after that.
“After it was all over, they continued to see each other – though it didn’t last.
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March 18th, 2009 by Lisa McGarry.
Sir Alan Sugar has hit out at Newsnight host Jeremy Paxman after the Newsnight host reportedly said The Apprentice was full of “know-alls” with “nothing to say”.
Sir Alan told The Radio Times: “That’s the pot talking to the kettle, isn’t it? I mean, he’s the most unpleasant person going.
“I’d like to get into a debate, without him having a day to think up questions to make people seem awkward. I’d like to see how clever he is then.”
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March 18th, 2009 by Lisa McGarry.
Sir Alan Sugar has revealed that one of this years Apprentice candidates has already dropped out of the reality TV show.
Sir Alan breaks the news to the remaining fifteen hopefuls during their first boardroom meeting, telling them that a male candidate had already dropped out because of nerves.
“I personally don’t know who he is,” said Sugar at The Apprentice launch. “As I joke in the first episode, I’ve never met the bloke!
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