Past Imperfect

IDLE CHAT

Aside

Having run my own business for twenty years, ( I’ll get round to it in time in Past Imperfect) I find ‘The Apprentice ‘ riveting television and can always rely on Sir Alan Sugar to give me a least one belly laugh per programme. Last night’s programme whittled the contestants down to two finalists.

Recently there was a programme profiling some of them and three made a big impression on me; Tre for his lion heart at coping with the crippling injuries he received in a car crash, Kristina for defying the mores of her strict Irish upbringing and insisting on keeping her child when she became pregnant at eighteen and Katie for her unblinking ruthlessness and total belief in her devastating charm

To my great disappointment Sir Alan said Katie would be one of the finalists but with his peerless acuity - and this was worth every penny of the TV licence - managed to get her to own up that perhaps she wasn’t the right person and as the others were so desperate she would cede.

She then went on to face a grilling by Adrian Charles and a panel with an audience and an interview on breakfast TV, with highly critical emails. And my question is: - how do you develop a hide like Katie’s?

20 comments:

Anonymous said...: Incredible self-belief bolstered by a series of feckless men.

Ooo-err, I sound a bit bitchy.; 10:37 AM
OldLady Of The Hills said...: This "apprentice" sounds very different from the one here with that jerk Donald Trump..(NOW Canceled, I might add...!) What are these people competing for, 'worst pesonal story'? LOL!
I am sorry I am so ignorant about this show, but, well....I am!; 11:01 AM
Pat said...: What you andrewm? Never! I think you must be right about K. My nightmare would have been to see Sir A succumb.; 11:01 AM
Pat said...: Hi Naomi! I have only once seen the US 'Apprentice' and it was quite different - not surprisingly. I think a lot of them just want to get on TV but there are some inspiring stories and for me Sir Alan Sugar is so watchable unlike Donald Trump.; 12:01 PM
Z said...: By being the sort of woman who openly admitted to lying and cheating to get another woman's husband?

I saw the programme last night, though not the follow-up afterwards. Alan Sugar was completely out of order in even asking about childcare as it's against the anti-discrimination laws. A riveting programme indeed, but who of any quality would want to work for him?; 12:41 PM
Anonymous said...: Mr Trump has one sad combover.; 12:44 PM
Eryl Shields said...: She probably goes home and cries into her beer just like the rest of us.; 1:01 PM
Pat said...: Z: wow! Am I out of touch? Just as well I'm no longer an employer. You would have to be bonkers to want to work for Sir A but I still love to watch him.

andrewm: hwe;e so proud it isn't a wig.

eryl: that's so sad:(; 2:16 PM
neena maiya (guyana gyal) said...: LOL at Andrewm's comment about the sad combover. Wicked, wicked.

Sometimes I wish I had a thick skin though :-(; 5:10 PM
Pat said...: Et moi GG. But mine is thicker than it was.; 5:38 PM
OldLady Of The Hills said...: Pat...I asked Paul if that meant the BEES were Lesbians, like the Seagulkls off of Catalina Island...He hasn't responded yet! (lol)...

Thanks for telling me about the Apprentice there in the UK...I found the one here one Big Long Ad for Donald Trumo...who I cannot bear! Not a nice man, to my way of thijking...Sexist, Misogynestic Creep! Wish we could see an episode or two of your 'Apprentice'...; 6:14 PM
Kim Ayres said...: The only way to have a truly thick skin is to completely lack empathy.

But then the world would be an emptier and more lonely place; 7:26 PM
Pat said...: Naomi: I'll look forward to Paul's answer. Don't expect Sir Alan Sugar to be a charmer but he is real, honest and completely without any side at all.; 8:21 PM
kenju said...: I think I'd prefer the British version of the Apprentice, rather than the US - as Naomi said - now cancelled (for lack of interest). I watched the first 3-4 series of it, but it got to be too much of the same thing.

You must tell us about your business!!; 10:42 PM
apprentice said...: I too wondered about the childcare questions, he would indeed be in breach of equal opps legislation and policies - but I think he was just winkling her out as a game player -or she was a wild card stuck in there to liven it up a bit.

Trump had a bad hair transplant I think. While in NY I visited Trump Towers, it's like a bad version of an old Goldbergs store in the 1970s.; 11:00 PM
Pat said...: Kim I'm sure that's true.

Judy: there is a quote in 'Under Milk Wood' by Dylan Thomas and I wish I could remember who said it. It's 'I'm coming to that.'With regard to the business - all in good time:)

anna: it sure did liven it up. I think compared to Trump Sir A is a national treasure.; 11:38 PM
Kanani said...: Well, America suffered through seasons of Donald Trump, who always trotted out his pretty wife. Really, it was bizarre. You could tell no one quite knew what to say --they in their business attire, she in some cleavage baring top.

Not sure about Katie's thick hide, but even the thickest has a few thin spots. But I know what you mean. I find it difficult at times, though have learned to set my ego aside and either carry on, or if it's a criticism of some writing, lean into it a bit and find out the basis. A few weeks ago, I leaned into it with my writing professor. Everyone thought it was a bit of a catfight. But he wrote me later and said, "No, I understood you were clarifying what I was saying and that you really care about your work."

Still, everyone else in the workshop thinks I'm a bit of a pain. Which I am!; 4:11 PM
rashbre said...: I watched the Katie episode. I have also found the Apprentice to be quite engrossing. I remember when I first saw it (years ago?) on a foreign TV station where they played two episodes back to back at around 1 o clock in the morning. I stayed watching and became sort of hooked.

I actually thought Sugar did a good job of psyching out Katie (at least in the television edit). Its difficult to know if the real events ran as shown. I suspect the session takes longer and has more re-takes. However the stress in Katie's voice when presented with the moral dilemma by Alan Sugar sounded real enough!

There's an articleabout her in today's Grauniad. I'll read it later.

rashbre; 5:00 PM
Pat said...: kanani: that's good that you have a good understanding with your prof. As for your colleagues you can't please all of the people all of the time. but sometimes it's good to bend a little.; 5:48 PM
Pat said...: Rashbre: I agree with you about Sir A. Those little beady eyes don't miss a trick and I love the way he won't have any bull. The cutting of the film is excellent because it does feel immediate.; 5:52 PM