The Apprentice finalist says gruelling filming schedule and show interviews ‘left me in tears’

The Apprentice finalist Camilla Ainsworth has spoken about her time on the show, reflecting on how tough the filming process was. Camilla was only 22 when she was in the boardroom, and has said the intense filming schedule and interviews left her in tears.

You probably remember Camilla being part of the show. She was in the 2018 series, and went head to head with Sian Gabbidon to secure investment from Lord Sugar. Camilla impressed industry experts with her nut milk brand – narrowly missing out on the win to swimwear brand owner, Sian.

via BBC

Ahead of the new series – which starts on BBC tonight – Camilla said she has “no regrets” about going on the show but said it is “so much harder than it seems”. She revealed there is no behind-the-scenes assistance for candidates, who are expected to film from 3am on some days, and endure “brutal” interrogation interviews and challenges, on very few hours of sleep.

Camilla now works as a business consultant, and said at times she ended up crying because of the show, and so did her fellow candidates. “I wanted to go on the show because I was always an avid viewer,” she said. “I quickly discovered it is a well-oiled machine. It’s a show like no other.”

She confirmed everything you see on the show is real – even the early starts. “You only get three to five hours sleep per night,” she said. “The boardroom is like no atmosphere you’ll ever experience. It goes on for hours and nobody is allowed to speak out of turn.”

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Camilla said when she was on the show she would get an average of four hours sleep per night, and around the tasks, the candidates’ days have “no set structure”. She said: “You’ll often get to bed super late, and you don’t know what time you’ll be woken up. You wake to cameras in your face – not a very peaceful start to the day either.”

She said the boardroom experience is “petrifying” and can “go on for hours” but by far, the hardest part of being on the show was the interview process. Iconically, Camilla entered her 2018 interview by saying “yoo hoo” to Claude. “Six hours of being grilled in back-to-back interviews – it was brutal,” she said. “Every single one of us cried that day. We were all torn apart.”

Camilla said that despite all this, she has no regrets for going on the show. “It was the hardest but one of the best things I’ve ever done,” she said, adding that she and her fellow candidates are still all in a Whatsapp chat together. Cute!

The Apprentice 2023 starts on the BBC on January 5th. For all the latest reality TV gossip, news and memes – follow The Holy Church of Love Island on Facebook. 

Related stories recommended by this writer:

• The Apprentice winner sued Lord Sugar and only had £90 following show tribunal case

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• Ok so just how rich is Lord Sugar and how did he make his money?

All quotes via SWNS.