SHE was the acid-tongued villain of The Apprentice who became one of the UK’s “most hated” reality TV stars – and even broke show rules by secretly bonking a co-star.
Now Lottie Lion, 26, is courting controversy again as insiders reveal, years after quitting a sugar daddy dating site, that she is now in a relationship with an older “billionaire” investor whose parties are attended by Hollywood A-listers.
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Known as Australia’s “Money Expert”, Michael Kodari, 42, has shared photos alongside the likes of Leonardo DiCaprio, Chris Hemsworth and Vince Vaughn, and drives around in a flash McLaren Artura, which can cost as much as £190,000.
Lottie shot to fame on the 2019 series of BBC’s The Apprentice, where she had an secret romp with co-star Lewis Ellis while filming a task in Finland, breaching show rules.
Back then, the 19-year-old admitted she was “very cut throat” in her audition tape for the show and wasn’t known for holding her tongue during tasks – much to the thrill of the seven million-plus TV viewers.
Somerset-born Lottie, who now works in litigation law, would later come out as bisexual – revealing she enjoyed a three-month secret fling with a very “high profile” Love Island star and flirted with another from the ITV show, Megan Barton-Hanson.
But now insiders say The Apprentice star is in a happy new relationship with Michael. They say he romanced her on a night out three months ago after ordering one of his security guards to summon her to his table at a fancy bar in Sydney, Australia.
The source says “he is smitten”, has introduced Lottie to his parents – despite them only dating for three months – and has questioned her about her ring size.
An engagement could be on the cards and the billionaire investor has hard-launched their relationship on Instagram by sharing several videos of his glamorous partner dining with him in high-end restaurants.
The insider tells us: “Lottie was really standoffish with Michael at first. He’s known for being very arrogant but she has seen an incredibly kind, sweet and generous side to him.
“In her previous relationship, her ex cheated on her so she was guarded. But over time Michael broke down her walls as they spent more time together.
“I believe Michael is smitten with her. He has asked her about her ring size so he definitely means business. Lottie thinks the relationship could go the distance too.
“She’s definitely happy and seems to have opened up more thanks to Michael. When they are in public they look very loved-up.
“Lottie doesn’t consider it an age-gap relationship (Michael is 16 years her senior). She has always gone for older men because they are more emotionally secure and mature.
“She’s never really dated younger guys. She likes being able to lean on someone emotionally and not having to deal with them feeling jealous or insecure.
“Lottie has always liked men who know what they want and Michael certainly does. It seems this relationship is going in the right direction. We could be hearing wedding bells soon.”
When asked if Lottie could be seeing the dollar signs – considering his vast wealth – more than love, the insider strongly doubted it.
The source said: “They met in a natural environment, a bar, like normal couples. I know they spend a lot of time doing free things like going on long walks together, taking long drives and spends hours speaking on the phone.
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“That to me, doesn’t scream that she’s a gold digger and only interested in the high life. I’m sure him having money is a bonus but I don’t believe that’s why they are dating.”
A lot has changed for Lottie since her 2019 appearance on The Apprentice – a decision she previously described as “my biggest regret” due to the backlash.
She caught flak for her fling with co-star Lewis and our insider says she was “mortified” when details of it emerged. They say she considered it “a one-time thing” that she hoped to remain private.
Our insider claims Lottie has matured a lot since then but doesn’t shy away from admitting she played up to the cameras and embraced becoming a pantomime villain.
They said: “Lottie told me she ‘acted like a knob’ on The Apprentice and has owned up to what she did. She knows she wasn’t very pleasant.
“She thought it would be a funny, five minutes of fame. I don’t think she realised the impact it would have on her life or her long-term goal of becoming a lawyer.
“The Apprentice isn’t something she’s very proud of but she was only 19 years old. It was definitely a learning curve and she seems to be a lot more mature now.
“Lottie has calmed down a lot. She isn’t attention-seeking like she used to be. She seems very focused on her job now rather than fame.
“I know that Lottie regrets going on The Apprentice and wishes she knew back then how significantly it would change her life.
“She once told me, ‘People in the UK f***ing hate me’, I believe her. She suffered a lot of hate. I can’t ever imagine her going back on TV.”
When Lottie left the UK and moved to Australia five years ago, it was rumoured that she was “running away” from the problems caused by her comments and bossy nature on the show.
Back then, she spoke about a non-stop tirade of verbal abuse online and in-person. Lottie even got yelled at by a stranger in the pub and one person spat at her in the street.
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In 2020, Lottie told us: “It’s absolutely destroying me… It makes me terrified to go out in public… Am I supposed to just stay inside and not love my life?
“I hate myself more than any of you ever could. When you tell me how much you hated me, or how annoying you found me and how nasty I was…I know.
“I just went on a programme, I wish that I hadn’t, it’s my biggest regret…just leave me alone.”
It was claimed she fled to Australia because of the backlash, but our insider says that wasn’t the case. She actually visited there on a holiday visa and “fell in love” with life Down Under.
Despite her struggles with public scrutiny, Lottie sparked controversy when she told The Sun about seeking out rich men on sugar daddy dating site Seeking Arrangement.
She previously said: “Dating during lockdown was difficult and I wanted to meet people who are set up in life…
“I don’t want an average life. I try to surround myself with go-getters. I spoke to great people on there.”
Lottie vowed not to return to the dating platform after a “charming, very chatty” man turned nasty. She claimed she had “threats, harassment and had to speak to police”.
In 2021, Lottie proudly came out as bisexual and revealed she had enjoyed a secret three-month fling with a “high profile” Love Island star.
She claimed they broke it off due to “concerns about being found out” – the mystery suitor was not named by The Sun due to them not openly-dating women.
Not only that, Lottie admitted she had sent flirty messages asking out another bisexual Love Islander, Megan Barton-Hanson, but was rejected because she had a boyfriend.
Now the TV star is dating Michael, founder and CEO of wealth management firm the KOSEC Group, who seems to enjoy an extremely lavish lifestyle.
He shares much of it on his Instagram page, where he refers to himself as Mr Jetset. His bio on the page reads: “Living the world’s best destinations… Luxury, freedom, and experiences without limits.”
And he’s certainly not shy about sharing it. In one photo carousel, he poses beside hunky Thor actor Chris Hemsworth and Wedding Crashers star Vince Vaughn and has a snap of Leonardo DiCaprio.
Tellingly, the post was captioned: “Funny thing about life… when you get rich enough, you can invite almost anyone to your party.”
There are also photos of him presenting sashes and trophies at beauty pageants including Miss World and a Best in Swimwear award at another competition.
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Michael also shared highly enviable posts from holidays to Bali and in July, captioned one post: “For my birthday, I gave myself a watch and a supercar.”
The gifts in question were a Patek Philippe Aquanaut watch, which can cost £75,000, and a McLaren Artura supercar, which retails for £190,000 upwards.
Our sources believe Lottie and Michael’s relationship is moving extremely quickly but they are both thrilled by the romance.
Now with marriage potentially on the cards, one of the UK’s most divisive reality stars appears to have found happiness at last after years of struggles and torment from trolls.
The insider tells us: “Lottie has grown up a lot over the years and seems really happy with Michael. He’s really into her too and she really likes that. They look like a perfect match.”
Charlotte ‘Lottie’ Lion declined to comment when contacted by The Sun.