Shannon Martin left viewers stunned as she quit The Apprentice last night despite being a huge fan of the show.

The bridal boutique owner decided the process wasn’t for her, as she left The Apprentice without being fired.

Addressing Lord Sugar in the boardroom, Shannon said: "Lord Sugar if I may. I've made the difficult decision to leave the process.

"Unfortunately I just don't feel like this is the environment for me. But I want to say a massive thank you for giving me this amazing opportunity."

The Oldham Times:

Lord Sugar replied: "Oh, okay. That's your decision. Thank you for coming and I wish you all the best for your future."

Speaking about her decision to the BBC, Shannon said: “I think that going into the process, I was already having some doubts of whether I should go in or not.

"But when you’re given such an amazing opportunity, you’re not ever going to turn that down, it’s an opportunity of a lifetime that I’m forever grateful for.

"I just really felt like I couldn’t focus on the tasks because I was constantly thinking about what was going on at home.

"What’s happening with the business? Is everything okay? I knew in the back of my mind that of course everything would be okay, the team are amazing.”

Shannon, who has been watching the show since it began, said she didn’t want to win The Apprentice because she was happy with her life the way it is.

She added: “I’m a perfectionist, I need to know what’s going on all the time and not being able to know how things were going on at home or what was happening at work was really hard for me.

“The unknown is definitely not something I’m good at.

"I’ve watched the show since day one, since Tim won all those years ago. It’s the one programme that I watch religiously, it’s always on series link, it’s always on record."