Regulars at Barlounge may have spotted Chester’s very own Andrew Brady who hopes to be Lord Sugar’s next business partner as winner of The Apprentice.

Andrew, 27, loves the city centre bar where last Friday he overheard revellers vocalising ‘Is that him off the telly?’.

Originally from Derbyshire, Andrew moved to Chester after falling in love with the city when he did a placement at Airbus.

He told The Chronicle in an exclusive interview: “I have only had one person recognise me and actually come up to me and that was in Sheffield. I was in Chester last Friday night and I was in Barlounge and overheard a few people saying ‘That’s definitely him’ but they never came up to me.

“They let me enjoy my space, I guess, which is nice, but it’s also nice to get a bit of attention. I don’t mind either way.”

Andrew, a self employed aerospace project manager, who lives in Vicars Cross , made clear he is single and ‘in the market’ for female overtures. But after it is suggested he might have enjoyed some attention from the ladies that night, he responds: “It would have been a bit difficult because I was on a date!”

Last week a tabloid article suggested Andrew had a fling with fellow Apprentice contestant Anisa Topan while filming. Anisa has since married as the TV series was filmed earlier this year. Andrew jokingly asks about the weather when the subject is raised but confirms his date had nothing to do with the show.

So what of his fellow contestants with whom he shared a £13m Notting Hill mansion during the making of the series?

“I really enjoyed Danny. I think Danny is a true gentleman. Sadly he went in the first one. He was the project manager. He was the sort of character I get on with. Another is Michaela – the red headed lass from Bolton. She’s on another level. She’s fantastic. She’s genuine. She says it as it is.”

He described break-dancing business analyst Jeff, who went at the end of the second episode, as ‘a bit of a joker’, Sarah-Jane as ‘a local girl to me in Chesterfield’ and adds that he really likes Saj.

Turning to the judging panel who could change his life forever, he says of Lord Sugar: “He’s clearly a very successful, hard-working individual. He’s 70 years-old now and worth something in the region of £1.4bn so he’s very good at what he does. I thought he was a serious guy with a jokey side.

“He’s not as intimidating as he looks on TV. He’s got a twinkle in his eye for certain individuals.”

Lord Sugar’s aid Claude Littner has something of a pantomime villain image to maintain so may not be pleased to hear Andrew describe him as ‘a genuinely nice guy’ and ‘legend’. His other assistant, Karren Brady (No relation), can come across as surly but again Andrew says there is a softer side as he recounts her crying her eyes out laughing while shooting one particular scene.

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So far Andrew – compared in looks to ‘Clark Kent meets Gok Wan’ or Ben Mitchell from EastEnders – has been portrayed as fairly quiet but insists it’s all in the edit, according who is central to success or failure in that week’s task. However, he was apparently gently mocked by Lord Sugar in the boardroom after persuading a vegan to part with £3 for a salad during the first task which was all about selling beefburgers.

Tonight’s episode concerns programming and selling robots, which is right up Andrew’s street given his engineering background and technology background. He won’t give away the result but acknowledges the boys’ team, named Vitality, must do better after losing the first two tasks.

The Apprentice was filmed in the summer so Lord Sugar’s winning Apprentice has already been chosen. So who scooped the top prize? Andrew, who began the conversation by insisting his mind is focused on ‘keeping as many secrets as I can’, offers this well rehearsed teasing answer: “I couldn’t possibly say whether I know who it is or not.”

Tune in to BBC One tonight (Wednesday, October 18) at 9pm to see how the contestants get on in the latest episode of The Apprentice.