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The Apprentice 2016: Meet the candidates hoping to become Lord Sugar’s new business partner

These are the 18 hopefuls who'll be taken to task in the boardroom

Jacob Stolworthy
Monday 16 October 2017 17:54 BST
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Lord Alan Sugar meets his latest batch of entrepreneurial hopefuls on The Apprentice
Lord Alan Sugar meets his latest batch of entrepreneurial hopefuls on The Apprentice (BBC)

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A bunch of smartly dressed individuals intent on showcasing their entrepreneurial bite with entertainingly outlandish statements; the dramatic sounds of Prokofiev's “Montagues and Capulets” – it can only mean one thing; Lord Sugar’s hunt for a business partner is almost upon us.

Series 12 of BBC business competition The Apprentice is returning on Thursday 6 October with Lord Sugar set to be joined by aides Karren Brady and Claude Littner who returns for his second series.

The 18 brave souls who’ll be entering the boardroom in the hope of securing Sugar’s £250,000 investement have been unveiled – scroll through below to get a gauge of what to expect.

This year’s candidates include Jessica Cunningham – owner of an online fashion company – Essex boy Courtney Wood and IT consulting company owner Karthik Nagesan, who claims if he wanted to be like everyone else, he’d “have waxed [his] monobrow”.

The new series’ first task will test the candidates’ skills in negotiation and selling, with each team attempting to spot the rough diamonds among a stash of antiques and collectibles.

Other tasks to expect throughout the series will see candidates devise an advertising campaign for jeans, manufacture a range of sweets, design virtual reality games and host “late night opening” events at well-known attractions.

Last year’s series was won by Joseph Valente, who beat Vana Koutsomitis to become Lord Sugar’s business partner.

BBC2 fallout show You're Fired will see Rhod Gilbert replace Jack Dee as host.

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