Lord Sugar on The Apprentice’s sex scandal after candidates were ‘caught in hotel’ – and who could play him in biopic

HIS candidates are asked to sign strict agreements ahead of appearing on The Apprentice that ban them from having sex behind the scenes.

But that doesn’t mean Lord Sugar isn’t prepared to shrug off the BBC One show’s latest ­scandal, which saw two entrepreneurial hopefuls cosying up in a hotel room during filming.

Despite the 77-year-old tycoon introducing the no-nookie rule after previous contestants got down to business, he has no interest in ­dishing out punishments.

Ahead of the first episode of season 19 airing tonight, Lord Sugar said of Amber-Rose Badrudin and Keir Shave’s antics, revealed in The Sun: “I can’t have any input into it, it’s just human nature. It’s attraction to the opposite sex. What can I do?

“We do keep our eyes on them, but it’s natural. The producers tell them not to, which is effectively me saying it, because they’re reading out my rules.”

This year marks two decades since Lord Sugar first appeared on The Apprentice, in February 2005 — at the time alongside business associates Nick Hewer and Margaret Mountford.

The producers tell them not to, which is effectively me saying it, because they’re reading out my rules.

Lord Sugar on enforcing the show’s rules

Particularly popular with younger viewers, last year’s launch show saw an impressive 6.6million tune in.

To keep the youth demographic hooked, Lord Sugar and the team have embraced technology and AI-based tasks, as well as traditional Apprentice favourites the nine items challenge and the tour challenge.

The tycoon said: “We have to include that because it’s what our younger audiences want to see.

‘I might go on and on’

“The production people are a bunch of very clever people, and they come up with these tasks that include technology, and the first person they have to explain it to is me.

“Before the task, I have to understand it, and I have to make out that I understand it deeply.

“So I do spend quite a bit of time going through it to make sure I ask the right questions.

“We have to have the up-to-date stuff and, currently, people are talking about AI.

“We’re introducing more AI and technology-related challenges because that’s where business is now.

“It’s not just door-to-door sales. It’s e-commerce, digital branding and AI-driven strategy.

“I must say, I think it’s working. Our numbers on BBC One are strong with the younger viewers because they can relate to this new tech-driven world.”

I might go on and on until the funeral director has to stop it, you never know.”

Lord Sugar on hosting The Apprentice

Keeping up with the times means Amstrad owner Lord Sugar has no worries about whether he will be asked by the BBC to return for a 20th series next year — which is yet to be confirmed — or even beyond.

Nor has he considered heading into retirement as he approaches his eighties. “I enjoy doing this, finding young people and putting them in businesses and starting from scratch with them every year,” he explained.

“It’s not been commissioned for more yet, but there’s a good chance.

“I might go on and on until the funeral director has to stop it, you never know. I’m certainly not going to go and smell the roses and start gardening and all that stuff.”

The star is hoping that a big BBC 20th anniversary celebration will include a celebrity Apprentice, which he teased viewers could expect to see confirmed before the current series ends.

“There has been talk of it,” he said. “They’re quite fun, we all do it for charity — and I’m quite open about who takes part, as long as the production people don’t choose Boris Johnson.”

Lord Sugar remains unfazed when it comes to the healthy competition of other business shows on the BBC and big streaming networks such as Netflix and Amazon.

The tycoon says he enjoys watching Dragons’ Den, which also airs on BBC One, though that does not mean he views all the dragons as equal competition.

He said: “I watch it all the time — and Shark Tank, which runs in America — and I do like it.

“Peter Jones and Deborah Meaden, they’re the old legends of the show and have done very well.

“But Steven Bartlett, he’s a mystery to me. I don’t know who he is really. He’s a very good talker and comes across a bit suave and debonair, but I’m not sure what his business is.”

Lord Sugar also appears to have settled any bad blood that existed with Donald Trump, who he has clashed with on social media a number of times throughout his telly career.

The American President formerly presented the US version of The Apprentice, which first aired across the Pond in 2004, before being replaced as host by Arnold Schwarzenegger in 2017.

Nonetheless, Lord Sugar has no plans to go into business with Trump. He explained: “He will tell you that I am in business with him, because he has a little shareholding in The Apprentice format — so he always reminds people, ‘Lord Sugar works for me’.

"But would I go into business with him? I don’t think that opportunity would arise.”

One business deal Lord Sugar is keen to seal involves plans for a biopic about his life, after The Sun exclusively revealed talks had begun on the project last year.

 Not doing anything by halves, he already has high hopes about who would be cast to play him.

He joked: “I’d like to see George Clooney as me — I like him. Or maybe Brad Pitt, but he’d have to dye his hair.

‘I’ve got no sympathy’

“Sadly, there’s nothing confirmed yet. It has gone nowhere, and I’ve got a funny feeling it’s because ­production companies say, ‘Sugar? Nah. Boring’.

“I’m just hoping there’s a writer out there who gets it, and sees the brilliance of my life story, because certainly there’s enough stuff over the past two decades that they can make something great.”

Last year, sources said Lord Sugar had even considered a TV drama inspired by his life story, in a move away from conventional, fly-on-the-wall documentaries.

The Apprentice has come in for ­criticism in recent years for its Love Island-style candidates, who viewers slammed as overly glamorous, suggesting some were using their appearance on the show to gain social media clout.

And this year, a number of those vying for Lord Sugar’s cash already have social media followings, which they use to drive business back to the product or service they sell.

However, the boardroom boss respects that, while it is a far cry from how he started his own business nearly six decades ago, the social media market is one of ample opportunities.

He said: “When it comes to influencers, very few  are successful. But some have become relatively successful and then turned into suppliers of their own products.

“It’s different to renting a shop in Kensington High Street but, nevertheless, they still have something to sell, and it doesn’t matter if they’re doing that behind a desk or sitting in front of a screen.”

Lord Sugar appears more open-minded than ever going into the new series, which features sports stars, a tutoring firm owner, a mug maker and a hair transplant consultant.

Nonetheless, he knows what he is looking for in his next winner.

And he will not be holding back when it comes to firing those who fail to make the cut.

“I like it when someone makes something, produces something or sells a product,” he said. “I don’t like all this, ‘I’m bringing out a website’, because I’m into manufacturing and selling.

“Negotiating and selling is a great interest to me. There will be some multiple firings in the coming series — which is not just for the sake of getting rid of them and getting the numbers down, it’s for a very, very good reason.

“This year, I spice it up a bit more, put a bit more pressure on them when things go wrong.

“I’m very sympathetic with the people at week one. They’ve been through a very stringent audition process. By the time it’s week six, I’ve got no sympathy for them.

“If you haven’t got it by then, I get a little annoyed. It gets steamy in places, let’s put it that way.”

• The Apprentice airs Thursdays at 9pm on BBC One.