Gordon Ramsay has reacted angrily to Lord Alan Sugar’s accusation that he ‘ripped off’ The Apprentice.
While one programme ended last week, with Marnie Swindells receiving Lord Sugar’s £250,000 investment, Ramsay’s Future Food Stars will return to BBC One in a couple of days, filling the same slot.
Lord Sugar remarked Gordon’s Future Food Stars had a remarkable similarity to his cherished competition before the first series aired.
‘He had something, which was like, I don’t know how the lawyers allowed it because it was a virtual rip-off of The Apprentice. No disrespect to Gordon but stick to your day job mate that’s all I would say,’ the tycoon said.
Ramsay later hit back, saying: ‘The guy is a Lord for a reason, so if he’s gonna spank my arse he’s allowed to,’ before jokingly offering his competitor a guest judging role on the show.
He’s now blasted Lord Sugar’s claims again, saying that any suggestion Future Food Stars is a ‘rip-off’ is ‘absolute b******s’ and he should stop ‘b****ing’.
Ramsay added to The Sun: ‘He has no right to start throwing his toys out the pram. Do you think Simon Cowell started complaining about The Voice when he was running The X Factor? Of course he didn’t.
‘There is more than enough room for both shows on the BBC. Come on Alan! Share the f***ing love!’
He continued: ‘One of his contestants who ran a cupcake firm got in touch. What is a cupcake firm going to Alan Sugar for money for? They should be coming to me.
‘Anyway, she said to me, “I love the show, I am a huge supporter, how can I apply to come on?” I wanted to send it and say, “See, you are b****ing about me but your contestants are dying to come on the show!”‘
This comes after Lord Sugar said that The Apprentice would ‘flop’ without him and that he was ‘underestimated’.
He said: ‘I don’t want to sound too big-headed but a lot of people underestimate me. They hear me talking like a cockney, but I know everything, I really do.
‘I’m not degrading people like (Dragons’ Den star) Peter Jones, because they’ve done a lot also. But none of them have done as much as I have.’
The tycoon continued: ‘Who would I put in my place? I can’t think of anybody. There’s loads of people that would queue up.
‘‘There’s no reason why I can’t go on to do 25 years. I’m very fit, so I don’t know whether it stops at 20. But if I ever did stop, I get a feeling the BBC wouldn’t stop it.’
Lord Sugar added to The Sun that if the broadcaster found ‘someone new’ to replace him, ‘that’s where it may kill itself off’.
The Apprentice is available to watch on BBC iPlayer, while Future Food Stars airs Thursdays at 9pm on BBC One.
Source My Celebrity Life.