In a dramatic turn of events on BBC's The Apprentice, candidate Kieran McCartney made a swift exit from the show after consecutive task failures, leaving the boardroom before Lord Sugar could officially fire him. The 27-year-old estate agent sealed his fate during Thursday's episode, losing a challenge to create a pet lifestyle brand and product, which also terminated his deal with the business mogul.
The 'Win or Walk' Agreement Backfires
Last week, Kieran struck a bold agreement with Lord Sugar, 79, after landing on the losing team in a live shopping channel task. He proposed: 'I've been project manager twice on the same task, if I stay in this process, I would like to be the project manager on task 10 to prove to you what I can do. If I lose, we shake hands, I walk out.' Lord Sugar granted the request, firing rival Conor Galvin instead, but warned Kieran that the upcoming task had nothing to do with selling houses. Kieran stood firm, replying: 'If I lose, I'll walk.'
Pet Product Failure Leads to Exit
The pact spectacularly backfired when Kieran's cat product failed to attract sales in the latest challenge, missing out on a place in the final five and the chance to secure Lord Sugar's £250,000 investment. Reflecting on his departure, Kieran said: 'It was win or walk. I'm not a beg. I'm not going to beg for my place, a deal's a deal and Lord Sugar hasn't seen the last of me.' He added that his loud personality made him an easy target for blame, but he could have stayed if he had fought for his spot.
Teammate Rothna Akhtar Also Fired
Alongside Kieran's exit, his teammate Rothna Akhtar, who confessed to a fear of animals, was also fired from the process. She expressed disappointment but not shock, stating: 'I was in shock because I was so close to the final five and I just felt this wave of disappointment. But slight relief because it's an intense process. It was gut-wrenching when you're so close to making final five.'
Previous Struggles and Denials
Kieran's downfall began earlier when he failed to make sales on a live shopping channel, struggling to flog a yoga mat and leaving Lord Sugar unimpressed. In a personal revelation, Kieran admitted to past struggles with a cocaine addiction, spending around £500 a week on drugs and using his work phone to contact dealers. However, he insisted he was clean during filming last year, attributing his stress coping to bringing over 200 cigarettes into the candidates' north London house.
He denied claims of being 'wired' on the show, saying: 'The Apprentice was an amazing experience - mentally very stressful. But I'm in a good place now. It didn't even cross my mind once. I would have loved a beer, absolutely. It was summertime. It was hot. But drugs? No. Definitely not.' Kieran, now running his own estate agency, McCartney and Partners, urged critics not to judge a book by its cover.
The Apprentice continues to air on Thursdays on BBC One and is available for streaming on iPlayer, with more high-stakes challenges and firings expected in the coming weeks.
