How The Apprentice creator Mark Burnett went from east London to Donald Trump's inner circle (via the Falklands) - as British TV producer who kickstarted the incoming president's reality career is chosen as his special envoy to the UK
- The US president-elect has chosen a Dagenham-raised mogul for a new role
Donald Trump's new choice of special envoy to the UK is making a return of sorts to his roots - having grown up in east London before fighting for Britain in the Falklands.
TV producer Mark Burnett is the son of parents who both worked in motor firm Ford's factory in Dagenham, before he signed up as a paratrooper serving not only in the 1982 conflict against Argentina but also in Northern Ireland.
Yet it was after a move to California that Mr Burnett really made his name and fortune as the pioneer behind such hit shows as Survivor and The Apprentice.
And his hiring of Donald Trump as the power-brandishing frontman of that latter series is said to have helped propel the tycoon towards the US presidency.
Mr Burnett, 64, has described himself as 'Robin' to the US president-elect's 'Batman' - and also called Mr Trump his 'soulmate' after 14 The Apprentice seasons together, in what he called 'one of the greatest relationships of my life'.
And Mr Trump, who defeated Democrat candidate Kamala Harris in the November election and is preparing for his second term in the White House after four years away, has returned the praise for Mr Burnett in his new announcement this weekend.
Mr Trump posted on social media platform Truth Social, saying: 'It is my great honour to appoint Mark Burnett as the Special Envoy to the United Kingdom.
'With a distinguished career in television production and business, Mark brings a unique blend of diplomatic acumen and international recognition to this important role.
Donald Trump (left) was chosen by TV producer Mark Burnett (right) to be the frontman of TV show The Apprentice, which was launched in 2004 and helped burnish the tycoon's profile
Mark Burnett, brought up in Dagenham in east London, has become one of America's most successful TV producers - he is pictured with his third wife, Irish actress Roma Downey
Donald Trump, pictured with producer Mark Burnett, starred in 14 seasons of NBC show The Apprentice between 2004 and 2015 - before being elected US president the following year
'Mark is known for creating and producing some of the biggest shows in Television History, including Survivor, Shark Tank, The Voice and, most notably, The Apprentice.
'He is the former Chairman of MGM, and has won 13 Emmy Awards.
'Mark will work to enhance diplomatic relations, focusing on areas of mutual interest, including trade, investment opportunities, and cultural exchanges.'
It was Mr Burnett doing the hiring, however, when he opted for Mr Trump to star in The Apprentice when first launching the show on NBC in 2004.
Media analysts have suggested that the New York-based tycoon benefitted from an enhanced profile and reputation from the series, in which he sat in judgment over wannabe entrepreneurs despite recent business struggles of his own.
Mr Burnett's own rise had long since shown a can-do spirit of his own, including working as a nanny and T-shirt seller when first arriving in the US from the UK.
His parents Archie and Jean Burnett both worked at the Ford factory in Dagenham, which at its 1950s height employed as many as 40,000 people.
He himself signed up for the Army as a 17-year-old, serving as a corporal in C Company of the 3rd Battalion of the Parachute Regiment and taking part in British forces' advance on Falklands capital Port Stanley in 1982.
Mark Burnett, pictured at a movie screening in Beverly Hills, California in April 2018, moved to the US in 1982 after serving in the British Army including fighting in the Falklands War
Mark Burnett (left) has described himself as 'Robin' to Donald Trump's (right) 'Batman'
He has said of his military service that it taught him to 'do everything you need to do with way less' and provided a 'sense of adventure', telling an interviewer: 'My Army experience formed me as a person.'
After the end of 1982's Falklands conflict, he emigrated to the US - setting up home in California, where he worked as a nanny for families then traded T-shirts which he would buy for $2 and sell for $18 apiece beside a fence in Venice Beach.
His TV producing career took off after he was inspired by taking part in a French-based expedition adventure race called Paid Gauloises in 1993, then securing a licence to launch a US version called Eco-Challenge two years later.
