Sir Alan to choose his Apprentice

Sir Alan Sugar says he is giving his Apprentice finalists "another crack of the whip" by shaking up the format of the hit BBC One reality programme.

The show, to be aired at 2100 BST, sees four finalists battle it out for a job with Sir Alan instead of the usual two.

Viewers will see Helene Speight and Alex Wotherspoon go up against Lee McQueen and Claire Young.

Sir Alan said: "It gets difficult for me right at the end to decide who should go through."

'Hunger'

He told BBC Breakfast: "When you are stuck on who to get rid of... I just felt I had a task and it was easy to make two teams and really give it a sense of competition and give them all another crack at the whip.

"I'm looking for a very rounded kind of person, not just a good salesperson, but someone who can motivate, is determined and has a hunger for the job.

The finalists are (l-r) Helene, Claire, Alex and Lee

Profiles: Apprentice finalists

"They are the kind of boxes that need to be ticked in order to get the job."

The final programme gives contestants one week to create an original male fragrance.

They will launch their scent to 100 industry experts, including top names Givenchy, Roja Dove and Estee Lauder.

Each team will be seen choosing three of the previously fired candidates to help them complete the task.

Inquiry

The unsuccessful team will be grilled on The Apprentice: You're Fired on BBC Two at 2200 BST.

That will be followed at 2240 BST on BBC One by celebratory finale The Apprentice: You're Hired when Sir Alan chooses one of the winning team as the victor.

Twelve of the 16 contestants have been "fired" by Sir Alan since the fourth series of The Apprentice began on 26 March.

Donald Trump, the star of the show's US version, is currently in the UK giving evidence in an inquiry into his plans to build a £1bn golf resort north of Aberdeen.

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