The Apprentice candidate Khadija Kalifa, from Stamford, reacts to this week's sweet doughnut challenge onBBC One show
Stamford's Khadija Kalifa admits to having a "really quiet week" on BBC's The Apprentice - but winning was what mattered for her.
After hitting headlines last week when she said she didn't know who North Korean dictator Kim Jong-un was and proving bossy as project manager, this week Khadija kept her head down and got on with the business of creating and making gourmet doughnuts as part of Team Typhoon. Read more here
In her exclusive Mercury column, she writes:
"Where was Khadija this episode??? Winning is where she was...
"This week was pretty (really) quiet for me. I just got my head down and helped us win the task, selling some lovely artisan British doughnuts to the public.
"Not everything that happens during the task can be shown in the hour long episode, so we can’t shine every week. I was also pretty happy not to be at the forefront, to be honest!"
Khadija also said she'd managed to raise cash for a range of charities close to her heart thanks to the publicity surrounding her appearance on the popular show. She selected charities as her daughter Sorayah needed urgent medical attention when she was first born.
As she was born with the umbilical cord wrapped around her neck, her brain was starved of oxygen and she needed a brain cooling treatment at University College London Hospitals. Thankfully she got the treatment she needed and is now a healthy four-year-old, who her proud mum described as "clever, funny and strong minded".
The Justgiving page was launched in honour of Khadija's birthday as she said it was her birthday wish to support the charities.
She wrote: "Thank you all for the continued support, it really does mean the world. It's thanks to the recent publicity that I have managed to raise £1,300 for my chosen charities Sparks medical research charity, Peterborough City Hospital and UCLH, for my birthday cause on Sunday.
"Have I mentioned that it was my birthday? (It was splashed all over social media...) I managed to raise £1,000 of our total within the first 24 hours! All three of the above, contributed in preventing my eldest daughter from developing brain damage and/or cerebral palsy. I am still looking to raise £5000 by the end of the week, so please do donate at www.justgiving.com/crowdfunding/khadijasbirthdaywish
"See, (spoiler alert) I'm not a big bad dictator really...Just a focussed Mumpreneur that likes to get things done!"
She joked that in next week's show, airing on Wednesday, October 24, at 9pm her "mum tum feels a bit out of place at the body building expo!"