BBC The Apprentice halts filming as contestant falls ill in boardroom

The BBC's hit reality content The Apprentice was recently thrown into disarray when production had to be temporarily halted due to a contestant's health scare.

Nadia Suliaman, who faced the chop in Thursday night's episode (February 20), became unwell during the intense boardroom proceedings, prompting show bosses to intervene.

The incident occurred following the virtual pop star task, which saw the teams create 'cringe' viral characters. Nadia had been battling an illness in the lead-up to the task, but her condition deteriorated as the pressure mounted in the boardroom.

Her "constant coughing" disrupted the shoot with Lord Sugar, Baroness Brady, and Tim Campbell, leading to an early pause in filming this series.

In a candid chat with The Sun, Nadia recounted how she became "quite ill in episode two."

She explained: "I was coughing. I was literally coughing so much that I was like splattering and they had to stop production because you know I was ill."

Despite the tough love often displayed by Lord Sugar in the boardroom, Nadia shared a touching moment that happened off-camera.

"This is such a kind thing but it just stuck with me. Lord Sugar just like threw across the table a throat lozenger to me [sic]," she shared.

It wasn't just Lord Sugar showing concern; Baroness Brady also extended a caring hand, offering Nadia a tissue.

Thursday night's episode of the show saw a brutal exit for Nadia, who was swiftly eliminated in one of the quickest firings ever, following her stint as project manager that resulted in no profits.

The task involved transforming potatoes or tomatoes into profitable dishes for public and corporate sales.

Nadia led her team to sell an overpriced sausages and mash dish, contributing to a dismal £73.40 loss. Lord Sugar did not hesitate; despite allowing her the chance to bring back two team members to the boardroom, he dismissed her without further discussion.

In her conversation with the Mirror regarding the abrupt dismissal, Nadia expressed her disappointment, feeling the "sad" portrayal did not reflect reality. "No. I've got to be honest, I was a bit gutted. I was like, whoa, everything is quite bad towards me."

Her fellow contestants consoled her, insisting: "Oh no, you were so good at motivating us, you were militant in the kitchen because you had to, we were up against time constraints as well."

Reflecting on the challenge, Nadia admitted: "It's such a hard task, I'm not just saying that, it really was," highlighting the difficulty of the assignment.

The Apprentice continues next Thursday at 9pm on BBC One and iPlayer