Winner of The Apprentice 2025 – Dean Franklin from Hornchurch

Dean came out on top in last night’s (April 18) final, beating Anisa Khan to seal £250,000 investment and the title of Lord Sugar’s latest business partner.

“I’m still on cloud nine,” he told the Recorder.

“I can’t actually put it into words how it feels – it is a dream come true.

“It’s something I’ve always wanted to do and I’ve finally done it!

“It’s so hard to put into words how I’m feeling – I was so emotional and I couldn’t believe it – it all happens so quick and you struggle to take it all in.”

The father of two had previously told the Recorder about how much he has enjoyed watching the episodes back with his wife Chloe and children Ted and Bonnie.

Dean said he enjoyed watching the episodes back with his family (Image: Dean Franklin) Last night he swapped a quiet night in his living room for a finale watch party with friends, family and many of this season’s other candidates.

“It was incredible to watch it back with everyone – everybody hit the roof when I got hired – there were tears, people jumping up and down – there was a lot going on!”

The final was filmed last week, according to Dean, and he said that the secret of knowing he had won had “weighed” on him “a lot”.

He said: “Yesterday it felt like that weight was lifted off of me – now everyone knows and there’s no more secrets so it’s a relief!”

In our last interview, Dean revealed that he was nervous to pitch his business and speak in front of industry experts – a vital component of the final.

“You’ve seen me crumble in front of one person – what am I going to be like in front of 200 industry experts?” Dean said last week.

Dean said it is hard to put into words how he is feeling (Image: BBC) Today he confirmed that he was “petrified” before stepping out onto the stage.

He said: “I was petrified but it came out really good – a lot better than I expected.

“I think I surprised myself with how good I actually did because going into that I was terrified.

“When I walked off I thought I couldn’t have done anymore and it couldn’t have gone any better.”

Despite accidently stepping off the stage before the audience had a chance to quiz him, Dean saw the brighter side in his slip-up.

Dean said he was petrified before walking out in front of the industry experts (Image: BBC) “I know I walked off the stage for the Q&A but I think it actually made it even better when I came back on – it gave it a bit of a comedy style and allowed me to crack a joke.”

He also confirmed that the aptly created nickname ‘Daddy Cool’ has “stuck” beyond the show and “is here to stay”.

In the boardroom, Dean was up against Anisa Khan and her Indian pizza fusion business, ‘Bombay Pizza’.

“It wasn’t so much me vs Anisa but ADL Airconditioning vs Bombay Pizza and I think it came down to the figures,” he said.

“We’re both really good at what we do – the best actually.

Dean was up against Anisa Khan in the final (Image: Dean Franklin) “We were comparing ratings, reviews and rewards and we’ve both got the same – we’ve achieved loads.

“I think it came down to the business itself and I think Lord Sugar just liked mine a bit more.”

In the final, Dean explained that with Lord Sugar’s £250,000 investment he would recruit new apprentice engineers, buy new vans and build a show room to showcase the company’s air-con units.

“I can’t wait to get back to work on Tuesday and just crack on. We’ve got to go full-steam ahead,” Dean said.

“We’ve got new vehicles arriving and we’ve had some new engineers starting already.”