SIXTEEN BE-SUITED HOPEFULS will be revealed on BBC1 tonight as the chosen ones who will fight tooth and nail to be named winner of the newest series of The Apprentice.

But if they’re hoping to impress Sir Alan Sugar (or ‘Suralan’ as he’s better known) with details of their high-flying education, they may look elsewhere.

The boss of the UK Apprentice has told The Telegraph that he believes university is a waste of time. He’s told the paper that he doesn’t think his life would have turned out any differently had he spent three years in college. He says:

The thing is, I’ve been to the university of life, you see, and you can say to these people who come out with their two-point-ones, or whatever, that’s fine but you know nothing. We’re going to put you into a practical environment now where you begin to learn.

And that’s exactly what the 16 have ahead of them as the latest series gets underway. The Mirror reports that the first task facing the teams in tonight’s episode will be to make a profit selling fruit and veg.

There’s a bit of a difference with the prize for this series. Instead of winning a job in one of Suralan’s companies, the victor will be given a quarter of a million pound investment to kick-start their own company.

Business savvy Irish hopefuls with ambitions to impress our own Suralan, Bill Cullen, are too late if they haven’t already tried out for the latest series on TV3. The application process closed last week. The Irish Apprentice will also see the winner receive a lump sum of €100,000 to put into a new business.

Sir Alan Sugar is known for his quick mouth. Here are some of his best tongue lashings…

To The Apprentice candidates:

Could be you’re here because you’re good with words and know the right thing to say at the right time. I know the words to Candle in the Wind. It don’t make me Elton John.

To candidate Paula:

Well you know how to work out redundancy on a calculator, don’t you?

To Location Location Location host (and Celebrity Apprentice contestant) Kirstie Allsopp after she called him “uncharitable” on Twitter:

What a lying cow. Kirstie Allsopp was the worst contestant on celeb apprentice ever…

Firing contestant Kimberly Davis:

You remind me of the final scene from the Wizard of Oz. You look very impressive, but in my opinion, behind the curtains there’s nothing there. You’re fired!