The Apprentice followers baffled as Claude Littner publicizes dying of present star who handed away ELEVEN YEARS in the past in complicated publish

Fans of The Apprentice were left baffled after Claude Littner announced the death of a previous contestant – who passed away 11 years ago. 

The British businessman – who was one of Lord Sugar’s advisers on the BBC One series – paid tribute to Stuart Baggs, who died aged 27 in 2015 after an asthma attack.

Officers were called to his home on July 30, where they found his body and confirmed he had ‘suffered from asthma for many years and died as a result of his condition’. The death was ruled as being from ‘natural causes’. 

Claud, 76, yesterday praised Stuart – who at the time was the youngest-ever Apprentice contestant – for his performance in the interview stage of the programme. 

He posted on X: ‘Sad news indeed about the passing of Stuart Baggs. A memorable interviewee on The Apprentice. He stunned me with his unforgettable response, claiming he was a “brand”. Brilliant. RIP.’ 

Fans were quick to respond to Claude’s post with confusion, clearing up that it had been more than a decade since Stuart had passed away. 

One penned: ‘Happened in 2015 if I’m not mistaken, Claude. Great character. He went on Channel 4’s Celebrity Coach Trip and was really great on that as well.’

Another said: ‘Yes, was very sad, but he died in 2015, Claude,’ as a third added, alongside a thinking emoji: ‘Was 11 years ago.’ 

In 2015 it emerged that Stuart had been working punishing 18-hour days before he died. 

Friends revealed how the businessman, who was known for his nickname ‘Baggs The Brand’, had been suffering from insomnia as a result of his stressful job.

The businessman, who lived in Douglas on the Isle of Man, had launched a new 4G internet hub that was set to revolutionise communications on the island.

But in the days running up to the launch of the new product he had complained of feeling unwell and talked about the heavy toll his business was taking on him.

Amy Burns, a close friend of Stuart’s, said he had been working very long hours, was suffering from stress and had not been sleeping properly.

She said she spoke to him in the days running up to his sudden death and was concerned about his health as he had complained of feeling unwell.

She added: ‘He said he was feeling ill, he told me he wasn’t drinking. We were speaking most of the night. He wasn’t feeling down or anything and he was elated for the future.

‘I was going to meet up with him but he was that stressed and working that hard and he was messaging me all night saying, “I’ve got insomnia. I can’t sleep. I’ve been working really, really hard.”

‘That was the first thing that came to my mind. I wondered what he might have taken but it looks like he was not reliant on anything to get him through. I can honestly state he wouldn’t do anything to himself. He wouldn’t do that to the people around him.’ 

He became the Apprentice’s youngest-ever candidate when he appeared on the show aged just 21 in 2010 – a title that was taken over by Ryan-Mark Parsons, who was 19 when appeared on the show. 

The Plymouth-born entrepreneur became well known for boasting about his ability to succeed with claims such as ‘Everything I touch turns to sold.’

He was later fired from the competition in the semi-final and the series was eventually won by 30-year-old investment banker Stella English.

At the time, Lord Sugar wrote to his fans on social media: ‘Terrible news Stuart Baggs has died. My sincere condolences to his family and friends. RIP one of the stand-out characters of The Apprentice.’

Last year, Claude’s Apprentice future was revealed after he missed out on series 19 series due to a horror accident. 

The businessman was forced to miss out on the boardroom in 2021 after having a serious cycling accident which he revealed he almost lost his leg as a result and needed nine operations.

Claude was previously an adviser to Lord Sugar alongside Baroness Karren Brady, before he was replaced by series one winner Tim Campbell.

Claude admitted it was ‘not his call’ whether he returns to the boardroom as he revealed he is now ‘fully recovered’ from his injuries. 

A source revealed at the time that the millionaire businessman would still appear in the new series but not full time. 

A source told The Sun: ‘The team really miss having Claude and his expertise around full time but Tim has been a perfect replacement.

‘He still remains very much apart of the show and just like last year, will feature later in the new series for the interviews with the candidates.’

The interviews normally take place in the 11th episode of each series and see the five remaining candidates and their business proposals put under the spotlight and grilled by industry experts and entrepreneurs.

At the time of his departure, Claude insisted he would be paying close attention to the candidates’ antics from his sofa instead of the boardroom.

He said in a statement: ‘Whilst I’m disappointed that I won’t be out and about covering the tasks or in boardroom for this upcoming series, I’ll most definitely be glued to the action from my sofa.’

Claude’s replacement Tim – who was the first ever winner of the business reality competition almost 17 years ago – previously admitted he was stunned when his old mentor, Lord  Sugar, asked him to join the show – and he didn’t believe the offer was genuine at first.

During an interview with Radio Times , he recalled thinking: ‘Is this a prank? I thought people were going to burst in with cameras and say, “Got you!” I thought, ‘Why is he phoning?’ When he explained, I said, ‘Are you being serious?’ It was mad.’

Having been one of Lord Sugar’s advisers since 2015, viewers were saddened and concerned when Claude didn’t appear in the first episode of last year’s series.

Claude previously expressed the potential that he could return in full for the 2025 season.

One fan tweeted: ‘Missing Claude Littner on the apprentice again this year! Hoping he was going to be back…’ to which Claude responded: ‘Maybe next year. “Nil disperandum”.’

At the beginning of the 2022 series, Claude was replaced at the last minute by Tim, with Sir Alan explained to the candidates: ‘You may be wondering why this gentleman is here,’ before pointing to Tim.

‘Regretfully, Claude has not been very well and Tim will be assisting me for the next 11 weeks.’

Claude suffered severe injuries during a freak E-bike accident in April 2021. He underwent nine surgeries to save his leg and had to learn to walk again following the incident near his London home.

As a result, Claude missed the last two seasons of The Apprentice, while focusing on recovery. He made a brief return in 2023 for a single episode, before Tim stepped in once again.

Appearing last year on Good Morning Britain, Claude gave a health update, saying: ‘I am doing wonderfully well, thank you. I am very grateful to the ambulance crew for looking after me and of course the surgeons at St Mary’s who put me back together.

‘It was a freak accident. I think someone was looking out for me but if someone was looking out for me better, I wouldn’t have had the accident – I was lucky to have the ambulance driving behind me.

‘I was just pottering along, I must have been doing no more than ten kilometres an hour on this sort of two-track road’.

‘The next thing I knew, I was on the left hand side of the street, my bike was in the middle of the road and I didn’t know what happened.

‘I suspect I hit a pothole or something like that, but I must have blanked out at the moment of impact, because the next thing I knew, I was lying on the ground.’