The Apprentice; once seen as the epitome of British entrepreneurship, has recently been criticised for being out of fashion. Stella English, Alana Spencer, Leah Totton and Tim Campbell are just a few of the winning candidates from previous years. But how many of these young entrepreneurs achieved success and were we really entertained by their business ventures?
The Apprentice was once a gripping, comical and engaging television programme. Historically, Lord Sugar has designed thrilling business tasks for young entrepreneurs to undertake. The programme has provided some of the juiciest boardroom conflicts ever to be documented on British television and with 6.5 million of us gripped to our screens in 2017, why has recent criticism emerged of Lord Sugar’s television series? Is it really time for him to call it a day?
Lord Sugar and his production team came under fire in a recent Guardian article written by Hannah J Davies where she criticised the repetition and structural changes which have left viewers feeling unsatisfied and quite frankly, bored. Various TV viewers have complained of elements of repetition and pettiness which has dominated the first two episodes of the recent series. Do we really love watching a librarian argue over a sprig of rosemary and is this really an accurate representation of business?
However, I still hold The Apprentice close to my heart. It is humorous (albeit not hilarious), gripping and exciting. It involves creativity and presents business in a competitive and exciting way. Additionally, The Apprentice has provided opportunities and financial growth from the generous investments and expertise provided by Lord Sugar during and after the documentation of the programme. Whilst the winning candidates haven’t achieved huge levels of fame, Lord Sugar has contributed to huge business growth and inspired other young entrepreneurs through the programme.
It is true that the programme often contains the same stereotypes of entrepreneurs: the bitchy candidate, the mature candidate, the young man with a dream candidate and often the shy but very skilled candidate. These candidates often provide the same arguments, ideas and discussions year on year and admittedly, it can be slightly nauseous to watch the continuous squabbles every week. Nevertheless, it is still entertaining and I personally love seeing the range of tasks, personalities and business ideas presented in the show.
The Apprentice has become a staple in British television, and I believe is a valuable and entertaining programme which deserves to stay there. The success stories and the entertainment we, as viewers, receive is continuously gripping and engaging. Nevertheless, Lord Sugar needs to add new twists and a greater variety of personality types to his candidates to reduce criticism and to maintain the popularity of his competitive television show.
Image Credit: Radio Times