Being a member of cabin crew is a famously stressful job, but you’re also expected to serve looks – no better illustrated than by Wednesday night’s episode of ‘The Apprentice’.

In the seventh instalment of the latest series, contestants were tasked with the creation of a new budget airline, complete with a TV advert and crew uniforms.

But team Collaborative failed to collaborate efficiently, producing designs that looked less like a cabin crew uniform and more like a clubbing outfit.

The team, whose name, ‘Jet Pop’ came under widespread scrutiny, created a halterneck number under the supervision of Jackie and Camilla – but the end product left Lord Sugar and his aides baffled.

Claude Littner remarked on the viability of the look for day to day work: “I don’t think Jackie and Camilla gave too much thought to the practicality of the uniform.

“It was completely sleeveless, quite low, so if it’s going to be a chilly day they’re going to be in trouble, the stewardesses.”

But many fans also felt the outfits reminded them of something else.

That’s right, if we cast our minds back to the collection of cursed images that is early noughties pop music video costumes, Jet Pop’s design for their cabin crew is strangely reminiscent of the garbs of the Fast Food Rockers. Enticing, exciting. 

Other contenders from the era’s lookbook were mid-noughties Eurovision competitors Scooch. They were really doing it for our country, and arguably after the events of last night, their outfits were way ahead of their time. 

Many people were also pointing out the gendered dynamics of the uniform, including Karren Brady herself.

“Can you imagine as a woman being asked to wear that?” she said. 

“Stewardesses main role is the safety of the passengers – not to dolly up.”

Audiences on the Twitter-sphere were similarly left wondering why traditional men’s uniforms had been entirely overlooked. 

 Unless, that is, the uniforms were intended to be gender-neutral after all.

After all last-ditch attempts to defend the uniform design, Camilla admitted: “I think we did get lost in terms of the theme…that’s the truth.”

Lord Alan Sugar did recently admit that the show pushes its contestants to their limits, and that sometimes under the time pressure of the challenges even the best business people fail to make strong decisions.

‘The Apprentice’ continues next Wednesday at 9pm on BBC One.