the apprentice series 3

The humble son of a tailor, Sir Alan was the youngest of four siblings who grew up on council estates in Hackney, East London. He claims the twelve year gap between himself and his nearest sibling meant that he grew up feeling “a bit of an only child.”

As a child, Sugar had a profusion of curly hair that earned him the nickname “Mopsy”.

Sugar’s business acumen was apparent at an early age. The entrepreneurial school boy started selling photographic film to his class mates and even took a job that involved rising at 6am to boil beetroot for the greengrocer. Now there’s dedication!

The young Sugar was quite handy with a spanner too. He once built himself a bicycle from an old frame back when he was too poor to buy one.

Having quit school at 16, Sugar started his first business with just £100 from a post office savings account. He bought a van for £50, car insurance for £8 and purchased £42 worth of car aerials, cigarette lighters and electrical goods as stock to sell out of the back.

Sugar founded the electronics company Amstrad aged 21, the company’s name is an acronym of his initials - Alan Michael Sugar TRADing.

A vintage motor car enthusiast, Sugar collects classic Rolls Royce and Bentleys cars. One of his vehicles – a Rolls Royce phantom with the number plate AMS1 famously appears on The Apprentice.

He also owns a Cirrus SR20 four seat aircraft and is a qualified pilot with over 30 years of experience. In July 2008, he suffered a crash landing due to wet conditions at Manchester City Airfield, but escaped without injury.

According to Sir Alan, there are three major things are necessary to succeed in business: "You need knowledge of the industry, You need something special, You need to work hard!"

He may be the big man in the boardroom, but even ‘Siralan’ makes mistakes. He once got into big trouble with his wife Ann when he sent her an anniversary card signed ‘yours, Sir Alan Sugar’. Who said romance was dead?

In 2000, Sugar was knighted for his services to business. According to wife Ann, her husband sent out a memo to all employees reminding them to refer to him as “Sir Alan” in future.

Sir Alan became Chairman of Tottenham Hotspur Football Club in 1991, but now describes that period of his career as “a waste of my life.”