*Contains major spoilers for episode 1 of The Celebrity Traitors*
If any further proof were needed that The Celebrity Traitors has become a phenomenon, look no further than the opulence on display in this first episode of the returning series of the addictive, pop culture-dominating show.
As it begins, we join presenter Claudia Winkleman, who’s looming over a board-game simulacrum of key location Ardross Castle, complete with famous figurines who may or may not be murdered in different rooms.
In any other show, this high-camp game of ‘Claudo’ would be a format point in its own right, used to illustrate the progression of the series. But here, it’s a 35-second gag that’s immediately discarded. It’s almost a flex. The Traitors can throw away ideas most TV producers would build a whole series around.
But that confidence is well placed. It would be no exaggeration to suggest that the success of last year’s first outing for The Celebrity Traitors took everyone by surprise. The original series had already become one of the BBC’s biggest shows, but the sheer scale of its popularity went beyond expectations. Traitor Alan Carr’s romp to victory attracted the BBC’s biggest overnight ratings of the year. Alongside live sport, this programme may be single-handedly keeping the metric of overnight viewing figures alive.
Now expectations for season 2 are even higher. No pressure.
From the get-go, there is immediate chemistry between the contestants. There are also some intriguing group dynamics, and some odd couplings you’d rarely see on screen. After all, when would you normally have Jerry Hall rubbing shoulders with Richard E Grant and Love Island’s Maya Jama?
View Green Video on the source websiteThe glut of comedians in the line-up makes this one of the funniest Traitors episodes in years, although some of the loudest laughs are courtesy of the non-comics – Ross Kemp’s increasing paranoia that he’s been marked for death by various Faithfuls is a highlight in itself.
But so far, the most valuable player is the inimitable Richard E Grant. Just moments after – spoiler alert – he and Jama are recruited as Traitors, he spills the beans to a bar full of fellow celebs, and is apparently unable to shrug it off in the moment. It makes Alan Carr’s giggly insistence that he was a Faithful look like a tiny blip.
Some might say Richard broke the rules – but then again, he was so quick to err that he hadn’t even received his cloak or taken the Traitors’ oath to keep his identity a secret. So let’s leave it to the lawyers… we may consider it sub judice, especially given the possible offence took place in Scotland.
Anyway, you wouldn’t find a judge in the land who’d convict him. Richard’s hysterical laughter throughout the rest of the episode is infectious, and his cut-throat attitude in the Traitors’ turret is delivered with actorly relish. One senses that we should enjoy his antics while we can – with the Faithfuls having so little to go on, there’s surely not much chance of him surviving beyond the next few episodes.
Also in the thick of it at this early stage are comedian James Acaster and University Challenge host Amol Rajan. The pair are invited to pitch themselves as the third Traitor, which leads to the episode’s cliffhanger: who will don the cloak, and who will be murdered?
Given the stress of becoming a Traitor seems like a nightmare for James (his mini-breakdown on The Great British Bake Off is legendary) he makes a solid pitch to join the team. Whether that will stand him in good stead against Amol’s quasi-Apprentice candidate presentation to Richard and Maya remains to be seen.
Episode 2 will be when the proper game begins, with the first murder, first breakfast, a full complement of Traitors and the first round table. One suspects Richard will be in the firing line, but who knows? This game moves so quickly, this review won’t even be tomorrow’s chip wrapper. It’ll be archive microfiche in less than 24 hours.
Whatever happens, we’re being plunged into a new game, with contestants who have watched the first series, and may not be as averse to taking down a “Big Dog”.
And based on this first instalment, it’s shaping up to be another bumper series of what has become the BBC’s biggest hit of recent times. If they keep this up, the universe can only expand: there’s a one-off bonus episode (Traitor or Faithful: Claudia Decides) now on BBC iPlayer; companion show Uncloaked; many, many international versions (the show originated in the Netherlands, after all) and even a stage show The Traitors – Acts of Betrayal, starring Nick Mohammed and opening next spring.
It won’t be long until we all have a box of ‘Claudo’ in our front rooms, fighting over who gets to take their figurine into the turret.
Just remember – no one pick the Richard E Grant token. That’s a dead giveaway.
The Celebrity Traitors continues on BBC One on Thursdays and Fridays, followed by The Traitors: Uncloaked on BBC Two and BBC iPlayer. Traitor or Faithful? Claudia Decides is available now on BBC iPlayer.
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