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EVEN the publicity picture of the contestants with their "me, me, me" poses, pinstripe suits and stilettos, against a backdrop of Canary Wharf, says it all. The Apprentice, the fifth series of which was launched yesterday but screens next week, is suddenly looking very dated indeed.
That's not allowing for the star himself: Sir Alan Sugar, the former Amstrad electronics boss who was big in, oops, property when the market crashed. Or the prize: £100,000 a year for a traineeship, which in this climate is havin' a larf.
Despite the best efforts of the show's producers to take account of the crunch - mention of Sugar's fortune has been removed and the emphasis is all British with no trips abroad - The Apprentice is past it.
An idea conceived at the height of the boom, purporting to show the toughness of life in go-getting capitalism, is in danger of becoming a symbol of a bygone age. The references to the City where thousands have been sacked and the programme's other accessories now seem redundant.
The contestants' boasting, nauseating at the best of times, now seems risible. "I only let the people I can trust see the softer side of me," says Debra Barr, a senior sales consultant, 24, from Surrey. No, Debra, no - if you want to remain senior you wouldn't say that. And, by the way, just how "senior" are you? We've grown very cynical these past few months about job titles.
In a City where the brightest and the best are turning their backs in droves and heading for the public services and careers such as teaching, Sugar's wannabes are a breed apart. "Business is the new rock '*' roll and I'm Elvis Presley," says Phillip Taylor, an estate agent, 29. Hmm. Phil, hello? Nobody is singing any more.
At the contest's heart is old grizzle chops. With his delivery from the hip and his permanent snarl, Sugar always was a bit of a dinosaur. Unless he reinvents himself, extinction surely beckons.
In real life he's busy promoting the resurrection of the apprenticeship training scheme, which developed skills in manufacturing trades and crafts and was allowed to fall by the wayside as the country rushed headlong into banking and financial services.
None of those new apprentices are on £100,000 a year. The Apprentice - time it was fired?
Reader views (10)
Sir Alan is indeed yesterdays man - his last good innovative idea was the "EMailer" phone - the trouble with that is that he had the idea about 5 years too late, after cheap intyernet connections and free email were the norm. And that idea goes back twenty years now.
Alan - "you're fired!"
- Graham, Ilford Essex
I am usually against people with titles, being put in to office because of it, however, I think that Alan Sugar would make a better job than the present holder. Alan Sugar, how sweet !
T H Leeds
- Thomas Hayes, Leeds UK
Sir Alan Sugar is a cool dude! we need the Aprentice - it's fun! dont knock it! and property will rise again... so will his wealth!
- Graham Grimshaw, Ruislip Uk
Maybe we should judge the programme after we have actually seen it? It's not even been aired yet, for goodness sake. Talk about getting your retaliation in first.
- Nobby Clark, Perth, Scotland
Sorry you readers but Chris is absolutely right; times have changed he is ahead of the curve. I find this programme repellent, it just demonstrates how many ghastly people there are around wanting to destroy others for their own greed!
- Sheila, london uk
Am I alone i thinking most of the candidates are 'fair-weather' business people.Most seem to be in wishy-washy 'consultancy jobs and lack even the most basic skills - unless you value shouting,swearing and self-possession.
Most of them are from the generation that has never (until now) experienced an econmoic downturn. This series will, in fact, be fascinating because we'll see for the first time if they actually have anything to offer and whether they have real sales skills and entreprenurial spirit or whether they've been indulged by a benign economy. I know which way I'm betting.
- Pablo, Kent
I think the programme has many more years to run and in theory is a great idea. Alan Sugar champions business and the success of young people and he is great for the UK. The show may seem outdated in the fact that more and more the contestants are self-indulgent, wanting to win/succeed regardless of cost to anyone or anything but is that not a reflection of what the viewing audience want to see? How many would tune in to see determined individuals who played 'nice'
- Pat, London
The show, like its US counterpart, is an embarassment. Young people would be far better off watching reruns of Trouble Shooter with Sir John Harvey Jones, than this.
- Hugh, Birmingham, UK
Come on Chris-a show this good doesn't rise and fall on the twists and turns of the economy-eventually it will come to the point where making new shows is pointless because the audience will increasingly feel they have seen it all...but whether that's this series or series 6, 7, 8, 9 or 10 remains to be seen. The Zeitgeist may have shifted a little but it won't be the end for this show.
- Jason Stone, Stratford, Newham
I think you underestimate the appeal of the programme. It's about watching a group of people backstab each other while sucking up to some businessman. And what you fail to notice is that a £100,000 job, given the climate now, is even more worthwhile, which should make it even more entertaining as these lot go for it.
- Lee, Birmingham
