Tim Campbell: who is new The Apprentice 2023 judge, what is his net worth - and where is Claude Littner?

Campbell will feature in The Apprentice for a second series after Claude Littner returns in a reduced role due to ‘medical issues’
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Lord Alan Sugar and his panel of intimidating judges are back for another series of The Apprentice, with a dozen confident entrepreneurs battling it out to prove they should be his next business partner.

Since series one, the Amshold founder has enlisted his two trusted aides, Claude Littner and Baroness Karren Brady, however, last year following a bike accident Littner was replaced by new aide Tim Campbell.

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It was expected that Littner would return for the new season, but Lord Sugar has confirmed he will feature in a reduced role due to “medical issues”, with Campbell again filling in.

So, who is Campbell, when did he join The Apprentice and will Littner return? Here’s what we know so far.

Who is Tim Campbell?

Viewers who have tuned in from the beginning of The Apprentice, back in 2005, might recognise Campbell from series one. Then aged 28, Campbell was the first winner of the hit show and joined Sugar’s AMSTRAD company on a £100,000 salary.

Campbell with Lord Sugar in 2005 (Picture: BBC)Campbell with Lord Sugar in 2005 (Picture: BBC)
Campbell with Lord Sugar in 2005 (Picture: BBC)

As a teenager, he attended St Bonaventure’s Catholic School, New Forest, for which he is now the chair of the governing body. Prior to his time on the show, Campbell graduated from Middlesex University with a degree in psychology and was employed as a Senior Planner within the Strategy and Service Development directorate of London Underground.

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Following his successful time on the BBC show, he became Project Director of Amstrad’s new Health & Beauty division and remained in the position for two years.

In 2007, he parted with Lord Sugar to set up his own perfume company which was unsuccessful. Despite this, Sugar referred to Campbell as a “great asset”, and Campbell returned to The Apprentice for a Comic Relief charity special.

Later that year, the married father-of-two met public affairs consultant Richard Morris and together they co-founded Bright Ideas Trust, which was set up to support 16 to 30 year-olds not in employment, education or training to start their own business.

In July 2007, Campbell was announced as a Social Enterprise Ambassador for the British Government initiative which aims to apply modern business solutions to social and environmental problems.

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In 2012, he was included in the Queen’s New Years’ honours list as a Member of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (MBE) for Services to Enterprise Culture.

In the past decade, he has worked as a member of Estate Office Property Consultants, a boutique London property investment and development agency which focuses on seeking high end property for exceptionally wealthy clients.

He also co-founded Marketing Runners Ltd with Derin Cag in 2016, a bespoke digital marketing agency in London, but the business was dissolved in June 2021.

What is Tim Campbell’s net worth?

Campbell’s net worth is not known, though his company Marketing Runners was taken off the Companies House register last year and had only £5 of assets at the end of 2019. According to Birmingham Live his estimated net worth is between £750,000 and £3.7 million.

Is Claude Littner back on the Apprentice?

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The 74-year-old was absent from the last season of the Apprentice after being involved in a bike accident in April 2021. The American-born British business mogul fell from an electric bike and sustained injuries so severe that doctors considered amputating his leg and having to undergo nine surgeries.

Littner injured his leg when he fell from an electric bike (Picture: Getty Images)Littner injured his leg when he fell from an electric bike (Picture: Getty Images)
Littner injured his leg when he fell from an electric bike (Picture: Getty Images)

Littner told the PA agency: "My wife and my sons were there as well and they decided they were going to amputate my leg.

"And then they had another chat about it and they said, ‘Look, let’s get him into theatre right away tonight and let’s see if we can save his leg’.” He added: "I went into theatre and it was a very long operation and they didn’t take my leg off."

Asked about the accident, he struggled to recall what led to the injuries, explaining: "I suspect I hit a pothole or something like that, but I must have blanked out at the moment of impact, because the next thing I knew, I was lying on the ground.”

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It was hoped that Littner would return to the new season full-time, however in an interview with the Radio Times, Lord Sugar explained Littner’s role would be reduced due to “medical issues” and that he would only feature in two episodes.

The businessman joined The Apprentice as Lord Sugar’s aid in season 11 following the departure of Nick Hewer. Prior to that in the previous 10 seasons he had featured as an interviewer in one of the last stages before the final.

What has Tim said about joining The Apprentice?

Campbell has not said anything on social media about the upcoming season, however speaking to The Mirror at The Apprentice launch this year he explained that Littner’s shoes were “massive to fill”.

He said: "The process has been going on for so long and was instrumental in my journey personally. So it’s a great honour to be back and be experiencing that from the other side of the table”

Campbell joins Baroness Karren Brady and Lord Sugar on the BBC showCampbell joins Baroness Karren Brady and Lord Sugar on the BBC show
Campbell joins Baroness Karren Brady and Lord Sugar on the BBC show
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The Apprentice winner added: “We have a huge responsibility that we know – and particularly me having gone through the experience – how important the information that we feed back to Lord Sugar is as he makes his decision about who he’s going to invest into.

“So it’s a great honour, but it’s one that we don’t take lightly, because we know the impact it has on that final decision.”

The Apprentice returns to BBC One for eight weekly episodes from Thursday 5 January at 9pm.

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