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OK, now we're confused. Only last week we were saying that it seemed Sir Alan had a soft spot for Simon and that the ex-squaddie could do no wrong - and now just one week later he's been fired!
To make matters worse, Sir Alan fired Simon over Alex and Claire (more about those two in a moment) - what is going on?
To be fair, it was a disastrous task for Simon with his team managing to lose money - their photography business having to turn customers away after a mix-up over order numbers. But just how big a part did Alex and Claire play in his downfall?
Last night saw those two - favourites of ours earlier in the series - show their true colours as total snakes. Alex was shirking responsibility right from the start of the task when Simon wanted to appoint him as deputy. This is despite his own declaration that he is the strongest person in the contest! If Alex really is that talented, he's been hiding it well. It was also interesting to see Alex turn on Claire in the boardroom when he thought his own position was in danger. Sir Alan, please see through the sad eyes and pretty boy looks and fire him!
Like Alex, Claire was obstructive throughout the task and seemed to be enjoying it when everything started to go wrong for Simon. Margaret (who appeared to be in a foul mood last night - go Margaret!) got it spot on when she commented that Claire had treated Simon like dirt. So why would Sir Alan want someone like that working for him? It will be interesting to see how she copes next week as team-leader. The others looked less than thrilled at this news.
The Lucinda bullying continued last night with Helene taking her turn to pick on the softly spoken, beret-wearing one. Is anyone going to step in and defend her? And what's wrong with Raef? He spoke about two words last night. We're heard of keeping your head down in the early stages but this is ridiculous.
Are you as shocked as we are to see Simon out of the contest? How did Alex and Claire manage to escape this time? And with Simon gone, who is your favourite to win now?
Let us know your thoughts...
- Watch Simon's reaction to the show
- See the moment Simon is fired
- Find out what's on TV tonight
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User comments
I hope that Sir Alan, who clearly appreciates Simon's many good qualities will offer him a place in his organisation, albeit not the one in the competition. If not, I am sure he would be a great asset to many other companies. Surely one of the nicert and most genuine competitors in this series so far?
Posted by: g.b.slater on Thu Apr 17 01:34PM | Report abuseIt should have been claire - god she's vile! A trouble maker. Alex is just as bad - slimey & Devious - Theres no really good ones this year - where do they get these Arrogant people from????? dont even get me started on that Jenny either ...........
Posted by: neil.swift2 on Thu Apr 17 01:34PM | Report abuseWhoever decided to have the printing operation 10 mins walk away from the photographer should have got the sack. Simon should have stopped that happening and had the prints produced behind the screen where the punters could choose the correct image to print. Simon lost control and deserved to go but I would have liked troublmaker Claire to go instead. Alex was spineless in this task.
Posted by: stevepsmith55 on Thu Apr 17 01:34PM | Report abuseThere was no being part of a team here - Simon's team totally let him down and badly - he had no support whatsoever and if this is what Alan Sugar (not Sir - sorry) wants then good luck to him! I found Simon respectful, reasonable and a thoroughly nice guy with qualities I respect - qualities that are not often seen these days and qualities which, I feel, we should be encouraging. If I was Alan Sugar (not Sir - sorry) I would sack the whole lot of this bunch - they are the worst ever and that is including Katie from the last series!
Posted by: sandraruthenberg on Thu Apr 17 01:36PM | Report abuseyou know what i think most of them should go they are the worst lot of back stabbing individuals god ever put breath into... i dont trust any of them
Posted by: linda.l.a.humphreys on Thu Apr 17 01:36PM | Report abuseClaire is a devious bully with more rabbit than Sainsburys--Lucinda is a complete waste of space---Alex would not stand up to the plate if he were the last man standing--apart from those the rest are the worst set of candidates so far!!!!!!
Posted by: michael.hutchinson8 on Thu Apr 17 01:38PM | Report abuseI don't dislike Lucinda but she and Helene are useless. Anyone setting out on a career, such as the one they intend to follow, that really cannot handle fairly basic IT is a total waste of time. Why, when the teams were getting so behind with their orders, did they waste so much time arguing and discussing other team members? Claire is obnoxious and should have been sacked.
Posted by: porcine on Thu Apr 17 01:38PM | Report abuseSimon was out of his depth. He deserved to go but he wasn't helped by those patronising, mendacious bastards he chose as his 'links'. The self-belief of some of the candidates flies directly in the face of reality so often on this show. What about the idiot who went out last week who didn't have the 'L' word in his vocabulary? The enlarging of his vocabulary was hugely enjoyable. The show is a testament to people who make all the right noises but in essence of thick and incompetent. They make such basic mistakes it's difficult to believe - a few of candidates withstanding - how any of them deserve a low five-figure salarly let alone the six figures promised by Ol' Sugar Daddy. Alex has a false persona - Janus springs to mind - and Claire is a malevolent influence in whatever position she is put. As for Lucinda, well, she doesn't deserved to be bullied but she is terrible immature. This show is as good as it gets as far as reality TV is concerned.
Posted by: edhart1 on Thu Apr 17 01:39PM | Report abuseSimon didnt get a real chance. I am surprised that Sir Alan didnt sack Alex and Claire for their scheming, who would trust either of them in a 'real' job.
Posted by: ws.stewart on Thu Apr 17 01:41PM | Report abuseSimon had the right tactics for leader management by selecting deputies who he thought had the appropriate qualities to succeed. If Claire and Alex had been supportive and team minded Simon would have won the challenge. They were a pair of snakes to say the least. I am sorry Sir Alan let him go but next week will be interesting when those two will be shuffling for power!!
Posted by: margaret.owen16 on Thu Apr 17 01:41PM | Report abuse