The Apprentice house: The shady truth behind 'Billionaire's Row' street where Ariana Grande and Justin Bieber rent 'mega-mansions'
It's located in one of the most expensive streets in Britain...
The Apprentice candidates stay in one of ‘Britain’s most expensive homes’: a multi-million mansion on a street that’s been home to some big A-listers, including Ariana Grande.
Lord Sugar’s BBC series is back, and for the most part (apart from two changes you probably didn’t notice), it’s much of the same.
In tonight’s episode, the teams go head-to-head in a battle of chicken and eggs, serving up food for market-goers and corporate clients.
Afterwards, as usual, everyone who survives the boardroom will return to The Apprentice house. Here’s everything we know about where they stay during the process.
Where is The Apprentice house?
The Apprentice candidates stay in Mansfield House, located on Bishops Avenue in Hampstead, North London.
It’s a seven-bedroom mansion “with a breathtaking leisure complex including a large indoor swimming pool, gymnasium, games room and cinema,” according to an earlier Glentree listing.
Previous contestants stayed in Huxley House, a £17.5 million mansion based in Hampstead.
That’s not to say every candidate has been impressed by their lodgings. Paul Bowen, a 2024 contestant, told the Mirror that it’s “the biggest house” he’ll ever stay in.
However, “even still, they could do with upgrading the beds; those beds were only Ikea – considering it’s a multi-million-pound house, they could spend another tenner and get us a decent mattress.”
How much is the house worth?
Mansfield House is worth anywhere between $10.5 million and £16.5 million.
In 2015, it was listed for £16.5 million. However, according to Zoopla, it was last sold for £10.5 million in July 2022.
A previous Savills listing also offered Mansfield House for rent. If you wanted to stay there for a single week, it’d cost £12,000. A month would set you back £52,000.
This figure won’t be far away from what the BBC pays to use Mansfield House for The Apprentice.
Its ‘Billionaire’s Row’ area is famous and notorious
The Apprentice house’s street, Bishops Avenue, is better known as Billionaire’s Row.
Why? Because it’s been the home of some of the richest and most powerful people in the world. Some of them you probably wouldn’t think of right away, like the Sultan of Brunei, Indian industrialist Lakshmi Mittal, and former Kazakhstan president Nursultan Nazarbayev.
More recognisable celebrities have stayed on Billionaire’s Row, too. For example, Ariana Grande reportedly rented a “ultra-high security” apartment in one of the area’s luxury developments.
While unconfirmed, it’s believed these short-term rentals cost up to £25,000 per week.
Other famous former residents include Justin Bieber, Salma Hayek, and several Premier League footballers.
However, there is a dark side to the street. Questions were raised about the ownership of several homes following a Guardian report in 2014, which revealed that 16 properties lay abandoned.
The street is linked to ‘tax haven’ countries
The priciest homes on ‘Billionaire’s Row’ are reportedly registered to firms abroad in tax havens like the British Virgin Islands and the Bahamas.
Marc Schneiderman, from north London estate agent Arlington Residential, told The Standard: “For decades Bishops Avenue has been associated with a number of overseas owners who never occupied their homes and were allegedly linked to activities that have done some reputational damage to the street.”
Also, Iranian banking tycoon Ali Ansari is said to own more than properties on the street – including a £33.7m mansion.
He’s since been sanctioned by the UK government and accused of “financially supporting the activities of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps”, which he has denied.
If that wasn’t enough of a red flag, it’s not immune to the same issues on your everyday street. It’s been riddled with potholes and traffic – so, even billionaires can’t avoid roadworks.
Read more: What happened to The Apprentice You’re Fired as Tom Allen is replaced in brand new spin-off
