Dubbed “Mr Hindsight” by Lord Sugar, Charles Burns has been reflecting about his time on The Apprentice. 

“I learnt a lot about myself, where my skills lie and what I need to work on,” said the 24-year-old Mancunian, after being fired on the hit BBC programme. 

A former pupil at Bury and Whitefield Jewish Primary School and King David High, Mr Burns was sacked alongside two other teammates — Andrew Brady and Anisa Topan — after losing a dog-themed task as project manager. 

He told the JC: “I lost six out of eight tasks which is hardly a great record, so I had a feeling that if I lost again it would be curtains for me.

“Then, in the boardroom, I thought I might get spared as two had already gone, but it wasn’t to be.”

Mr Burns may have gone into a Turkish bakery in search of a hamishe delicacy, but the rugelach episode three weeks ago still counts as one of his highlights. 

“To finally get on the programme and have the opportunity to try and become Lord Sugar’s business partner was fantastic,” he said. 

“I have taken lots of positives from the experience and don’t see any negatives.” 

Mr Burns, a management consultant, is currently working with his family jewellery firm, established in Manchester for 120 years. He is also hoping to launch a new business in the luxury watch sector next year. 

Reflecting on his performance on the show, he acknowledged that he had overcompensated for coming across as “too forceful” in the first episode. 

“I then sat back a bit to counteract that first episode and win people over, but I took too much of a back-seat.”

He said he had no complaints about Lord Sugar. “His autobiography is called What You See is What You Get and that couldn’t be more accurate. He is exactly as he is on screen. There are no airs and graces.”

Of Lord Sugar’s assistants, he described Claude Littner as “harsh but fair,” while Karren Brady is “a hard-nosed businesswoman”. 

So who’s going to win? “If I had to put money on it, I see James as a very strong candidate. He would be a very good business partner for Lord Sugar.”