On December 30, 2025, the BBC’s Celebrity Apprentice returned with a highly anticipated Christmas special, marking the show’s 20th anniversary in true festive—and chaotic—fashion. The two-part event, filmed in Lapland, brought together a dozen celebrities, including Thomas Skinner, Angela Scanlon, JB Gill, Rob Rinder, AJ Odudu, Matt Morsia, Shazia Mirza, Sarah Hadland, and more, all vying to prove their business mettle under the watchful eye of Lord Alan Sugar. But what truly stole the spotlight wasn’t just the star-studded cast or the charitable cause—it was a Christmas biscuit advert so baffling that it left viewers and judges alike utterly speechless.
The episode’s central challenge was simple in theory: design, market, and sell as many festive-themed biscuits as possible, with proceeds going to BBC Children in Need. The two teams set out to create their own signature biscuits and corresponding 30-second adverts, aiming to impress retail giants and, of course, Lord Sugar himself. Team Jolly McTrouble, led by Rob Rinder, crafted a Santa-shaped gingerbread treat with butter toffee, vanilla, and Christmas pudding-flavored icing. Meanwhile, Team Gary the Penguin—headed by project manager JB Gill and featuring Thomas Skinner, Matt Morsia, Shazia Mirza, Angela Scanlon, and Sarah Hadland—opted for a penguin-shaped gingerbread biscuit, boldly flavored with bubble gum, lemon, and a dash of white pepper.
But it was the Gary the Penguin team’s advert that became the stuff of reality TV legend. Conceived by Matt Morsia, Thomas Skinner, and Shazia Mirza, the commercial featured Shazia as a Scrooge-like character searching for Gary, only to be startled by Thomas’s exuberant entrance as the titular penguin. The pair then inexplicably find themselves on a sleigh ride through snowy slopes, with Scrooge thanking Gary for a great Christmas. The ad ended as abruptly as it began, leaving everyone—from the contestants to the audience—stunned and, frankly, scratching their heads.
Reaction in the boardroom was swift and brutal. Sarah Hadland summed up the collective disbelief, saying, “I have got nothing to say, because I’m in shock.” Angela Scanlon admitted the advert “doesn’t really make any sense.” Even Sarah, who is allergic to white fish, joked, “I’m happy to eat a fish finger and suffer anaphylaxis rather than people watch that.” Lord Alan Sugar didn’t mince words either, declaring the advert “hysterical” and a “piece of crap.” He added, “It’s unbelievable. I mean that is diabolical.”
Social media erupted with commentary as viewers watched the debacle unfold. On X (formerly Twitter), users dubbed the advert “abysmal” and “diabolical.” One viewer, Roscoe Barnes, simply called it “abysmal,” while another, WhoPottervian, remarked, “Rylan just gave the best ‘What the heck is that?!’ look I have ever seen.” SamFarmer labeled it “awful and embarrassing to watch,” and Barandra34 echoed Lord Sugar, calling it “diabolical.” SabrinaJane perhaps spoke for everyone when she posted, “What in the name of Christmas was that Gary the Penguin advert.”
The embarrassment didn’t end with the advert’s screening. Rylan Clark, drafted in to present the Gary the Penguin biscuit to retail investors, was visibly mortified. According to the Daily Mail, Rylan grimaced with embarrassment, almost lost for words as he attempted to put a positive spin on the nonsensical ad. Even the market feedback group was perplexed, with one participant asking why Gary the Penguin, played by Thomas Skinner, appeared to be eating himself. “Even Rylan can’t put a positive spin on that,” one viewer wrote on X.
Despite the widespread derision, the Gary the Penguin team managed a stunning turnaround. In a twist that left both fans and competitors slack-jawed, their biscuit outsold Jolly McTrouble by a wide margin. As Metro reported, the team secured orders from all seven major retailers plus an additional buyer, totaling an impressive 452,000 units sold. By contrast, Rob Rinder’s Jolly McTrouble team, despite promotional messages from celebrities like Benedict Cumberbatch, Piers Morgan, Olivia Colman, and Robbie Williams, sold 355,500 units. Lord Sugar’s business advisor, Karren Brady, noted that Jolly McTrouble’s team had “no real plan,” and Lord Sugar himself told Rob, “The thing is that the TV advert is good, the actual product is ok. You had all the elements of success. But you didn’t succeed.” Ultimately, Rob Rinder was fired after admitting he gave his team no clear direction.
The biscuits themselves became a talking point beyond the boardroom. According to The Independent, both Gary the Penguin and Jolly McTrouble have been available for purchase since November 14, with 10% of every sale supporting BBC Children in Need. Reviews for the biscuits were as mixed as the reactions to their adverts. Jolly McTrouble, the Santa-shaped gingerbread, received both praise and criticism—some shoppers called it “really, really tasty,” while others complained the icing was “rock solid” or that the flavor was “just awful.”
Gary the Penguin fared even worse in the court of public opinion. Tesco shoppers described the penguin-shaped treat as “cute but revolting,” “horrible,” and “disgusting.” One particularly scathing review read, “If I could give no stars I would. It was fiery and tasted like Palmer violets mixed with spice and fake fruit. Nasty.” Still, for those brave enough, both biscuits could be found on shelves at Amazon, Ocado, Debenhams, Boohoo, and Lola’s, with proceeds supporting a worthy cause.
Reflecting on their unlikely victory, Angela Scanlon admitted to Metro that their advert was “sub-standard,” but credited Thomas Skinner’s energy, saying, “We were plucky enough about that. We referred to him as our golden goose from the get-go.” The team’s jingle—“Gary the Penguin, doo-doo-doo-doo”—even managed to become a minor hit among viewers, providing a rare bright spot in an otherwise bewildering campaign.
For fans of reality TV and festive chaos, the 2025 Celebrity Apprentice Christmas special delivered in spades: a cast of familiar faces, a charitable mission, and a spectacularly bad advert that will be remembered long after the biscuits are gone. The episode is now available to stream on BBC iPlayer, for anyone curious (or brave) enough to relive the madness.
In the end, it was a reminder that in the world of business and television alike, sometimes the most unexpected efforts can lead to the sweetest success—no matter how much confusion or laughter they leave in their wake.