BBC bosses spark fury by sending The Apprentice contestants to ‘no expense spared’ ANTIGUA for lavish tour task
WITH the cost of living crisis biting us all, most companies might think twice about flying their people out to the Caribbean.
But no one has informed the BBC - who I’m told have taken the new crop of The Apprentice candidates on a luxurious-sounding excursion to the beautiful island of Antigua.
The group of hopefuls were spotted filming in the paradise this week, as they begged tourists to go on tours they were running for a show task.
Globetrotting antics
A source said: “In these hard times for the BBC, many might expect budgets to be cut and for producers to go for a cheaper option when producing a show like this.
“But clearly no expense was spared as the contestants were all flown out to Antigua for what must be the most luxurious foreign trip the show has ever seen.
“There are always British tourists in Antigua and they could not believe it when they were approached to ask to go on one of the group’s tours as part of the task.
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“Clearly the production team have missed their holidays due to the pandemic so thought to go somewhere they could get a lovely tan.”
The source added: “Surely there’s somewhere closer, and cheaper, they could have taken the hopefuls?”
The Caribbean is a far cry from the previous foreign destinations the show’s wannabes have travelled to for Lord Sugar’s tasks.
Contestants have been asked to sell cheese to the French, sausage- flavoured crisps to Germans and trips to Belgium and Malta.
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It’s thought the scenes being shot earlier this week will go out later this year on BBC1, despite the fact that we’ve only just had a series - won by dessert parlour entrepreneur Harpreet Kaur.
She will have been kicking herself that she didn’t apply a series later. Think of all the ice creams she could have flogged on the beach in Antigua.
I Suspect this cast will cut it
A bearded James Nesbitt appears in new Channel 4 and All 4 thriller Suspect – alongside a long line-up of other famous faces.
The cast also includes Nip/Tuck star Joely Richardson plus Richard E Grant, Anne-Marie Duff, Sacha Dhawan and Sam Heughan.
Telly veteran James admitted: “The calibre of the actors is amazing.”
The eight-part show sees Cold Feet star James play a detective called Danny Frater who arrives at a hospital mortuary for a routine ID check on a young woman. But he’s rocked to the core when he discovers it’s his estranged daughter, Christina.
The post-mortem report suggests she took her own life, but Frater refuses to accept the conclusion and goes in search of the truth.
Each episode sees James perform as a two-hander, with a different actor appearing each week.
He said: “It was a beautifully collaborative experience.”
BIG Bang Theory’s Kaley Cuoco has another TV star boyfriend – sharing snaps of a mountain getaway with Ozark actor Tom Pelphrey. Twice-married Kaley’s exes include Big Bang co-star Johnny Galecki, Gossip Girl’s Damien Dalgaard and Superman Henry Cavill.
Miranda flashes binmen
MIRANDA HART is finally returning with another series of her hit sitcom Miranda, but her home life is surely as funny as anything she could have dreamed up for the new episodes.
The comic has revealed how she accidentally delivered a burlesque show to her binmen when her pet pooch Patti grabbed the cord of her dressing gown as she stepped into the kitchen.
Miranda said: “My puppy expertly pulled my dressing gown apart to reveal my naked body.
“Which would have just been amusing to myself but became a true sitcom moment as Patti has revealed me in all my glory just as I came face to face with the binmen at my kitchen window.
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“I screamed and ducked as quickly as I could, but let’s just say I will never be able to look the binmen in the eye again.”
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I’ll bet the binmen got a shock too.