how the production team choose the candidates. Do they have a ratio of x= comedy value, x = so so filler candidates, and x = stellar ones? Or do they choose them and believe that they all have a credible chance of winning? Some of them are such klutzes that they must book some for the comedy gold.

I think a lot of people will be saying that it's all on entertainment value here, but I think it's more complex than that.

I know I'll be a lone voice here, but I do think that the vast majority of the candidates that they have on the show are pretty capable. The edit manipulates a lot of them to appear worse than they are, and the tasks are set up so that they are impossible to undertake amazingly, even by the world's best businessperson - no one could design an amazing product or event, for example, in two days, as these things take months to sort out in real life, and even then they often don't revolutionise the world. So whilst entertainment value is obviously a key factor, I think that finding capable people who have skills is very important as well. After all, most of the candidates have been pretty successful in their day jobs, and they always come across a lot better in interviews afterwards. Lord Sugar has said that people who think it's just about finding the biggest egos should come to the auditions and look at the people who are turned away - there are people with crazy hair, tattoos all over the place and things who know nothing at all about business. The edit may not suggest it that much, but I do think that CVs, experience and common sense still play a big role in the selection process.

As for entertainment, that is also a very big thing, but what is 'entertaining' is such a broad spectrum. You need to get the right balance of people who are going to play off each other well. If you took the 16 most memorable candidates from all the series and put them together it wouldn't work at all, because none of them would stand out from each other. You need to have a few people who are a bit aggressive and intimidating, a few who are quite bubbly and fun, a few who are quietly confident and a few people who just have something about them that makes them stand out at audition. That's how you find a decent selection.

You can use a better title than "I wonder"

They would choose the candidates who they believe will produce the best TV. Remember this is a show, rather than a documentary about business practices.

CVs aren't really checked and it comes down to how interesting the personality is rather than any documented business success. Any actual fact checking is probably kept until the interview part so that they can be pulled up on it, and make more fun TV moments.

That any of them are actually credible business people is more luck than design.

There's also a booming market in psychologists who now advise Reality TV so that the right mix is produced to produce an entertaining Reality TV series.

I must admit I don't like thread titles like that, either.

No one can read every thread- so you think 'Do I waste 5 seconds to see if I'm interested or not' I wish people would make it clear what the thread is about.

Answer to the question is - a bit of both.

I'm sure the contestants have worked out how to get on the show is to be full of bullsh*t, then once on make a big fuss week 1 (like Stephen) so you get noticed)- then calm down a bit (he didn't say a word on episode 2) So- it's all about game playing- they know it- we know it. Best 20 contestants- probably not, But it's all false anyway. I'm sure we can all think of people we have worked with who are brilliant in interview or roll play situations- but in the real situation they don't perform so well.