Early favourite exits "The Apprentice"

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Ex-soldier Simon Smith had shone in previous episodes with his hard graft and affability, but a combination of rebellion and cowardice among the ranks contributed to his team being 100 pounds in the red.

"Simon, if I ask you to build me a wall, you'd build me a wall I'm pretty sure of it," Alan Sugar said.

"If I asked you to dig me a trench, I think you'd dig me a trench. I'm not sure that if I gave you my investment portfolio you'd be able to run that very well.

"I'm sorry my friend I think you're a bit out of your depth here, and with regret - You're Fired!"

There were tears on the shop floor and sparks in the boardroom before Sugar made his decision.

Retail buyer Claire Young was brought up short by the tycoon after she was exposed as having undermined Simon during the exercise.

"Whether he's a plonker or not that's not for you to decide ... I don't like people being victimised, I don't like people being ostracised," Sugar tells her before selecting her as team leader for the following week's test.

She had compared Simon to a "toddler".

"He's very enthusiastic, but we're giving him the reins to stay up," she had said.

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