Lord Sugar, the iconic figurehead of The Apprentice, has disclosed the genuine catalyst behind the revival of Celebrity Apprentice, attributing it to the BBC drawing direct inspiration from another of its hit shows. The businessman, who has presided over the BBC One business programme since its inception in 2004, elaborated that the broadcaster observed the remarkable success of a celebrity spin-off format, prompting the return of the series after its last full airing in 2019.
BBC Takes Cue from Celebrity Traitors Triumph
The Celebrity Apprentice made a comeback with a one-off special during the Christmas period, following confirmation that a complete series is currently in development for release later this year. This full-length series, featuring a roster of famous faces, will succeed the ongoing standard edition of The Apprentice, which is scheduled to broadcast on BBC One from Thursday at 9pm.
Lord Sugar pointed to the phenomenal performance of Celebrity Traitors as a pivotal influence. While the rival primetime programme The Traitors has captivated millions of viewers since its debut in 2022, its celebrity iteration last November significantly surpassed the average viewing figures of the original game-show. The latest civilian version concluded with an impressive average of 9.4 million viewers for its finale, yet the Celebrity Traitors final attracted a staggering 15 million people, marking it as the most-watched moment on British television in 2025.
Lord Sugar's Insight on the BBC's Strategic Move
In an interview with the Daily Mail, Lord Sugar articulated the broadcaster's rationale. 'I think that the BBC, in their wisdom, looked at that programme called The Traitors, which has done very well, is doing very well,' he stated. 'They did a celebrity version of it, and that went very well - so I think that what they're thinking is, do a celebrity version of The Apprentice.'
He further highlighted a key distinction for the upcoming series: 'This time, the celebrity winner will have some money to give to a charity, whereas in the past, the celebrity ones that we've done were the celebrities themselves giving up their valuable time because it was all for a charity.' The new series is set to comprise six episodes, necessitating a considerable filming period.
Historical Context and Future Prospects
The Traitors, hosted by Claudia Winkleman, first premiered on BBC One in 2022 and has since aired four successful series, with recent winners Stephen Libby and Rachel Duffy securing the substantial prize money in a tense finale last week. Meanwhile, Celebrity Apprentice returned in December as a two-part Christmas special, filmed to support Children In Need.
That special featured celebrities travelling to Lapland to create and market gingerbread biscuits, with teams led by AJ Odudu and JB Gill competing. Ultimately, JB Gill's team, which developed Gary the Penguin, impressed Lord Sugar the most. Prior to this airing, the BBC announced the first full-length Celebrity Apprentice series, set to debut after the upcoming festive special.
The inaugural Celebrity Apprentice aired in 2007, with subsequent editions in 2009 and 2019, each consisting of only two episodes as part of Comic Relief. However, the programme is now making history by confirming a full six-part series scheduled for 2026.
Anticipation Builds for Celebrity Immersion
Lord Sugar expressed enthusiasm about the forthcoming series, noting, 'We’ve had some great celebrity names walk into my boardroom over the years, but they’ve only ever had a small taster of what it’s like to be a candidate. It’ll be interesting to see how our future celebrities fare across a full series, removing their PAs, PRs, agents and all the other assistance they have in their day-to-day lives to fully immerse themselves into world.'
Kalpna Patel-Knight, Head of Entertainment at the BBC, echoed this sentiment, stating, 'The Apprentice is a much-loved part of the BBC’s entertainment offering and we can’t wait to see how the celebrity candidates rise to the challenge when the series launches later in 2026.'
