BBC Unveils Cast for The Celebrity Apprentice Christmas Specials

Rob Rinder, Eddie Kadi, Angela Scanlon and AJ Odudu are among the cast for the BBC’s Christmas specials of The Celebrity Apprentice.

From Fremantle’s Naked and MGM Alternative UK, the specials will see the celebrities paired up to develop their own gingerbread biscuits. Team one will feature Odudu, Kadi, Rinder, Charlie Hedges, Jake Woods and Kadeena Cox, while team two will be made up of Scanlon, JB Gill, Matt Morsia, Sarah Hadland, Shazia Mirza and Tom Skinner.

The teams will develop their own unique gingerbread biscuits and develop marketing for them by creating an advertisement and jingle. Both will then pitch their cookies to retailers. The teams’ biscuits will be available the various U.K. retailers, in support of BBC Children in Need.

As part of the special, the celebrity contestants visited the BBC Children in Need-funded project Chickenshed Theatre Trust to share samples of the biscuits they created and their adverts.

The Celebrity Apprentice Christmas specials, hosted by Lord Sugar, will air later this year on BBC One and iPlayer. The biscuits will be available to purchase in the U.K. beginning November 14.

The specials are being produced and distributed pursuant to a license from Amazon MGM Studios Distribution.

“It’s the first ever time on The Celebrity Apprentice that the public can buy products that were created by the celebrity candidates,” Lord Sugar noted. “It’s added real pressure to the process. I think the celebs thought they were in for an easy ride, but they were wrong! Raising money for BBC Children in Need is serious business, so the candidates really need to deliver if they want to avoid ending up on my naughty list.”

“It is a rare opportunity for audiences to buy, taste and enjoy something they’ve watched being created on-screen, and it has been great fun seeing the celebs’ ideas come to life, all in aid of a fantastic charity,” said Paul Broadbent, director of programs at Naked.

Kalpna Patel-Knight, head of entertainment commissioning at the BBC, added, “The celebrity candidates will be giving viewers a tasty treat or two this Christmas that viewers can literally sink their teeth into, all while supporting the incredible work of BBC Children in Need. Are viewers going to be Team Gary the Penguin or Team Jolly McTrouble? Let the festive boardroom battle begin!”