The Apprentice. Where do they find these idiots?

[Runnermumof2]

Is it just me or is it too painful to watch the incompetence of the contestants on The Apprentice? They seem to specifically bring on people who have zero clue about anything, not even basic life skills.
I actually think I would enjoy watching it if they brought in some intelligent/motivated people. But they seem to only bring in people who have zero skills and an exuberant amount of ego .
I couldn't imagine working alongside any of them, how do they possibly get through the application process ?

I agree but like the way outtakes are funny why otherwise competent people mess up but watching totally incompetent people mess up is just embarrassing, the recent versions are just embarrassing.

I have only watched bits of recent series but when they reach the week where they reveal their businesses it has been rare to see a single invest-able idea amongst them.

It looks to me like it’s all fake/staged and edited heavily. It’s about time they chose contestants with more brain cells and ability than ego, and brought in some more relevant tasks. It’s become stale and silly.

Other competition shows, like sewing bee or great British bake off, also choose contestants for their character and ability to put themselves across on camera, not their cooking or sewing talent; there will be applicants who can cook or sew better but not so good on camera. But they do at least choose people with a reasonable cooking or sewing ability (though the shows have still become a bit stale).

i Watched a few sewing bee but got bored after a few series

and I liked interior design masters but the last series wasn’t as good

DS and I watch the apprentice mainly because it’s familiar and weekly but he has started asking not to watch live so we can ffwd the really cringe bits

I have only watched bits of recent series but when they reach the week where they reveal their businesses it has been rare to see a single invest-able idea amongst them.

When I watched this or a similar programme once, none of the candidates were in any way creative or innovative. None of them had come up with anything new, or making anything which didn't exist before, whether it was food or clothing or art or a digital product or anything else you can think of. It was just different ways of flogging stuff which already existed.

At least writing a children's book is creative.

I stopped watching it years ago for this very reason.

The problem is on the prize

originally the tasks were set up to show they would be good in a corporate setting

now it’s just a cash prize. Would you expect an entrepreneur to have all the corporate skills if they’ve had an amazing, creative idea? Because at that point you get them to focus on the creation while the corporate stuff is outsourced.

get hold of a small company where the founder doesn’t have the skills to make it boom but you do

Agreed , when it started they had much better, more professional people on.
I can’t watch it anymore.

It used to be good first few series. They seemed to actually try and select some people with business acumen first few series but they then went for selecting an bunch of incompetents for the circus cheap laugh factor and it's cheapened it for me. I've not watched the last few series and probably won't watch this one either.

Yes, the repeat business part hits both ways - don't need customer loyalty, but also why should suppliers give them deals? (Why DO they??)

I've even noticed this in quiz shows actually. It's away been a bit of a thing, of course, but the last few years, every quiz show contestant is a "character"!

I know.

I think, like a lot of the BBC output, it’s had its day, they are notorious for churning out the same old rubbish for decades.

A character with a sob story.

Yes the sob story is necessary these days and it’s very wearing!

I've felt manipulated by quiz shows for years. Ever since, in Through the Keyhole, the mystery house had a map of Oxford, a typewriter and a book of crosswords. The celebrity panel waffled on for ages before coming up with the answer that viewers had got immediately. I thought they can't be that dim, and concluded they'd been told to spin it out to fill in time.

I've noticed on all types of programmes that have Joe and Jane Public on - not just the BBC - so many of them are proper show-offs and get on your wick really quickly.

Quiz shows are usually the worst for this.

I totally disagree. Smart competent business people quietly achieving success if EXACTLY what people want to see. Ordinary viewers don't want to see someone who is just a clone of themselves, as if they're some sixth form enterprise day group. It would be so much more interesting as a programme to see REAL business talent, showing viewers how it's done. Then as a viewer you might actually learn something. That's all I ask of my TV programmes. Teach me something I don't know. Don't show me a bunch of attention-seeking thicko clowns who just want to make a bit of money off the back of it on social media. It is so so SO boring.

Or are these shows really aimed at the lowest common denominator of viewer?

Completely agree.

I mean the apprentice is a tv show made for entertainment

the candidates are chosen for entertainment

it’s heavily produced and directed? They want candidates to be egotistical and perform terribly so they put conditions in place to ensure a bad job is done…because that makes good tv

I don't think it is good TV though. Laughing at incompetence feels grubby, they're punching down. When you have quality TV like the Traitors fresh in our memories, the Apprentice looks shabby and tired - even when they're in Hong Kong.

I thought Lord Sugar's comment about how much effort went into the scavenger hunt was telling. All that planning, wasted. It was 40 minutes of watching them get lost. I think even he was regretting the fact they select primarily on who they think will make the best car crash TV, rather than competence in a professional environment.

Found the episode really boring, not sure I can be bothered with this series.

Yes agree that it’s just totally lost its way - you need some basic competence to be shown and ultimately you should come away from the episode discussing the ideas or their method rather than the fact they failed completely

i I think they made a mistake putting this task first. In the past couple of series it has only improved once the numbers have been whittled down and you see their personalities more. They would be better with a task that splits them into smaller groups and they discuss things and ideas

I will watch this weeks episode but if it’s as hopeless as the last one I will find something else to watch!!

It’s just turned into reality tv fodder like Love Island and the like. It’s about brainless entertainment. It didn’t used to be like this, they would hire women with talent, not turkey teeth and hair extensions. Haven’t watched in a few years now.

This is exactly what I was thinking! I just started catching up on the show, with Lord AS celebrating the 20th season, the candidates seem to be as bright as a packet of numb-dumb-nuts. Zero business acumen, men all full of themselves talking initially about “poo”, just a bunch of squabbling turkeys.
Can’t we at least get some intelligence? One of the dudes looks like he was the backup casting for the lead character to Harry Potter.
Where are on earth are they finding these people. More like The Jokester Apprentice for the finale.