At long last, the episode that fans of youngest ever candidate (he has mentioned his age, right?) and consummate cliché-spouter Stuart Baggs had been waiting for: the interview round. Surely now the blustering, besuited bullfrog would get his comeuppance?
As ever, Lord Sugar roped in a panel of trusted colleagues to give the remaining five hopefuls a fearsome grilling. Three of the usual middle-aged male bigwigs, plus a genuine treat for us Apprentice fans: his cloud-haired former sidekick Margaret Mountford, making a welcome return. So welcome, in fact, that Baggs mistakenly greeted her like a long-lost friend. Cue a classic Mountford icy stare and eyebrow raise. She also told property developer Jamie Lester he was “puerile” and when Baggs boasted that he’d be “24/7 not 9 to 5”, witheringly added: “And give it 110 per cent, no doubt?”
All four interrogators were in confrontational mood. Cleaning company owner Joanna Riley’s lack of business basics was ruthlessly exposed and she seemed to become less articulate with each scene. Lester was “a loser looking for an escape chute”. Business manager Stella English? “Just a very good PA.” Banker Chris Bates was calmly informed: “You’re a quitter who can’t hack it.” Mountford later mused that Bates was “fixated” on his own academic achievements and muttered: “I wouldn’t be surprised if he’s put his certificates in frames and his idea of a fun night is to sit and admire them.”
Best of all, though, Baggs was finally taken to task over his most notorious boast. “Stuart Baggs the brand?” scoffed Claude Litner, Sugar’s former global trouble-shooter. “What on earth are you talking about? You’re a 21-year-old kid, not a brand.” “I think I might be,” squeaked Baggs, suddenly looking like a schoolboy caught with his pockets full of gobstoppers. Litner continued: “You’re not a big fish. You’re not even a fish.” Anyone listening carefully at this point could have heard cheers from sofas around the land.
Once they were back in the boardroom, the pressure didn’t ease and Sugar barked his typically blunt final analysis of the quintet, before firing three in quick succession. Baggs getting the boot was a strange moment: Sugar blew up the exaggeration on his CV (“You’re full of shit, basically”) but seemed more embarrassed that he’d allowed himself to be suckered by sob stories last week. The Brand’s just desserts weren’t quite as much fun as they should have been. Lester was then dismissed with barely a flicker. Finally, Riley was “with regret”, involving a heartfelt speech from the suddenly soft-hearted tycoon – a genuinely emotional moment amid all the Baggs schadenfreude.
It was intense, thrilling stuff, not least because we learned which two have made it through to Sunday’s final. It’s English vs Bates. Cockney ice maiden vs droning Sloane. Working class hero vs upper class hunk. As the narrator concluded: “Lord Sugar’s search for his apprentice… is almost over.”
