The Apprentice fired candidate Pamela Laird interview: 'It was the perfect time to go'

This year's third-placed contestant thinks Lord Sugar made the right decision

The latest Apprentice candidate to be fired by Lord Sugar has been revealed – and she's honoured to have finished in third place.

For the latest episode, the final five candidates took part in the dreaded interviews with four of the business tycoon's most trusted advisers, including right-hand man Claude Littner.

Falling short of the final two was beauty brand owner Pamela Laird, though, who was sent home alongside Lottie Lion (who has been banned from press interviews) and Lewis Ellis after their business plans was put under scrutiny.

Following her firing, we spoke with Pamela about why she stayed out of this year's many dramas, her reason for getting so emotional in the interviews and who she's backing for the win.

You were so close!

I know. Look, it's one of those things. Firstly, I didn't pack enough clothes to get to the interviews. But secondly, when it was just us three in the boardroom at the end, I realised we all have amazing businesses, we're all established and are all turning over a profit. The two girls have been so incredible throughout the process, so I thought, "Whatever happens here, we're all on a par." It was disappointing, but equally I know that two amazing girls are in the final now.

Why do you think Lord Sugar fired you at the final hurdle?

It definitely came across that it was my lack of product availability for my brand Moxi Loves. But I think it also has to do with with businesses he feels he can make a difference in – Scarlett's is recruitment, Carina's is bakery – and they might just be particularly more interesting industries for him. I definitely took the feedback and so we actually launched a new product this week, so now we have three!

Do you think that if he hadn't previously invested in a beauty business, you might have made the final?

Potentially. There is difficulty in going up against the business that he has, because they obviously have over 100 products, so of course he naturally had a comparison in his mind about where I fit in. You want your business partner to be really excited and enthusiastic and I think if he wasn't feeling it, it was the perfect time to go.

Did you ever worry you didn't have as much boardroom chemistry with Lord Sugar in the same way that someone like Thomas did?

I don't think so, because I was able to speak to him quite well. The only thing I felt I was lacking in the first few weeks was being outspoken enough. Maybe it's the Irish in me, but I'm just quite modest and didn't need to shout about the things that I accomplished on a task. That wouldn't have been my style. But then I learnt that actually this was Lord Sugar's chance to see me – if you're employed by someone and you don't tell your boss what you did, how are they going to know? So I was definitely more mindful about being more outspoken so he'd get to see me a bit more. It took me a few weeks to get used to that.

You stayed out of the fights – was that a conscious decision?

Well, a lot of people had disagreements in the boardroom that didn't really revolve around me. I just got on with people. I think people falling out with each other consumed a lot of the boardroom and, from my point of view, I didn't really have that experience. I worked well with almost all the candidates.

You were clearly there for professional reasons, so did you find it frustrating when others were enjoying being on the camera perhaps a bit too much?

I didn't necessarily experience that. Obviously when you watch the show back you get to see the other team, and you can definitely see patterns in people, but at the end of the day, it's an entertainment show and I feel like as we got into the final five – and now with the the final two – real businesses are there and that's what's important. I worked so well with people and I have to say the people I was put on tasks with were hard workers.

Were the interviews as terrifying as they seem?

Oh, completely – and even more so. It really brought me back watching it – I was so stressed. I think anything would have set me off, especially bringing up my mum because I missed her so much at that stage. Claude made me cry, because I felt I wanted to make him proud as he's been watching us this whole time. I wanted him to think I was an investable person. I took everything that he said on board because I know that he knows me and has looked into my business thoroughly. I will apply his advice to my business, definitely.

Who are you backing for the win?

Oh, it's Carina all the way. She's just incredible. She's applied herself on every task, there's nothing she can't do and she makes the best lemon drizzle cake on the planet. She's honestly one of the nicest people I've ever met.

What's next for you?

We've just launched my brand Moxi Loves' third product. We're launching it to Primark next week and to Boots in 2020, so it's growing. I'm really excited, but I really need an investor, so that's my next thing right now.

The Apprentice final will be broadcast next Wednesday at 9pm on BBC One