The production company behind the BBC's The Apprentice has been forced to launch a review of its background checking procedures, following the emergence of historic racist and sexist social media posts from an upcoming contestant.
Offensive Posts from a Future Candidate
Levi Hague, a 33-year-old set to star in the forthcoming series, reportedly shared a series of offensive tweets in the early 2010s. The posts, which were visible on his X account until recently, included support for far-right activist Tommy Robinson and used vile language to describe Muslims and women.
According to reports, Hague referred to Muslims as 'dirty', used a derogatory term for women, and labelled police officers as 'pigs'. In one specific tweet from the period, he celebrated the removal of an 'extremist dirty Muslim preacher' from the country.
Production Company's Response and Apology
A spokesperson for Naked, the independent production company behind the hit BBC One show, confirmed Hague had been confronted about the posts and had apologised. The company stated the posts 'do not reflect the man he is now'.
In a statement, the spokesperson said: 'We pride ourselves on producing a series that promotes diversity and inclusion... Levi’s historical posts contain language which is unacceptable.'
The company revealed that while they use third-party providers for social media checks on all candidates, the process 'failed to flag the offensive posts' on this occasion. Consequently, they will be 'reviewing this process moving forward'.
BBC's Serious Stance and a Pattern of Problems
A BBC spokesperson told the Daily Mail they were 'completely unaware' of the comments and are taking the matter 'extremely seriously'. The corporation has demanded 'further assurances' from Naked regarding the robustness of their social media vetting.
This incident follows closely on the heels of another controversy involving a former Apprentice candidate. Just days ago, ex-NHS doctor Dr Asif Munaf was struck off the medical register for a series of antisemitic, racist, and sexist social media posts made between 2023 and 2025. Munaf, who appeared in the 2024 series, was removed from a spin-off show following complaints.
Furthermore, the last series of The Apprentice was embroiled in a separate race row when contestant Jana Denzel quit after being reprimanded for using the outdated term 'coloured'.
In his apology, Levi Hague expressed shame and embarrassment, stating: 'I take full accountability for the publishing of those posts. They are not a reflection of the values I uphold today.' He also confirmed he did not bring the account to the producers' attention during the vetting process.
