The winner of TV contest The Apprentice called in sick on his first day working for new boss Sir Alan Sugar, a spokesman for the tycoon confirmed today.

Lee McQueen, 30, failed to start his new job yesterday because he is suffering from a "flu-like virus".

He fell ill while on holiday in Spain with girlfriend Nicola Jellyman last week and told bosses he was sick when he returned at the weekend.

A spokesman said: "We've known he's not been well for three or four days. He's frustrated that he can't be at work because he wants to get going but he knows that he needs to be at home."

McQueen is expected to start work "in a few days".

The news comes after self-made multi-millionaire Sir Alan stepped down as chairman of Amstrad yesterday.

He will continue to be involved with his other business interests, which include Amshold, Amsprop, Amsair and Viglen computers.

Sir Alan said: "This is a move that has been planned for a while and it's the right time for me to step down from my role at Amstrad."

The winner of the BBC's reality show The Apprentice, in which Sir Alan selects one candidate for a £100,000 a year job, was hired to launch a digital advertising product. McQueen landed the job despite being caught out lying on his CV during the recruitment process.

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