Living in the United States, people sometimes ask me about what differences (beyond language) I see between the British and the Americans.

One of the biggest cultural differences I see, and something that I've always liked about the US, is the attitude towards success.

In short, the British are hopeless at coping with success, and ever since the end of the empire, have made a national hobby of mocking anyone who starts to show the slightest sign of it. Americans meanwhile, celebrate success, and see nothing wrong in being winners, making money, and leading the pack.

Why are the British uncomfortable with success? A friend of mine has the theory that it all goes back to the British class system. Entrepreneurs who are successful are usually middle or working class people, who've gotten where they are through hard work, rather than breeding. This, I guess, upsets The Establishment. Quite why then, the whole British population continues this prejudice against entrepreneurs doesn't make sense.

The British (for the most part) just don't understand the ease and comfort with which Americans cope with success, and see them as being a nation obsessed with money, at the expense of their souls, character, or whatever.

Does this hold the British back? Quite possibly. Look at the way Britons react to people like Richard Branson. He's a multi-millionaire entrepreneur, known on both sides of the Atlantic. In the US, he's admired for his success and drive in the business world. In the UK, he's laughed at for having big teeth.

British inventor, Sir Clive Sinclair, was repeatedly mocked by the British, for his ill-fated electric car, the C5. He was repeatedly viewed as a crackpot. People seem to have forgotten the phenominal breakthroughs in personal computing that he made. He had immense success with his Sinclair computers, including the ZX81 and the Spectrum. But no, the British couldn't cope with that success, so they focused on his failures instead.

Talking of entrepreneurs, I have a small confession to make. Having poo-pooed Donald Trump's show, The Apprentice, based on seeing the trailers for it, I've since become unashamedly hooked on it. The trailers, as I mentioned before, made it look like it'd be as bad as most of the other "reality" TV shows, however, it's not. It's all about having the brains and the imagination required, to run your own business, work as a team, and succeed against the competition.

And so, I'm lead to wonder if The Apprentice - a show based on success - would make it in the UK. Many shows from the US and the UK have been re-made on the opposite side of the Atlantic (too many to list here), but given the British aversion to success and money-making, I just don't think it would work in dear old Blighty.

If they did try doing a British version of The Apprentice, I wonder which millionaire British businessman they'd have hosting it. Branson is an obvious choice, along with former ICI chairman, Jon Harvey-Jones.

Of course, really the British equivalent to Trump could be Mohamed Al Fayed - owner of Harrods, alleged crook, and father of Princess Diana's last boyfriend, before her assassination tragic accident.

They'd have to get him to host it, so that he could re-use The Donald's show catchphrase, only now spelt, "You're Fayed".