The final of The Celebrity Apprentice's festive special for BBC Children in Need has concluded in controversy, with a legion of fans branding the result a 'fix' after it aired on Tuesday, December 30.
A Festive Task in Lapland
The first of two special episodes, which aired on Monday, December 29, saw twelve celebrities travel to Lapland. Their mission was to create and market their own Christmas gingerbread biscuits. The celebrities were split into two teams.
One squad, led by project manager JB Gill, included Tom Skinner, Matt Morsia, Shazia Mirza, Angela Scanlon, and Sarah Hadland. Their rivals, managed by Rob Rinder, comprised Charlie Hedges, AJ Odudu, Jake Wood, Kadeena Cox, and Eddie Kadi.
JB's team invented 'Gary the Penguin', a biscuit with a controversial bubblegum and white pepper flavour. Rob's team countered with 'Jolly Mc Trouble', featuring vanilla and Christmas pudding notes, though their batch was reported to be slightly overbaked.
The High-Stakes Pitch and Surprise Victory
In Tuesday's finale, both teams presented their products to a panel of industry retailers in central London. The promotional efforts were star-studded. JB's team enlisted Rylan Clark and Gladiators stars for their live pitch, while Rob's team played video messages from A-list supporters including Benedict Cumberbatch and Olivia Colman.
In the boardroom, Lord Sugar praised Rob Rinder's team for their compelling product story and Jake Wood's advert. However, in a dramatic twist, victory was awarded based on advance orders secured. JB's team triumphed with 452,000 orders, surpassing Rob's team's 355,500 units.
Viewer Backlash and the Final Firing
The outcome immediately provoked a storm of criticism on social media platform X. One furious viewer posted, 'Fix, how did they win with that crap?!' Another questioned, 'How the f*** did that team win with that diabolical advert.' A third added, 'Shocked that the Gary The Penguin team won. They had the worse TV advert and their flavours were disgusting.'
Not all feedback was negative, with one supporter commenting, 'I'm pleased Gary the Penguin won as even though their ad was awful, the product made far more sense (and the jingle was catchy)!'
Following the loss, project manager Rob Rinder brought Kadeena Cox and Jake Wood back into the boardroom, where Lord Sugar ultimately decided to fire Rob.
The Celebrity Apprentice is available to stream on BBC iPlayer.
