A wrong turn resulting in a secure facility’s lock down and a candidate who had perfected the ‘just got of bed’ look are among the recruitment horror stories.

First up is former Apprentice winner and managing director of Hyper Recruitment Solutions Ricky Martin, who told Recruiter about a recent incident where a senior-level candidate went to meet a company based out of secure facility for the first time for a 9am meeting. 

“Rather than heading to the main security gatehouse as advised, the candidate tried to enter by the rear trades gate an hour before the meeting (8am). In doing so, the facility was locked down for further access, preventing all 500 employees from accessing the site for their 08:30 start and causing a 90-minute delay in the local A roads!” Whoops…

Next up is Sophie Milliken, MD at Smart Resourcing Solutions, who tells a story about a candidate who turned up to an assessment centre looking like he had just rolled out of bed, complete with nightclub stamp on his hand. 

“He didn’t create a great first impression but was actually amazing and ended up being one of my top hires. I joked about that first impression with him years later and he told me he had been to a club the weekend before, but not washed it off – not sure that was better, to be honest…” Hmmm, let’s hope he scrubs up okay now, Sophie!

• If you can scare us with similar nightmarish interview stories, let us know below or tweet us. Also, our editorial email is [email protected] so spill the Halloween cauldron of beans!