A former winner of The Apprentice has revealed he only found out they won the show when it aired on TV.
Joseph Valente won the BBC show in 2015 with his plumbing business.
But the businessman, 35, has revealed that not everything is as it seems on the reality series, with producers deliberately making tasks harder than necessary.
He also told how the show filmed two finals, one in which Joseph won and another in which runner-up Vana Koutsomitis won.
He said Sun: ‘I was definitely surprised when they told us that they would be filming two endings, one in which each of us would win. They told us about two minutes before it happened.
Joseph Valente has revealed that they found out he won The Apprentice in 2015 when it aired on television.
He said: “It was only because they had to do due diligence and see if any problems were found after filming, which meant that Lord Sugar couldn’t choose you as his business partner.”
‘It was only because they had to do due diligence and see if any problems were found after filming, which meant that Lord Sugar couldn’t choose you as his business partner.
“Say, for example, if you had some skeletons in your closet, Lord Sugar might not be able to align you with their brand and that could prevent you from winning.”
Instead, Joseph only found out that he won the show at the same time as everyone else when it finally aired on television.
Contestants are prohibited from telling anyone they were doing the show and Joseph told colleagues he had to go to Italy to care for his sick aunt, where he would not have access to a phone or the internet.
The businessman also claimed that producers would deliberately make weekly tasks “ten times more difficult” than they would be in real life.
Joseph stated that there is a “rule book” that keeps contestants limited in what names, colors and logos they can use in tasks.
He said this can lead to contestants coming up with things that seem “stupid” and said producers do this deliberately because if everyone comes up with an amazing product or service, it won’t be “entertaining” for viewers.
This led him to review 30 or 40 names for his business before settling on Prime Time Plumbers.
He added: “Say, for example, if you had skeletons in your closet, then Lord Sugar wouldn’t be able to align you with his brand and that could stop you from winning.”
The businessman, 35, has revealed that not everything is as it seems on the reality series, with producers deliberately making tasks harder than necessary.
Joseph also said that contestants had to remain silent for up to two hours while waiting to see Lord Sugar and that producers would reprimand them for even whispering.
Joseph split from Lord Sugar two years after winning the show and founded Trade Mastermind, which trains people in construction trades and businesses that he believes will become “a billion-dollar empire.”
Phil Turner and Rachel Woolford reached the final of The Apprentice after a thrilling semi-final last week.
The Bognor Regis Pie company owner and fitness entrepreneur triumphed over Tre Lowe, Flo Edwards and Dr Paul Midha during the grueling week of intense interviews as they proved strong enough to withstand the heat.
As Phil and Rachel celebrated their achievement after surviving the toughest day of the process so far, Phil said: “I feel really proud of myself for making it to the final.”
Rachel added: “I can’t believe it’s gotten to this point. This has been such a competitive series with incredible candidates that I’m absolutely amazed.
The Apprentice final airs on Thursday at 9pm on BBC One.