Oh Lordy, Paudie is the last Traitor standing on The Traitors Ireland (RTÉ One, 9.35pm) after Katelyn is voted off at the end of another emotional round table. On the heels of fellow conspirator Eamon’s exit the previous night, she becomes the second of the turncoats sent home in shame from Slane. RTÉ hasn’t witnessed a bloodbath like it since Ryan Tubridy dropped an F-bomb on the Toy Show.
That means Paudie, the show’s resident elder lemon, has to participate in a conclave of one at the end of the episode. But he has a solution – to recruit his (secret) son Andrew as the new Traitor. Will Andrew say yes? It’s either that or be murdered, so presumably he knows where his bread is buttered and will join his dad in some gimlet-eyed back-stabbing.
Coming 24 hours after Traitor Eamon’s spectacular unmasking, tonight’s instalment has a lot to live up to. If it doesn’t reach the highs of the previous evening – nothing to rival the shouting match between Paudie and Eamon, for one thing – there is nonetheless lots to dig into. For instance, the other Faithful do not appreciate the mansplaining telling-off they receive from Nick and Ben after they vote Katelyn out of the show.
The bro-mantic duo are upset because, to their mind, Katelyn was better off where she was, a known traitor in their midst. Their plan was to eliminate Andrew, even though they suspected he was a Faithful and to keep Katelyn in their sights in plain view. Now, another Faithful is to be recruited as a Traitor – meaning the guessing games have to start from scratch.
You can see their argument: they haven’t come to Slane to make friends, they’re here to play 4-D chess. Still, they might have got their point across less condescendingly and considered that a little humility goes a long way. Are they the smartest guys in the room? Or the biggest egos?
And what about the quiet one, Oyin, who correctly named Eamon, Katelyn and Paudie as the three Traitors on Monday night? She is becoming the show’s resident Cassandra – a prophet ignored on her own reality show. Meanwhile, Nick has presumably put a target on his back by declining to become a Traitor – the offer made to him at the top of the episode.
As we come to the end of the second week, is Paudie now in pole position? He’s survived longer than his fellow Traitors and – assuming Andrew says “yes” – will now be plotting alongside his son. “I didn’t for one minute imagine I’d be able to survive this long with all the young egos around the place,” he shrugs. “It’s as if they don’t suspect me any more.”
Is he correct? Or just too pleased with himself? He would do well to remember that over-confidence is what did for Eamon in the end – that and his habit of yelling at anyone who disagreed with him. Paudie is too old and sly a dog to show his hand in that fashion – but with a shake-up among The Traitors, further bombshells surely await. Sunday night – and the next episode – can’t come soon enough.