SPOILER ALERT! DO NOT READ IF YOU HAVEN'T WATCHED THURSDAY'S EPISODE OF THE APPRENTICE
Lord Sugar and his popular TV show The Apprentice have returned with a bang – and the first firing in the first episode.
Michelle found herself in the boardroom, fighting for her place against Alana and Rebecca. The project manager of the girls' team has spoken to HELLO! Online, revealing who she thought was going to be fired.
"I thought it would be Rebecca, I thought I was safe," said Michelle. "I felt, and the girls had expressed, that I was one of the strongest candidates in the process. I thought 'I'm going in, I'll fight my corner and she's going home'.
Alana, Michelle and Rebecca found themselves in the boardroom
"Up until the point when Lord Sugar fired me, I still thought Rebecca was going home. He does his summary on you all, and he was very complimentary about me. He said I was an astute businesswoman, very brave. It was only when he started talking to me again and I thought, 'Oh no here comes the finger!' I was shocked. I think the other girls were shocked as well to be honest."
Lord Sugar criticised all three women in the boardroom, telling Rebecca that she had "demonstrated nothing" in the task.
"She talks and talks and talks and not much action," Michelle agreed. "But having said that I do think she'll go quite far. You know she's a lovely person, she really is a lovely, lovely, girl but she just talks quite a lot."
"I thought it would be Rebecca, I thought I was safe," said Michelle
THE APPRENTICE: MEET THE CONTESTANTS
She went on: "I didn't think for a second he was ever going to fire Alanna. She hadn't done anything wrong, she tried her best. I think it was Rebecca not selling enough on the task."
Despite the "terrifying" boardroom, Michelle said it was "an absolute dream come true" to star in The Apprentice. "It's my favourite show on TV, I've watched it since series one. Thousands of people apply, it's a bit like winning the lottery," she said.
"He's got such a respectful aura about him, he is so funny," said Michelle of Lord Sugar
The reality of finding herself in a boardroom sitting opposite Lord Sugar was "the weirdest thing in the world", she added.
"He's got such a respectful aura about him, he is so funny," said Michelle. "The one-liners he comes out with, he's so witty. I was really pleased with his comments. He could have gone in a lot harder on me and he didn't.
"He's like the best businessman in the UK in my opinion and when he's saying positive things about you, that made my experience even better. If he had been really cutting about me and really negative, I would have been devastated. But I think it's made the experience of going first a lot more positive."
