Mothers rule the Apprentice
Four of the last five are women – three with children
THE Apprentice reaches its semifinal tonight – with working mothers making up three of the five remaining hopefuls.
Such has been the march of the female contestants this year that there is only one man left in the running to receive £250,000 investment from Alan Sugar.
Tonight the BBC1 series gets to the tough interview stage, when the tycoon’s closest advisers will grill all five and pick apart their business plans.
But for the three mothers – Grainne McCoy, Frances Bishop and Jessica Cunningham – the most challenging aspect during the weeks of filming is likely to have been the separation from their children.
Contestants have to hand over their phones at the beginning of filming and are then given little contact with their families.
These restrictions are likely to be have been particularly demanding for Miss Cunningham, 29, who has single-handedly raised her three daughters.
Mrs Bishop, who is married to Scunthorpe United footballer Neal Bishop, has been separated from her son Oscar, while Miss McCoy has hardly seen her son Ryan, whom she had while still at school.
In week four another working mother, Aleksandra King, quit the competition, blaming the lack of contact she was allowed with her children.
Her decision was criticised by Miss McCoy, who said that she was ‘clearly not strong enough’. And Mrs Bishop said: ‘I sure as hell didn’t leave my boy for ten weeks to come here and be a loser.’
Here we profile the five semi-finalists. Only two will make it through to the final, to be shown on Sunday night.
THE FASHIONISTA
Jessica Cunningham, 29, is a single mother with three daughters, Poppy, Olive and Hattie.
She founded Famous Frocks when she was 25, and had her children with her business partner. She has since set up her own women’s fashion brand, Prodigal Fox.
Having children has motivated her to do better, she says. ‘I have always had the drive to do well, but since having children the drive is definitely maximised. It’s always hard being the breadwinner, because you have got three people who rely on you.’
During the series she struggled as project manager of an early task but has impressed Lord Sugar with her skill at making sales.
THE MAKE-UP QUEEN
Grainne McCoy, 31, had a child when she was only 16, going back to school a month later. Raised in Northern Ireland with four siblings, she does make-up for feature films and video shoots, and runs her own make-up studio near her parents’ home.
She impressed Lord Sugar early on but struggled to make decisions when project managing a task based at the Liberty department store in London. She also appeared to get drunk on a gin-making task.
THE POCKET ROCKET
Mother-of-one Frances Bishop, 25, owns a children’s clothing company.
As a child, she was a world karate champion and a competitive Irish dancer. The self-described ‘pocket rocket’ went to Durham University but dropped out.
While working as a barmaid at Notts County football club she met footballer Mr Bishop, and they married and had a baby. She then went on to found her children’s clothing company, The Pud.
On The Apprentice her engagement with clients and research skills have impressed Lord Sugar, but she has won only one task.
THE HIPPY
Cake company owner Alana Spencer, 24, was brought up in a family of ‘hippy travellers’. She set up her first business at school, making cards – and sacked her best friend when they were 14 because she wasn’t fast enough. She started selling cakes as a teenager, leaving school at 18 after receiving a grant to start a small kitchen. She now sells cakes to festivals and country shows, and employs her boyfriend as a salesman. She is the youngest person in this year’s series. Lord Sugar’s assistant Karren Brady has since described her as ‘steely’.
LAST MAN STANDING
Courtney Wood, 29, lives with his parents in Linford, Essex, where he runs his own business designing and selling novelty gifts. He got a first class degree in industrial design technology and went on to work for a gift company as a designer.
After taking a year out in Australia, he started his own business with £20,000 of his own money. Three years later he is selling to 17 countries. The Apprentice judges have been consistently impressed with him, although in one episode he showed himself to be a poor salesman.