This week’s Top 10 stories: Clothing store owner set for stardom

The Apprentice has its critics in the business world, and these days it’s hard to imagine that the show portrays a true picture of what it’s like to run your own business, but the fact remains that it’s still a very popular piece of modern culture.

And so I suppose it’s not so much of a surprise that this week’s best-read story  is the tale of the owner of an East Midlands children’s clothing store being revealed as one of this year’s Apprentice candidates.

Frances Bishop, who runs Pud which has outlets in Newark and Nottingham, has described herself as “a pocket rocket”, and that she is “quite fiery” and lives by the rule ‘kill them with kindness’.

All too often The Apprentice falls in to parody – let’s hope Frances does herself justice.

Second most popular this week involves those right at the top of the food chain.

A Melton Mowbray firm has been named as part of bribery investigation in which the man in charge of maintaining Buckingham Palace has been jailed for five years.

Ronald Harper took payments of over £100,000 – including at least £85,000 from Melton Power Services which was then given large contracts at Buckingham Palace.

Melton Power Services director Steven Thompson pleaded guilty to conspiracy to make corrupt payments and fraud by abuse and was jailed for 18 months.

In third, is the story of Clowes Developments lodging plans with Derby City Council for a new 11,000 sq ft leisure complex in the heart of the city centre.

Clowes wants to transform two tram sheds in St James’s Yard into eating and drinking venues and replace a newsagent called Smart News on The Strand to form a gateway to the development.

This week’s Top 10 stories: