‘I'm honoured'

Winner of the first series, Tim Campbell on becoming Lord Alan Sugar’s eyes and ears...

- ELAINE REILLY

THE APPRENTICE

NEW THURSDAY / BBC1 / 9PM / EP 1 of 12 / REALITY

One of Lord Alan Sugar’s many protégés receives the ultimate accolade when The Apprentice returns to BBC1 for a 16th series this week.

With fan favorite Claude Littner taking a one-season break to recuperate after a serious cycling accident, Lord Sugar has appointed a new aide – entrepreneur Tim Campbell, who won the first series in 2005.

After his triumph on the show, Tim landed a £100,000-a-year job at Lord Sugar’s company, Amstrad.

He left two years later to found the Bright Ideas Trust, a charity to support young people in setting up their own businesses, and he now runs his own digital-growth agency, Marketing Runners.

Here, in an exclusive interview, Tim, 44, tells TV Times what it’s like to sit on the other side of the boardroom table...