The Apprentice star Claude Littner is a favourite among fans.
The 72-year-old advisor and king of interviews normally sits at Lord Alan Sugar’s side, acting as his eyes and ears during the tasks.
But in this series of The Apprentice, he’s not there. So what’s the latest on his whereabouts and will he back next series?
What happened to Claude on The Apprentice?
Fans of the show got a shock when former winner Tim Campbell stood next to Lord Sugar in the opening episode.
Claude was nowhere to be seen.
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In that opening episode, Lord Sugar met the candidates for the first time.
He told them: “You can see there’s an empty chair there. My very good friend and business colleague Claude will unfortunately not be with us this series.
“Regretfully, he had a nasty accident. But he’s on the mend and I’m sure that we all wish him well.”
“Terrible cycling accident”
In an interview with ED! and other journalists, Tim said: “It’s a great honour to be part of this franchise, after 16 series of showing that business is for everybody.
“It was with great regret we heard the news about Claude – who is such a massive part of the franchise – but we’re really pleased he’s doing well and is on the road to recovery.”
And in an interview with The Mirror, co-advisor Karren Brady said: “We were so desperately disappointed that [Claude] wasn’t there, but we were much more concerned about how he was.
“He had this terrible cycling accident, which has seen him have a number of operations.
“The good news is that Claude is on the mend. He’s had a difficult time, but he’s almost back to his best.”
Thank you Garry. Making good progress https://t.co/uRNHWnOU5R
— Claude Littner (@claudelittner) January 19, 2022
What did Claude say about his recovery?
In a series of tweets, Claude has been updating concerned fans on his wellbeing.
He responded to one fan who asked how he was and confirmed he would be back next series.
“Hi Emma. Thank you, I am on the mend, and look forward to returning next series.”
In another, Claude said: “Feeling fit and strong. Recovering well. Thank you.”
Read more: Lord Alan Sugar hits out at BBC over scheduling for The Apprentice new series
Yesterday (Wednesday January 19), one fan said: “@claudelittner I hope you’re getting better, really miss you Claude.
“Hope to see you soon, BTW you are my favourite, love it when you pull people apart. Get well soon Claude [smile emoji].”
He responded: “Thank you Garry, making good progress.”
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