![\"Celebrity](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/\/c8f079e4-ff75-4916-b504-1ba42b094dde.jpg\")
<\/p>\nI\u2019ve always enjoyed the little interview segments with Claudia. But now I love them. Why?<\/p>\n
Celia Imrie.<\/p>\n
She\u2019s so good at this, and she\u2019s revelling in every moment of her latest role. I cannot wait to see how this pans out. Her and Mr Fry are being set up front and centre here. He says no one can spot a liar \u2026 imagine if they end up teaming up somehow. What a pair!<\/p>\n
Back to business and we now know who wants to be a traitor. Nick wants to take out a national treasure, Joe W wants to see the turret (a good solid and rational reason), Jonathan, Cat, Alan, Paloma and the other Joe also want to taste blood.<\/p>\n
Is Stephen going to be too clever?<\/p>\n
What\u2019s the first thing you look for when you\u2019re booking a hotel? Furniture, knick-knacks and objets trouv\u00e9s, I\u2019d imagine? I\u2019m with Stephen, it\u2019s all about the objet trouv\u00e9 \u2014 is that a feature you can filter by on Booking.com?<\/p>\n
We\u2019ve also seen our first peacock \u2014 so The Celebrity Traitors has really begun.<\/p>\n
We\u2019re starting to learn a bit more about our contestants, although there\u2019s so many of them, it may take a while to really get their number.<\/p>\n
Cat and Niko seem to be forming a little bit of a youth alliance, which could be interesting as things develop. But Niko\u2019s plan of being an unknown entity has been foiled by Stephen\u2019s sticky memory. As I feared before the show, Stephen is coming across incredibly well as a big thinker; could this be his downfall as he\u2019s seen as too clever?<\/p>\n
All this digging has aroused suspicion in the car ride to the castle.<\/p>\n
Alan thinks Jonathan\u2019s a traitor, even though they haven\u2019t been picked yet, and Jonathan appears to be trying to start an early alliance in his Range Rover. It\u2019s too early, Rossy.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Nick Mohammed<\/p>\n
CODY BURRIDGE\/BBC\/PA WIRE<\/p>\n
But the big chat in all the cars is: what the heck was Nick up to? Why did he spend the whole time helping Celia and not himself? He can\u2019t be a traitor yet, but he has raised his head above the parapet, which is singularly the worst thing you can do in this game. <\/p>\n
Even Celia thinks he\u2019s a suspect now. Is he selfless or is he a game player with a plan? The fact that anyone is even asking the question means he has a target on his back.<\/p>\n
Besides, he\u2019s used to being a bad guy, after his villainous turn in Ted Lasso\u2026<\/p>\n
\u2022 Read our interview with Nick Mohammed<\/a><\/p>\n Them\u2019s some boots Claudia!<\/p>\n Maybe Stephen was right, this is a bit of a blizzard of horror. Poor Charlotte in a white dress digging her own grave by hand, Alan not being able to tell the difference between a rock and a shield and Nick Mohammed is such a fan of Celia that he isn\u2019t even bothering to help himself.<\/p>\n I\u2019m not sure why some of them got a shovel, but here we are. All\u2019s fair in love and traitors. Jonathan, Joe M, Joe W (this is going to be confusing, hopefully one of them is taken out soon) Kate, Charlotte and Celia have shields and they\u2019re protected \u201cfor now\u201d (what does that mean? They just scrabbled around on their hands and knees in the dirt. They need some certainty!)<\/p>\n Celebrities really love castles<\/p>\n Now you know what to buy your favourite one for Christmas. I\u2019ve never heard so many whoops and wows in all my life. But I\u2019ve already forgotten about that because now we\u2019re seeing musical cars from above. Looks like the BBC has spent money on a drone \u2014 how very fancy. It\u2019s like The Italian Job meets The Addams Family.<\/p>\n By the way, if you\u2019re wondering, it\u2019s called Ardross Castle, a 19th-century pile about 30 miles north of Inverness in the Scottish Highlands. Before you ask, it\u2019s not a hotel so you can\u2019t book a night there, but apparently it is a wedding venue with 100 acres of gardens and parkland. You\u2019d probably get a decent photo or two, I\u2019d imagine.<\/p>\n The opening exchanges have given us a flavour of our contestants<\/p>\n There\u2019s been a lot of Stephen Fry on screen, which we\u2019d expect as he is probably the least likely celebrity to be involved, and he\u2019s also a one-man quote factory. The arrival cars sequence was bookended with \u201cLet the horror unfold. Let the worst person win\u201d and \u201ca blizzard of horror\u201d. He\u2019s perhaps over-egging it, all he has to do is play wink murder in a castle. But we like it.