Ryan-Mark Parsons

Ryan-Mark Parsons, FRSA is a media personality and entrepreneur. He is best known for being the youngest-ever candidate on the BBC One show The Apprentice and featured in a controversial debate on Good Morning Britain. Parsons has made several appearances as a guest on various TV and radio shows; as well as speeches at Piccadilly Theatre, Speaker's House and Guildhall to Prince William and other dignitaries.

Parsons was born in London, United Kingdom. He was educated at Babington House School and chose not to go to university. In 2015, he came first in a Bromley regional public speaking competition and was later selected to compete at the national final for the Jack Petchey 'Speak Out' at Piccadilly Theatre, taking third place overall.

Parsons joined The Apprentice aged 19, known to be the youngest-ever candidate since the show began in 2005. He described himself as having the ability to "forge a connection with anyone". Parsons' performance was praised by Sean O'Grady, Associate Editor of The Independent, who said the “cherubic Ryan-Mark Parsons is the real winner of this series. He describes himself as “a 60-year old in a teenager’s body”, and according to his BBC biography, his role model is The Queen. With his extravagant style, I can quite imagine him graciously opening a stately home".

During Week Six, Parsons and a fellow candidate tested one of the rollercoasters at Thorpe Park; where Parsons was described to be "screaming throughout the entire ride". This sparked a significant online reaction, receiving 13,000 Twitter mentions and 10,000 hashtags used; making it one of the most talked about TV moments from 2019, revealed by Freeview.

On Week Seven, Parsons and another candidate were told to get off a Finnair plane bound for Finland due to the airline failing to cater for nut allergies. In a statement, Parsons told The Independent "I'm astounded by the airline's policy".

Aftermath

Parsons was fired in Week Eight of the competition, and his exit interviews caused controversy after calling fellow candidates a "waste of space" and "desperate". Following his firing, a conversation was leaked about him insulting another contestant, leading to accusations of bullying. Parsons "branded his co-star 'ugly' and says she looks like a man in drag". Weeks following the series, Parsons had an altercation with a different contestant, after they criticised Parsons for "charging fans for photos". It was also reported that Parsons was hospitalised after he dropped "£1000 caviar on his foot" and the star was "rushed to hospital". It was around the same time, Parsons was caught by press eating McDonald's at one of their London restaurants with a knife and fork. More recently in January 2020, Parsons was slammed for lashing out at a "family friend after they gifted him a pair of pyjamas from budget high street store Primark".

On 23 January 2020, Parsons featured as a celebrity panelist on Good Morning Britain to debate whether "Australia should 'sell koala fur' to fund bushfire aid". Parsons made the argument that the dead koala fur could be sold "to raise money for the injured animals in the rescue centres". This was criticised by animal rights activist, Wendy Turner Webster, who called his idea "grotesque", alongside presenter Susanna Reid labelling the suggestion as "sick". He was met with strong public and media backlash from UK, Australian and New Zealand press, slamming Parsons for his "vile" and "disgusting" views.

National Television Awards

Before appearing on The Apprentice, Parsons worked as a Gucci Brand Ambassador in Harrods and in Aspinal of London; including several internships at the Palace of Westminster, Matrix Chambers, 5 King's Bench Walk, AIG and NHS.

Since leaving the show, Parsons has expressed to continue work on television, saying "I've been approached by different people for different opportunities" and wouldn't rule out doing more media work.