Saira Khan first came to our attention as the runner up on the first ever series of The Apprentice in 2005, and ended up working for Lord Alan Sugar, who is quoted as saying Saira is “A role model for all the women in the world”. A businesswoman, author, columnist and broadcaster, she has been consistently on our screens for the past 16 years. 

Born of Pakistani immigrant parents in Nottingham, Saira was raised in a strict Muslim household, but was destined to follow a path far removed from her traditional upbringing. As she admits during our conversation today, she always felt she had something to prove – whether that was to her strict father, or to the rest of the world – that being a girl did not mean she wasn’t capable of achieving great things, of living life her own way, and of speaking up for those who don’t have a voice.

In the next hour you’ll hear how Saira has had to fight for every single precious thing in her life – including her livelihood, her marriage to a man outside of her family’s faith, and her children. Her son Zac was born through IVF and her daughter Amara was adopted from an orphanage in Kashmir after being abandoned from birth. Nothing has come easily, but that hasn’t stopped her reaching out for what she wants and finding a way, with her trademark passion and humour, to get it.

This conversation is a life lesson in perseverance, knowing your worth, setting out your stall and staying true to yourself – you may even want to take notes! I loved every second of it and I hope you do too…