Lord Alan Sugar said The Apprentice was “back with a big bang” as the candidates jetted off to Antigua for the first episode following the lifting of all Covid-19 restrictions before they filmed the series.
The 17th series of the BBC reality show featured 18 new candidates all competing to win a life-changing investment of £250,000 from Lord Sugar. The candidates were thrown into the deep end as the series kicks off with a trip to the Caribbean, where they will be tasked with creating and selling excursions to tourists.
Lord Sugar told the PA news agency before the series began: “Last year we were restricted by Covid in what we could do and what we couldn’t do because of the health warnings. So this year, we decided… let’s come back with a big bang.
“So I said: ‘Let’s go somewhere great to really kick off well.’ You should see the the candidates’ faces when I said to them: ‘Right your first task you’re going to Antigua’, that’s wonderful. Also for the audience it will be a great kick-off for the process.”
Here are the candidates who battled to win Lord Alan Sugar’s £250,000 business investment. The Apprentice to aired from Thursday January 5 on BBC One and iPlayer.
Additional reporting by PA
13. Simba Rwambiwa
The senior sales representative from Birmingham is a self-confessed “perfectionist” who always wants to get things right. He added: “If people can’t buy into you, they’ll never buy anything from you.” Photo: Ray Burmiston/BBC
14. Shannon Martin
West Yorkshire bridal boutique owner Martin is hoping her first business partner will be Lord Sugar. She said: “I think it’s a really good opportunity for him; he’s never been in the bridal business before.” Photo: Ray Burmiston/BBC
15. Reece Donnelly
Donnelly, who owns a theatre school in Glasgow, said he is the youngest chief executive of a further education college in the UK and is set on becoming the first Scottish candidate to win the show. He said: “I’m here to prove that Scotland is filled with forward-thinking entrepreneurs and that we are not in fact a haggis-eating, kilt-wearing nation.” Photo: Ray Burmiston/BBC
16. Megan Hornby
The owner of Sweet Shop and Cafe from east Yorkshire said she has found a “gap in the market” with her business idea and believes with investment it could be “nationally recognised”. She added: “I think that no matter what situation I am thrown into, I will always give 100% truth, even if it’s hard to hear. I always believe that honesty is the most important thing in business.” Photo: Ray Burmiston/BBC