This was televised and led to him developing the reality TV show Survivor, inspired by one of his favourite books - William Golding's Lord Of The Flies.
Survivor was a massive US hit, with contestants left to fend for themselves and against each other in an isolated location.
Three-times married Mr Burnett, a father of two, launched The Apprentice in 2004, with the winning candidate promised a one-year contract working for Mr Trump and a starting salary of $250,000.
He reportedly had to persuade Mr Trump to take part - with the businessman initially declaring that reality TV was for 'the bottom-feeders of society'. Mr Burnett himself is said to prefer the term 'dramality' to 'reality TV'.
But the show's success has been credited with helping boost Mr Trump's public profile, while he has celebrated earning as much as $214million (£170million) from it.
Mark Burnett and his wife Roma Downey have worked together producing religious dramas including the miniseries The Bible and movie Son Of God and a new version of Ben-Hur
Mark Burnett and Donald Trump were twice nominated for the Outstanding Reality Competition Programme award, at the Emmys, for The Apprentice in 2004 and 2005
Katherine Walker, a producer on the first five series, told the New Yorker magazine in 2019: 'I don’t think any of us could have known what this would become. But Donald would not be president had it not been for that show.'
And TV presenter and comic Jimmy Kimmel, when hosting the 2016 Emmy awards ceremony, pointed out Mr Burnett in the audience as he said: 'Television brings people together, but television can also tear us apart.
'I mean, if it wasn’t for television, would Donald Trump be running for president? Many have asked, "Who is to blame for Donald Trump?" I’ll tell you who, because he’s sitting right there - that guy.'
Mr Trump hosted the programme for 14 seasons until being fired by NBC in 2015, and his children Ivanka, Donald Jr and Eric featured on screen as advisors.
Meanwhile, Mr Burnett's son Cameron was ringbearer at the 2005 wedding of Mr Trump and future First Lady Melania.
Malibu-based Mr Burnett, who previously ran his own marketing business, joined entertainment giant MGM in 2013 and served as chairman of MGM Worldwide Television Group between 2018 and 2022.
His other hit shows include The Voice, Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader and Shark Tank, as well as religious productions such as drama series The Bible and movie Son Of God.
He has embraced Christianity and philanthropic causes alongside his third wife, Irish-actress Roma Downey, who received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in August 2016 - Mr Burnett's own similar tribute there was unveiled in July 2009.
Mark Burnett was the creative force behind Survivor, Shark Tank, and The Voice and helped to kickstart Trump's reality career
In his new announcement on the social media platform Truth Social, Donald Trump described Mark Burnett as the producer of some of the biggest shows in TV history
Mr Burnett did appear to distance himself from Mr Trump during the 2016 presidential contest, criticising what he called the 'hatred, division and misogyny that has been a very unfortunate part of his campaign'.
But he went on to introduce Mr Trump at his first National Prayer Breakfast in 2017.
The then-president said at the event: 'I also want to thank my great friends, though. Roma - where's Roma? Beautiful Roma Downey. The voice of an angel.
'Everything is so beautiful about Roma, including her husband because he's a special, special friend, Mark Burnett - for the wonderful introduction.'
The selection of Mr Burnett continues Trump's trend of filling out his incoming administration with people who have high-profile backgrounds in television or politics, or both - including his choice to be defence secretary, Pete Hegseth, a former co-host of Fox & Friends Weekend, and ex-television doctor and unsuccessful Senate candidate in Pennsylvania, Mehmet Oz.
In response to Mr Trump's revelation of his new UK-facing role, a spokesperson for Mr Burnett said this weekend he was 'truly honoured to serve The United States of America and President Trump as his Special Envoy to the United Kingdom'.
His duties will differ from those of the ambassador to the UK, a post which has been awarded to billionaire investment banker and Trump donor Warren Stephens.
Mr Burnett's own wealth has been estimated at $450million (£360million) - enough to buy 25million of those $18 T-shirts he was touting before transforming the fortunes of both himself and the president-elect now sending the message: 'You're hired.'