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.

Trust chairman Sir Michael Lyons said: “Questions have been raised about the dual role played by Lord Sugar, as star of the BBC’s The Apprentice while also a Labour peer advising the government as enterprise champion.

“The trust’s editorial standards committee has judged that there has been no breach of the BBC editorial guidelines.”

The trust added that, when scheduling next year’s series of the main Apprentice and The Junior Apprentice, the BBC “must give due consideration to the implications of showing the programmes in the months immediately before a general election”.

The elction has to take place by June 2010, so feasibly we could be waiting until July or August for our next Apprentice fix. How very devastating!

Alan Carr has claimed that Sir Alan Sugar was “horrible” and “vile” when he took part in BBC’s Comic Relief Does The Apprentice.

The Channel 4 funnyman told new! magazine: “Just how scary is he? He’s horrible. I thought because we were celebrities he’d tone it down, but he was vile and laid into me.

“I used to take the mickey out of the contestants when they cried on The Apprentice, but he had me in tears. I was gulping and had a lump in my throat!”

Carr was also disappointed in the mighty Margaret Mountford when she failed to defend him in the boardroom.

He revealed: “I thought Margaret might support me. I thought: ‘She’s a woman, she’s a bit of a fag hag – she’ll help me’. But she just rolled her eyes.”

According to the Press Association, The Apprentice stars Philip Taylor and Kate Walsh are engaged.

Kate has apparently been showing off a £3,000 engagement ring which the pair chose together at a jewellers in London.

A source is quoted by the PA as saying, “They are very much in love and this was always more than a work fling. Neither of them wanted to split.

“Once the show aired they were reminded of how well they had got on and Phil picked up the phone. They were back in each other’s arms within days and now it looks like they will have each other for life.

“Phil had been known as a womaniser but Kate has ended all that. He loves her to bits and is smitten.”

Kate, who was runner-up on The Apprentice, lost out on a job with Sir Alan to Yasmina Siadatan.

Ex Apprentice star James McQuillan has apparently achieved his dream to be a horse racing commentator, following in the footsteps of his hero, John McCririck.

The Sun reports that James had been offered a job by Channel 4 racing and James reckons that he can “help to boost interest in the sport”.

He told the paper, “I’m doing some screen tests now but the plan is to have a regular slot on a racing show.

“Horse racing is the biggest sleeping giant. Apart from the Derby it’s not well known.”

James was eliminated in the semi-finals of The Apprentice but he hasn’t let that knock back bring him down and he’s been busier than ever and has even written a book on childbirth.

One of his money making ideas on The Apprentice was a birthing pool which he demonstrated in hilarious fashion. It was because of this that a publisher approached him and commissioned the book.

James, who’s a dad himself, said, “I’m going to say everything totally wrong – a guide on how to cope with a hormone wreck.

“I’ll probably ostracise half the population.”

It’s been revealed today that The Apprentice series five runner-up Kate Walsh has been offered a role on GMTV presenting a feature about “what women should wear in the office”.

The Sun reports that her presenting slot will most likely be during Lorraine Kelly’s show. A source close to Walsh told the paper, “Kate is desperate to get a career in telly…

“She did a screen test for GMTV and they liked her.

“The plan is for her to do some stuff with Lorraine and then get something regular.”

Kate was pipped to the post on The Apprentice by Yasmina Siadatan but she didn’t leave the show entirely empty handed; she met her current love and fellow contestant Philip Taylor during filming.

Apprentice reject Claire Young has revealed that she pulled out of appearing on a previous series of Big Brother.

Claire got through the first few rounds of BB auditions but pulled out due to some of the weird characters she met.

“I watched one series and my friends said let’s try for it, but I was the only one who got through,” she told Star magazine.

“I went through two rounds of interviews and then pulled out.”

She added: “I just thought: ‘I haven’t met one person in this audition that I’d want to have a cup of tea with.’”

Heather Mills has reportedly been lined up to star in Donald Trumps next series of Celebrity Apprentice.

Tycoon Donald Trump has confirmed to The Sun that Mills wants to go on his reality business show.

He said: “Everybody wants to be on Celebrity Apprentice. One is Heather Mills. We have tremendous people.”

Last years Apprentice winner, Simon Abrose is said to have had a “rude awakening” when he took up his post at AMSPROP, the real estate division of Alan Sugar’s group of companies.

“Simon’s doing OK…He’s working on trying to sell some places for us and I think he’s had a rude awakening,” Sugar revealed. “His naivety’s been given a whack over the head, thinking that he’s got things sold but then realising he’s amongst some real sharks out there. He’s gotta learn – he’s an apprentice.”

However, despite his bumpy start, Sugar is confident that Ambrose will grow into his role. “He hasn’t sold Canary Wharf yet, but he’ll get there,” he insisted.

The rumours were true, the b***h from BBC’s Apprentice TV show, Katie Hopkins has joined the I’m A Celebrity camp.

She has already replaced Malcolm McLaren in the Snake Rock team…….just what J needed, another outspoken female!!

Katie Hopkins has been fired for the second time this year. Katie was the villain of this years Apprentice TV show on BBC One, but soon after leaving the show, was fired from her job in the Met Office.
Now it appears she has gotten the sack again, this time from her column in the Exeter Express and Echo. The editor took a poll from the readers, and they voted overwhelmingly to get rid of Mrs Nasty. 341 people voted for her to be fired, while only 66 wanted her to stay.

She told the Daily Mail: “People are always quick to knock those who are successful. Those who are in opposition are always more ready to make their voices heard than those in support.

“I’m glad I had the moral courage to put myself up there and I will continue to do so. If people would rather read about jumble sales and village fetes instead of what I’ve got to say, that’s their choice.”

The newspaper’s editor Marc Astley commented: “It was my decision to hire Katie and I do not regret that. I did not always agree with what she wrote but neither do I agree with many of the letters we publish.

“The result of the vote is unequivocal and so, true to my word, her column will appear no more.”