<\/p>\n It\u2019s also obvious that Celia Imrie is going to be brilliant. I\u2019m calling it early. There\u2019s a real twinkle in her eye, and she\u2019s immediately interrogating poor Joe Marler. Keep your eye on her. She\u2019s not taking any prisoners.<\/p>\n Alan Carr has, as we expected, turned up in sparkling form, and it looks like he\u2019s going to add something very special to this series. While his plan to fly under the radar is clearly impossible, his infectious personality is going to be a lot of fun.<\/p>\n And then there\u2019s Niko. You might not know him if you don\u2019t have kids of a certain age. I\u2019ll enlighten you \u2014 he\u2019s a pretty big deal on YouTube as part of the Beta Squad, a channel with more than 11 million subscribers. They do funny and silly things \u2014 pranks and challenges \u2014 like everything successful on YouTube.<\/p>\n Here they are setting up a five-star cruise (what could go wrong?).<\/p>\n Licence fee-busting stuff<\/p>\n Well, that was a breathless and characteristically high-camp introduction. The highlight of course was the exploding train. Is this The Traitors or a trailer for a Michael Bay movie? Coffins too. This is licence fee-busting stuff.<\/p>\n What have we learnt?<\/p>\n Alan Carr might have a dark side, Imrie\u2019s in it to win it. Stephen Fry is going to give the show a lot of excellent soundbites (\u201cI don\u2019t know what beasts lie within me\u201d) and Tom Daley is preparing to \u201cfight to the death!\u201d \u2014 perhaps a bit extreme. We\u2019ll see how things pan out, I suppose, but I\u2019d advise him to take a breath.<\/p>\n Doesn\u2019t the castle look lovely tonight? And you can\u2019t beat an owl to get you in the mood. Claudia gives us her thoughts on a few of the candidates:<\/p>\n Clare Balding will be underestimated. Nick Mohammed is very clever. She can\u2019t wait to see Charlotte Church at the round table. And she says what we\u2019re all thinking: you just can\u2019t help but think the inclusion of Celia Imrie in this cast is going to be a lot of fun. How better to add some levity to the mock dramatic intro than a CGI wink from the veteran actress\u2019s portrait?<\/p>\n It\u2019s a strong start \u2014 but why has she chosen these contestants to single out? Is it a sign that they\u2019re going to be big players in episode one \u2014 or am I reading too much into this already?<\/p>\n Probably the latter.<\/p>\n The Celebrity Traitors is about to begin… I can hear an owl hooting, I can see a stag stalking, I can feel a cool chill in the air.<\/p>\n Either that Murder in the Moonlight cocktail was stronger than I thought or we\u2019re nearly ready to play The Celebrity Traitors.<\/p>\n I really, really want this to be good. But there\u2019s always the fear that when you add the word \u201ccelebrity\u201d to the beginning of any show, the wheels might start coming off fast, however high the calibre of the famous people.<\/p>\n Where\u2019s the jeopardy? Yes, they\u2019re playing for charity, but it\u2019s not quite the same as complete unknowns competing for life-changing sums of money and perhaps the chance of fame.<\/p>\n We have to trust the format. And Claudia. Yes, it\u2019s all going to be OK. <\/p>\n Meanwhile, the boss of the hit BBC1 show has revealed why Clare Balding, Tom Daley, Stephen Fry and a host of other household names made the grade.<\/p>\n \u2022 Read more: How the stars were picked for Celebrity Traitors<\/a><\/p>\n I found out what it\u2019s really like to play The Traitors<\/p>\n A new Traitors Live Experience allows members of the public to play the hit game show. And as Tom Peck<\/a>, the Times\u2019s parliamentary sketch writer and TV columnist, discovered, it\u2019s not as easy as it looks on TV.<\/p>\n Tom Peck discovered his fate at The Traitors Live Experience<\/p>\n GREY HUTTON FOR THE TIMES<\/p>\n \u201cDastardly manoeuvres were attempted. Bonds of trust were shattered,\u201d he wrote. \u201cAt one point I believe a security guard may have been enlisted to help to locate a hidden teddy bear. Yes, there were challenges. Someone\u2019s name now never gets mentioned on WhatsApp without a snake emoji.