Apprentice's De Lacy-Brown: Securing a pupillage was harder than confronting Sir Alan
Nicholas De Lacy-Brown, booted off TV show The Apprentice last week, says Sugar was sweeter.
Aspiring barrister Nicholas De Lacy-Brown, the first contestant to be booted off the new series of The Apprentice last night (26 March), said securing a pupillage was much tougher than landing a place on the hit TV show.
Despite his brush with fame the self-labelled toff is still planning to start his pupillage with Crown Office Chambers in October, he told The Lawyer’s student website Lawyer2B.com that the three rounds of interviews he had with the civil set were much more gruelling than his audition for The Apprentice.
Anyone can blow their own trumpets listen to me now, jokes De Lacy-Brown, adding that bagging a pupillage was the proudest moment of his life.
De Lacy-Brown graduated from Kings College London with a first class honours degree in law. He then completed a Masters in medical law and ethics before embarking on the Bar Vocational Course at BPP Law Schools Holborn branch. But despite his outstanding academic achievements (his only academic failing is that he has one B grade at GCSE) De Lacy-Brown admitted that he struggled to get his first break into the legal profession. I had 18 pupillage interviews and didnt manage to get one job. I found that incredibly frustrating and decided I needed a change of direction. Thats why I decided to apply to The Apprentice, explained De Lacy-Brown.
He added that he was at a loss as to why he kept being rejected though he does believe the bar selection process is still heavily biased towards Oxbridge graduates.
De Lacy-Brown secured his pupillage at Crown Office Chambers shortly after filming on The Apprentice finished. However, he was not allowed to disclose to his future employer his forthcoming television appearance, as he was bound by a confidentiality agreement.
The future barrister, whose other passion is art, said he describes himself as a lawyer first, an artist second and an entrepreneur last. Law is in my blood. My father is a lawyer, and my sister works with him, so I always imagined myself as a barrister. I guess its also because Im a bit of an actor, he enthused.
If I pursued art as a career Id be on my own all the time and that would make me mad. Also, the problem with saying youre an artist is that anyone can be an artist these days. Its been degraded by the frivolous attitudes we now take towards modern art.
De Lacy-Brown said his brief stint on The Apprentice has been life-changing but hopes his fame will not last long. I cant cope with this much activity on my mobile phone, he joked.
He also insisted that his appearance on the BBC One show has not been detrimental to his career as a lawyer. Selling fish and confronting Sir Alan in the boardroom have b***** all to do with being a lawyer. People would be ridiculous to compare the two with each other, claimed De Lacy-Brown.
View results 10 per page | 20 per page
Readers' comments (17)
Anonymous | 2-Apr-2008 9:45 pm
Only academic failing?
On the one episode in which he appeared, Mr. Brown said that he was 'disappointed' at getting a 'B' in one of his GCSEs. I bet he was distraught when he didn't get into Oxbridge and had to settle for Kings...
Still, at least Crown Office Chambers don't do too much employment law else he would barely be able to spend 5 minutes in a tribunal before his opponent made some allusion to him being fired!
Unsuitable or offensive? Report this comment
Anonymous | 7-Apr-2008 9:25 am
Pompous little Pillock
At a time when the legal profession is under assault from cheap publicity hounds who want to subject the profession to unworkable bureaucracy and unfair scrutiny of its paradigms, the sight of a pompous little pillock making a complete hash of a task that anyone with a mustard seed of common sense could have carried out with aplomb undermines the professional integrity of a profession that works hard to provide a quality service to people from all walks of life. The sad fact is that both professions are likely to be dismissed with the same cavalier badge of incompetence as this pompous little pillock deserves. What enrages me is that this stupid little pillock was quite prepared to put his entire profession at risk for cheap publicity for his art. Whoever harbours such a pillock is equally deserving of censure from the profession as a whole. Only an abject apology to both professions can justify him ever being instructed to act.
Unsuitable or offensive? Report this comment
BIGGEST DLB fan | 13-Jun-2008 7:59 pm
Nicholas is really GREAT, shame the lower social class don't realise...
I get really frustrated when people bad mouth Nicholas. The people in question are undoubtedly part of the lower/middle social class and are jealous of his success.
I can relate a lot to the man - in ten years when I am 24 I also want to be a barrister, so I think that my opinions do count. In addition, I think that his name is beautiful and the jealous, chavy people want such a name. Nicholas, good luck to the future. One of my ambitions is to meet you one day.
Unsuitable or offensive? Report this comment
James Parker | 15-Aug-2008 6:13 pm
'De Lacy' - Brown interets me, although I 'm not sure it's a good or bad thing
His pomposity is almost cringeworthy and made for a combination of strange and shocking viewing, although I kind of like the man. His art is special, akin to Dali (as he indeed boasted on 'The Apprentice') and it is clear he does have intelligence. The way he utilises it, however, is annoying - he's not even an oxbridge graduate for instance and the way he claimed he was a barrister before he'd even secured a pupillage was frustrating. Furthermore, the show displayed negative qualities - I wouldn't want to be associated/defended by him as he's too smug and not as savvy as he makes out i.e. the lobster(s). An interesting character - one I would deem too 'stereotypical to stereotype'. I mean a self-confessed aristocrat - crown offices good luck. A clever man but certainly not so in the social/everyday sense.
Unsuitable or offensive? Report this comment
Anonymous | 27-Aug-2008 10:03 am
SHOCKING!
I have found the issues discussed quite amusing and also disturbing and it is good to hear that there are still lawyers around that are not pompous and do live in the real world. Who was "De Lacy Brown" trying to impress. The girls and I laughed that loud that my neighbour had to bang the wall a couple of times to tell us to keep the noise down! De Lacy has a lot to learn. How can the general public relate to somebody with his characteristics. On a more serious note, I am extremely shocked at the comment BIGGEST DLB fan (Aged 14)!! with regards to class and jealously. He is certainly not the kind of person the Bar needs. He needs to rethink his career options or grow up. I dread to think who instilled those kind of attitudes into that young man's mind. I do wish De Lacy-Brown all the very best with his pupillage. He will probably reflect on how he performed on tv. He has shown great determination in getting one. Everyone needs chances in life. We all make mistakes and I for one wish him all the very best for the future.
Unsuitable or offensive? Report this comment
Anonymous | 27-Feb-2009 8:27 pm
Nicholas Im Postor- Brown
Although I have absolutely no idea what it takes to secure a pupilage, I can only imagine that it was De-Lacy Brown’s unfortunate and decidedly extreme personality that let him down. Who in their right mind would want to associate themselves with such a person?
He sells himself as an accomplished academic; however I doubt very strongly that he is in the possession of any real intelligence. After all, what breed of genius consciously applies for a Reality TV show and worse still, admits to an audience of millions that he has difficulty rolling in the sty with all us common folk? He’s an absolute impostor whose ‘de Lacy’ moniker does not hide his mammoth social ignorance and lack of sophistication.
Tragically, he seems obsessed with traditional class systems, not realising however that the world has changed dramatically since he was cryogenically frozen in 1792.
Unsuitable or offensive? Report this comment
Gabriel Turner | 3-Jun-2009 3:42 pm
From the way he explained himself in the board room he clearly had no means of defending himself or making an eloquent or pursuasive argument. If he cannot defend his own interests how would you expect him to defend a client's?
I think his pretentiousness would him back more than his university choice. I is is very likely that he tried to get into Oxbridge and didnt get a place.
Unsuitable or offensive? Report this comment