The Apprentice 2017: meet the candidates

Find out more about all the new contestants below, including their Apprentice audition tapes, what they do for a living (they're real business people, honest), and their best/most cringeworthy lines.

Andrew Brady

Age: 26
Occupation: Project Engineer
Lives: Cheshire
He says: “I don’t blow smoke up someone’s behind. If someone deserves credit, I will give them it”

Anisa Topan

Age: 36
Occupation: Owner of a PR Fashion Agency
Lives: Surrey
She says: “I’ve got everything Lord Sugar needs in a business partner. I’m passionate, dynamic and persistent – he’ll love that."

Bushra Shaikh

Age: 34
Occupation: Owner of a Clothing Company
Lives: Surrey
She says: “I’ve been raised not to be a pushover – in the words of Destiny’s Child, ‘I’m an independent woman.”

Charles Burns

Age: 24

Occupation: Management Consultant
Lives: Manchester
He says: “When life throws you lemons, make and sell lemonade for a healthy profit”

Danny Grant

Age: 32
Occupation: Owner of an Online Retail Store
Lives: Kent
He says: “I don’t get on with people with a stick up their arse”

Elizabeth McKenna

Age: 39
Occupation: Owner of a Florist Chain
Lives: Nottinghamshire
She says: “My big feet are good for two things; getting me into trouble as they’re as big as my mouth and I constantly get them stuck in it, but... they also kick butt.”

Elliot Van Emden

Age: 31
Occupation: Owner of a Legal Firm
Lives: London
He says: “Sometimes to get to the top, you have to grease the pole behind you”

Harrison Jones

Age: 27
Occupation: Sales Executive
Lives: Watford
He says: “I have a good work ethic and am always willing to work to full capacity to achieve my goals”

Jade English

Age: 25
Occupation: PR & Marketing Manager
Lives: Manchester
She says: “I’m extremely emotionally intelligent and able to get the best out of people. I am a brilliant negotiator and I’m not all talk – I put every weird idea into action and gets results”

James White

Age: 26
Occupation: Owner of a Recruitment Firm
Lives: Birmingham
He says: “Intimidation is what motivates me. I want to be bigger and more successful than anyone else”

Jeffery Wan

Age: 28
Occupation: Business Analyst
Lives: London
He says: “I bring character, charm and swagger to the table. Coupled with my professional and educational experience, I am sure I will be able to separate myself from the rest”

Joanna Jarjue

Age: 23
Occupation: Digital Marketing Manager
Lives: Manchester
She says: “My demeanour can be related to the saying ‘Don’t wake a sleeping lion’ - If you underestimate me I might just bite”

Michaela Wain

Age: 33
Occupation: Business Owner, Construction
Lives: Bolton
She says: “I have no patience for people who say stupid stuff, and I can’t cope with lazy people”

Ross Fretten

Age: 29
Occupation: Digital Product Consultant
Lives: Essex
He says: “I’m usually the smartest person in any room and I’ll make sure people know that"

Sajan Shah

Age: 24
Occupation: Owner of an Event Company
Lives: London
He says: “I am like a Chinese dish – potent, deliciously driven, full of flavour and I sure do sizzle”

Sarah Jayne Clark

Age: 25

Occupation: Owner of a Clothing Company
Lives: Derbyshire
She says: “I am the definition of a Girlboss – I get things done and make things happen”

Sarah Lynn

Age: 35
Occupation: Owner of a Confectionery Company
Lives: London
She says: “Women are like tea bags – you don’t know how strong they are until you put them in hot water”

Siobhan Smith

Age: 34
Occupation: Owner, Wedding Company
Lives: London
She says: “I fly aeroplanes, scuba dive, jump off cliffs, paraglide; I’m a blogger and a mother - as well as running my wedding planning business. A lot of people call me superwoman”