The Apprentice: Full cast of contestants for 2026 series revealed - including candidate who has already apologised for social media posts

The BBC business competition show will return to screens at 9pm on Thursday, January 29 as Lord Sugar prepares to pick a new candidate to receive his £250,000 investment into their business. Joining him as his advisors include returning stars Tim Campbell MBE and Baroness Karren Brady.

This year’s series may still b3e days away from airing on television, but there has already been controversy for one candidate. Levi Hague apologised after sexist and racist social media posts made in the early 2010s resurfaced which had been missed by the vetting team during the casting process.

While he is set set to be included in the pre-recorded series, the BBC is said to be discussing whether he will make an appearance on spin-off show The Apprentice: You’re Fired, which is filmed week-to-week as contestant leave the process.

The BBC said in a statement: “We were completely unaware that this contestant had made such abhorrent comments. We have asked the independent production company to fully review the social media checks undertaken given the process has clearly failed in this instance. The views presented are totally unacceptable and we are taking this extremely seriously.”

Despite this controversy, the 20th series of the flagship programme is set to hit screens in a matter of days. The full list of this year’s candidates are below:

Vanessa Tetteh-Squire

Tech project manager, London

Vanessa is a budding entrepreneur who owns her own swimwear brand that specialises in creating pieces for women with larger busts.

Vanessa, who is from Enfield in north London, is confident that both she and Lord Sugar will get along in the process, saying that “clear communication and bold thinking are what drive success.”

Roxanne Hamedi

Pharmacist, Aberdeen

Roxanne is hoping to earn Lord Sugar’s endorsement and investment to help fund her business venture - a beauty brand which specialises in combatting hair loss. She launched the business after her own experiences with hair loss.

Roxanne has said that her friends would describe her as “fiery, sassy chilli-pepper pocket rocket, charismatic, caring, unafraid of risks, and never embarrassed to be my goofy, authentic self”

Tanmay Hingorani

AI product consultant, London

Tanmay is using his expertise in the AI sector to launch his business, which is an AI-power digital loyalty and marketing platform that allows food and drink businesses connect with customers.

He is also planning to depend on his strategic mind in the process, with Tanmay being an experienced chess player. He has said that he believes that his and Lord Sugar’s “skills would compliment each other”.

Rothna Akhtar

Student wellbeing adviser, London

Rothna may spend her work time offering support to students in east London, but she is hoping that Lord Sugar will add a bit of sweetness to her sideline bakery business.

Her bakery business isn’t a huge departure from her day job, as she hopes to “revolutionise” the industry and combine the cake and wellness sectors with interactive baking workshops and bespoke occasion cakes. She added that her “kindness should never be taken for weakness, as I won’t let anything get in my way that limits my potential”.

Priyesh Bathia

Global account manager, London

Priyesh is aiming to launch his cocktail business into a national brand and is aiming to win Lord Sugar’s investment to help him do so. The global account manager from Harrow in north London has had vision of seeing his brand on supermarket shelves, as well as expanding into a mobile cocktail bar.

He has described himself as the “perfect mix of charm and hustle who’s confident, quick-thinking, and not afraid to get stuck in”.

Rajan Gill

Pharmaceuticals specialist, Kent

Rajan is looking for investment to help launch and establish his business, which focuses on mounting TVs in customers’ homes and building bespoke media walls. He is aiming to tap into the new-build market, working with homebuilders using his company for optional extras for new homebuyers.

He has also earned his stripes on the construction sites, explaining that he is used to “both sides of business: the boardroom and the physical graft”.

Pascha Myhill

Recruitment consultant, Reading

Pascha is the baby of this year’s group of candidate at just 21 years old, but she believes her young age in fact give her an advantage as she is adaptable and able to do things differently. The recruitment consultant from Reading is hoping to launch her own private healthcare recruitment company with Lord Sugar’s investment.

Pascha has described herself as a “free thinker, not always following the usual rules”, adding that she often comes out with “the most random things without a filter”.

Nikki Jetha

Mortgage broker, Essex

Nikki looks toward the Kardashians as her inspiration in business and motherhood, in particular Kim Kardashian who she describes as a “powerhouse”. She said that the famous family has “redefined what is to be a modern-day businesswoman, proving that you can be glamourous, family orientated and the complete boss all at once. You can have it all.

The proud mum is hoping to build a business that streamlines the mortgage industry for homebuyers. Her work in the sector in the past few years has seen her rise to the ranks of being one of the “top mortgage advisors in the UK”.

Megan Ruiter

Clothing brand owner, Liverpool

Megan was used to knuckling down while her peers at university were out partying, with the candidate instead staying in and teaching herself to sew. She now owns a bespoke clothing brand, pieces from which have been seen on stars such as Love Island’s Maura Higgins, Elma Pazar, and TOWIE’s Jess Wright.

There is no downtime for Megan, who owns two other businesses, with the entrepreneur saying that she does not “know what a 9-5 job is because my work life is 24/7.”

