The business themed reality TV show, which is fronted by entrepreneur Sir Alan Sugar, triumphed in its one-hour 9pm time-slot against Channel 4's 'Grand Designs', with a 21.4% audience share.
The 9pm Wednesday time slot has been dominated by the property design show in previous weeks. However, ‘Grand Designs' was knocked into second place by ‘The Apprentice', pulling in 3.3m viewers and a 14.2% share.
The BBC's decision to move ‘The Apprentice' to BBC One appears to have been vindicated in the short-term by last night's viewing figures.
The first series of The Apprentice on BBC Two in 2005 averaged 2.5m viewers and a 10.5% share, while last year's second run averaged 4.5m viewers and a 19% share.
BBC Two's live coverage of Scotland's Euro 2008 qualifier against Italy was moderately successful in terms of viewing numbers. The game, which football pundits said Scotland were unlucky to lose 2-0, pulled in 2.3m viewers and a 10.4% share.
Sky's live coverage of England's 3-0 win against international football minnows Andorra pulled in 1.5m viewers and a 14.5% share, helping Sky Sports 1 to win its 7-11pm slot.
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