“The public no longer wants ‘really meaningful’ interviews,” says Claude Littner.
Claude Littner has said he will be less harsh on the contestants on The Apprentice when he returns to the BBC show for the interview stages.
The 72-year-old business magnate will return for the penultimate episode of The Apprentice on March 17 to help Lord Alan Sugar decide which businessman to invest £250,000 in.
Littner was on the show from seasons 11 to 15 as a mentor to Lord Sugar but was unable to join this season as he is still recovering from serious injuries after falling off his e-bike in April 2021. .
When asked about his interviewing technique, he said that it is important to “interrogate” the finalists but that the public no longer wants to see a “really meaningful” interview. .
Lord Sugar with the nominees on this year’s show (BBC/PA)
He said: “I have aged with age but the important thing is that when we get to the interview stage, we actually interrogate the finalists.
“At this stage in the process, candidates are apprehensive, full of confidence, and they think they’re brilliant.”
He added: “You can’t expect a polite, soft interview because that’s not the idea. Very quickly, the interviewer has to get to the core and uncover all these different factors.
“All that said, I also think the truth of the matter is that both the viewers and the really mean-spirited preferences in general have changed.
“In this day and age, a change of approach is probably more appropriate, and I certainly don’t think of myself as outspoken as I have been.”
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Tim Campbell, winner of the first series of The Apprentice in 2005, replaced Littner in season 16.
Littner raised viewers’ hopes on March 3 when he posted on twitter confirming that he would be returning for the next movie.
He said he’s “very optimistic” about returning for the next season of The Apprentice, but is currently focused on finding out this year’s show’s winner.
The penultimate episode of The Apprentice will air on Thursday 17 March at 9pm on BBC One and BBC iPlayer.
https://www.independent.ie/entertainment/public-no-longer-want-really-mean-apprentice-interviews-says-claude-littner-41424036.html “The public no longer wants ‘really meaningful’ interviews,” says Claude Littner.