Marcus Donkoh

Barber shop owner, London

Marcus started his hairdressing career by cutting hair at his mum’s home and has since gone on to open his own barber shop in south London. He is hoping that with Lord Sugar’s backing, he will be able to build his business into a global grooming and lifestyle conglomerate, with a presence in locations such as New York, Dubai, and Tokyo.

While he has worked hard to build up his career so far, he also admits that be love a bit of banter, adding: “All work and no play will ruin Marcus’s day.”

Levi Hague

Ex-RAF gunner, Doncaster

Former RAF gunner Levi is hoping to earn Lord Sugar’s investment to help build up his pet cremation business into a globally recognised brand. He is also a former HGV driver and said that his trajectory show that “anyone can turn pain into purpose”.

Levi has already found himself in the midst of controversy before the series has even launched after he was found to have made racists and sexists posts on social media, including referring to women as “sl*gs” and muslim people as “dirty”. He apologised for the posts saying: “I take full accountability for the publishing of those posts. They are not a reflection of the values I uphold today.”

Lawrence Rosenberg

Public relations specialist, Watford

Lawrence is aiming to use his expertise in the PR field to led a transformation of the sector. His business plan involves him reinventing “public relations for the modern era, delivering smarter, faster, and more transparent PR through intelligent automation.” He added that PR is “one of the only major sectors that hasn’t undergone a meaningful tech-led transformation”.

Lawrence has said that he has a friendly personality and believes that “authenticity is the best recipe” in business and life.

Karishma Vijay

Beauty brand owner, Surrey

Karishma is following in the footsteps of her family in business, but is breaking boundaries by being the first women in her family to do so. She has admitted that he has entered The Apprentice 2026 process purely to find a business partner and does not consider herself a committed viewer of the BBC series.

Karishma added that she feels an affinity with Lord Sugar as “we both came from nothing and started from scratch”, adding that she has been supporting her entire family since her started earning money.

Kieran McCartney

Estate agent, London

Kieran is an experienced estate agent with 10 years of experience in the property sector under his belt. He believes that his sales skills make him “stand out” and has often heard other people describing him as “a hungry, motivated, and super positive person who consistently goes above and beyond for his clients”.

He is hoping that Lord Sugar will spot this spark in him and offer his investment to launch his own estate agency.

Georgina Newton

Actress & events manager, London

Georgina is hoping to bring a flair of the dramatic to this year’s process, in the hopes that Lord Sugar will offer up his investment for her touring theatrical production company. her plan will see her convert a lorry into a mobile theatre to perform across the country, with production focusing on pantomimes.

Georgina says she already has a thick skin from having “been told “no” thousands of times” in her career so far. However, she doesn’t let this bring her down, explaining that she possesses a “sunshine that brightens up a room and turns any negative situation into something positive”.

Harry Clough

Financial sales manager, London

Harry has already joked that he “may sound posh, but I’ve got no dosh” as he attempts to win the £250,000 investment from Lord Sugar.

His business plan includes launching a free food and drink subscription box, with companies paying to be included in the product as part of the “ultimate marketing tool”. He has described himself as “bold, creative, and not afraid to take risks”, adding that he has already “failed more times than I can count”.

Dale Miller

Student recruitment business owner, London

Dale launched his student recruitment company from his bedroom in his hometown of Debry at the age of 17, and has gone on to work with massive companies such as Goldman Sachs and PricewaterhouseCoopers.

He has said that he would love Lord Sugar’s investment to help take his business to the next level after almost 10 years of running operations by himself. Dale added that part of his core business philosophy “has been built around community, giving back and opportunity”.

Conor Galvin

Photobooth business owner, Cork

Conor’s photobooth business is already a success in his home country of Ireland but he is looking to expand in the UK , with bases in cities such as London, Manchester, and Birmingham. He dropped out of university twice before eventually graduating with a degree in law and business.

Conor has said that while his business is focused on fun, he is a serious candidate in the process who is “constantly learning the tougher side of strategy, structure and scaling”.

Carrington Saunders

Loungewear business owner, London

Carrington kept herself busy at university, alternating between earning her first class business degree and launching her online loungewear business. She believes that social media has been key to her success so far, and says that this makes her stand out from other clothing entrepreneurs that Lord Sugar has come across, adding: “Lord Sugar hasn’t had a business partner who is enveloped so heavily in social media”.

Carrington has described herself as strong, stating that she is “not afraid to speak my mind, stand up for what I believe in and take the lead.”

Andrea Cooper

Letting agency owner, Barnsley

Andrea juggles running two businesses with being a grandmother with ease. The 46-year-old, who has five children and one grandchild, also earned her degree in midwifery at the age of 40 to ad to her work load in business and personal life.

She has described herself as “hard working, resilient, and will give anything a go”. Andrea warned though that she is “not a pushover”, adding that if she is “crossed once then that’s it, no more chances.