A massive change has happened for the new series of The Apprentice - Claude Littner is missing.
Lord Sugar's trusted aide, who took over from Nick Hewer in 2015 after previously grilling candidates in the interview stage, won't be in the boardroom this year.
That means the business mogul and Karren Brady will be joined by a familiar face who will be known to long-term The Apprentice viewers.
Unfortunately, Claude suffered a horror crash while out on his bike and was left fearing his leg would be amputated.
The 72-year-old, the former chief executive of Tottenham Hotspur, was "pottering along" near his home in north London when disaster struck in April last year.
"I must have been doing no more than 10 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.
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"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."
An ambulance rushed Claude to the trauma unit at St Mary's Hospital in Paddington, where surgeons successfully managed to save his leg.
Speaking to PA, he continued: "My wife and my sons were there as well and [the doctors] decided they were going to amputate my leg.
"And then they had another chat about it and they said, 'Look, let’s get him into theatre right away tonight and let’s see if we can save his leg'.
"And I went into theatre and it was a very long operation and they didn’t take my leg off."
Claude, who was diagnosed with Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma in 1997and endured three tough years of chemotherapy, lost two stone after the accident.
A concerned Lord Sugar revealed that Claude underwent a six-hour operation which he hoped would be his last.
Explaining he was doing "very well", The Apprentice boss said Claude was gutted to be missing filming for the new series.
"He’s gone through a terrible experience. I’ve lost count of the operations that he’s had," he said on Lorraine in July last year.
"The irony of it is he was simply going out on a ride on his bike. Not racing, not going fast or anything like that, just doing eight or nine miles an hour [and] came off. Horrific accident.
"He’s so upset that he couldn’t join this series but he’s doing alright. We talk every couple of days.
"I think he’s going in for a biggie, a six-hour one this week or next week, which is hopefully the final operation."
Although he did admit that some of the nervous The Apprentice hopefuls might secretly have been relieved.
Lord Sugar added: "Obviously the candidates, while sympathetic that Claude was not here this year, I guess must have secretly thought, 'Oh, thank God for that!'"
Unfortunately due to the filming schedule, Claude was not able to take part in the latest series of The Apprentice.
However, the business mogul said he had an "absolute determination" to recover and get back to his role on the show, stating: "There's no ifs and buts about it.
"Whilst I'm disappointed that I won't be out and about covering the tasks or in the boardroom for this upcoming series, I'll most definitely be glued to the action from my sofa."
But fear not, as Claude is being temporarily replaced by Tim Campbell, who shot to fame as the first ever winner of The Apprentice in 2005.
Tim won a won a £100,000-a-year job working for Lord Sugar, becoming became Project Director of Amstrad's new Health & Beauty division.
Lord Sugar said of the temporary replacement: "Claude has been part of the series since the beginning and is leaving an important boardroom chair to temporarily fill.
"I’ve been speaking to him regularly about his recovery, and of course hope we see him back in the boardroom very soon.
"In the meantime, my former winner Tim Campbell will step into Claude’s seat and be my eyes and ears as the candidates face a tough set of business challenges in the upcoming series."
Tim stayed working for Lord Sugar after his 12-month contract ended but left in March 2007 after two years.
In July 2007, Campbell became a Social Enterprise Ambassador as part of a British Government initiative that aims to apply modern business solutions to social and environmental problems
Discussing his role in the new series, Tim said: "I’m excited to be looking after Claude’s boardroom chair while he recuperates and look forward to seeing what the candidates come up with on this year’s tasks.
"I was saddened by the circumstances which led to getting the call from Lord Sugar, but having been on the show myself, I know the hard work that goes into it – so I didn’t take the decision lightly.
"I wish Claude the very best as he recovers."
*The Apprentice airs tonight on BBC One at 9pm
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