The Apprentice (British TV series)

The Apprentice is an British business-themed reality television show. Each series, a group of young entrepreneurs compete to win a £250,000 investment in their business plans from billionaire businessman and member of the House of Lords, Alan Sugar.   

 Game 
A group of contestants compete in several business-themed challenges over multiple weeks. They are split into two teams for each challenge. The challenges usually involve advertising, product design, negotiations, and selling to the public. Each team chooses a leader ("project manager") to make important decisions. After the teams have completed the challenge, they go to Lord Sugar's boardroom, where the results of the challenge are announced. The winning team is usually rewarded with a prize while the losing team must stay in the boardroom and discuss with Lord Sugar and his two assistants, Karren Brady and Tim Campbell, about why they think the team failed. Lord Sugar will then eliminate the person (or people) who he thinks either caused the team's failure or is the weakest contestant by saying "you are fired".  

The team challenges come to an end when there is only five contestants left (or four in some series). These remaining contestants are interviewed by a team of Lord Sugar's advisers. In the first six series, the interviews were about the contestants' potential to get a job at one of Lord Sugar's businesses. Since series 7, the interviews have been about the contestants' business ideas that they want Lord Sugar's money for. After the interviews stage, only two contestants remain. These contestants are given a final challenge (since series 7, it has been to advertise their business) with the help of some former eliminated contestants. After the final challenge, Lord Sugar decides the winner.  

In series 4, four contestants survived the interviews because Lord Sugar was impressed with more than two. For the final, the finalists competed in teams of two in the challenge. Lord Sugar picked the winner from the winning two. In series 7, the interviews stage was the final challenge. In series 13, Lord Sugar picked two winners. 

 Overview 

 Main series 
SeriesYearWinnerContestantsEpisodesSpecialsAverage viewers per episode
(In millions)12005Tim Campbell141222.6022006Michelle Dewberry04.4332007Simon Ambrose1625.6242008Lee McQueen47.2952009Yasmina Siadatan28.3762010Stella English7.8772011Tom Pellereau8.8082012Ricky Martin7.3592013Leah Totton7.34102014Mark Wright207.40112015Joseph Valente187.33122016Alana Spencer7.28132017James White6.94Sarah Lynn142018Sian Gabbidon167.32152019Carina Lepore7.17162022Harpreet Kaur7.09172023Marnie Swindells1806.54182024Rachel Woolford6.01192025Dean Franklin5.63202026TBA20TBA

 Spin-off series 

 The Apprentice: You're Fired! 
The Apprentice: You're Fired was a talk show which airs directly after each episode of the main show. The presenter, usually accompanied by well-known television personalities, interview the contestant(s) who has been fired in the most recent episode.

 Celebrity Apprentice 
Unlike the American version of the show, the British Celebrity Apprentice seasons has two teams competing in only one special task, which is spread across two episodes. All money is donated to Comic Relief. These special episodes have been released in 2007, 2008, 2009, 2019, and 2025.
 Young Apprentice 
Young Apprentice, first titled as Junior Apprentice, was a spin-off series which ran between 2010 and 2012. It had a similar format to the original show, with the winner having £25,000 invested in their future.
YearTitleWinnerContestantsChallengesHostAdvisors2010Junior ApprenticeArjun Rajyagor106Alan SugarKarren BradyNick Hewer2011Young ApprenticeZara Brownless1282012Ashleigh Porter-Exley

 Other websites 

Category:2000s British reality television series
Category:2005 British television series debuts
Category:2010s British reality television series
Category:2020s British reality television series
Category:BBC One television series
Category:BBC Two television series
Category:British reality television series
UK
Category:British English-language television shows
Category:Television series set in London
Category:Television series by Fremantle (company)