\u201d<\/p>\n \u2022 Read the full article<\/a><\/p>\n Quiz: how well do you know The Traitors?Where is The Traitors filmed? All you need to know The filming location, Ardross Castle in the Highlands, has remained the same across every series of The Traitors UK so far. While much of the filming takes place at the 100-acre, privately owned estate, the beautifully elemental countryside around its location in Easter Ross \u2014 usually sped through as either the beginning or end of Scotland\u2019s popular North Coast 500 driving route \u2014 is having its moment on the small screen too. We have everything you need to know about the Highland hangouts where the treachery will unfold.<\/p>\n \u2022 Read more about Ardross Castle<\/a><\/p>\n The answer to the question I posted at 7.35pm: traitors have won only one of the three series in the UK. <\/p>\n You remember? Series two where the dastardly Harry Clark sold poor Mollie Pearce down the river at the final moment. <\/p>\n Harry Clark bagged the \u00a395,000 prize in the second series<\/p>\n BBC<\/p>\n Series one and three were both faithful victories. The first series was won by faithfuls Aaron Evans, Meryl Williams and Hannah Byczkowski. <\/p>\n From left: Aaron Evans, Meryl Williams and Hannah Byczkowski won The Traitors series one<\/p>\n PA<\/p>\n And in the most recent run faithfuls Jake Brown and Leanne Quigley shared the prize.<\/p>\n Leanne Quigley and Jake Brown won series three as faithfuls<\/p>\n BBC<\/p>\n Interestingly the UK bucks the trend here. According to my research, there\u2019s been about fifty global series of The Traitors, and of those more than two thirds have been won by the traitors.<\/p>\n I\u2019m not sure what that says about the British players, or perhaps the sample size of three series isn\u2019t statistically significant. But what this global \u201cresearch\u201d tells us is that, celebrity or not, you are better off being a traitor near the end of the game.<\/p>\n Claudia Winkleman\u2019s Traitors wardrobe<\/p>\n One question on many viewers\u2019 lips will be this:<\/p>\n \u201cWhat\u2019s Claudia going to wear?\u201d<\/p>\n Claudia Winkleman donned a range of capes in previous series of The Traitors<\/p>\n STUDIO LAMBERT\/BBC<\/p>\n Our illustrious host\u2019s serious sartorial style has been a talking point across the first three series with tweed jackets, oversized cable knit jumpers and hunter boots making regular appearances. (perhaps I should\u2019ve been a fashion journalist?) <\/p>\n We\u2019ll have to wait for the games to begin at 9pm to find out what this autumn\u2019s must-have look will be, but it sounds like we\u2019re in for a treat:<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s absolutely nuts.\u201d Claudia says of this year\u2019s wardrobe. \u201cUnhinged in taffeta was where we went\u2026.\u201d<\/p>\n I looked up taffeta in preparation for my new fashion gig, and it\u2019s described as a \u201ccrisp, high-end fabric with a smooth, lustrous surface, known for its distinctive rustling sound.\u201d<\/p>\n \u2022 Read more: How Claudia Winkleman made capes cool<\/a><\/p>\n Test your Traitors knowledge<\/p>\n While we\u2019re waiting. Anyone up for a Traitors quiz? More of a quizette really \u2026<\/p>\n There have been three series of the UK version of The Traitors so far. But how many have been won by traitors?<\/p>\n I\u2019ll give you a short while to think (or look it up!)<\/p>\n When will Celebrity Traitors be shown on TV?<\/p>\n If you don\u2019t already know, the broadcast schedule for this celebrity show is a little bit different to the civilian version. It\u2019s on Wednesdays and Thursdays at 9pm on BBC1 (no Friday edition), but the celeb show is running across four weeks rather than three and the final week has a Friday finale, which by my maths is going to be Halloween. Spooky! Let\u2019s hope that the ratings aren\u2019t frightful by then. You\u2019ll be able to catch up on iPlayer<\/a>.<\/p>\n OK, I\u2019m off to try to invent a Traitors-themed cocktail to drink throughout the show; how about a Murder in the Moonlight, erm, a gin and tonic with a shot of strawberry cordial?<\/p>\n Here\u2019s the series teaser to keep you company \u2026<\/p>\n How to spot a traitor at work (and how to be one)<\/p>\n The Traitors is mean and dark and addictive because we\u2019ve all been there. Any decent, loyal worker knows the sick jolt of realising that a colleague you presumed to trust is a devious, amoral, backstabbing liar. <\/p>\n Harry Clark is one of the most successful UK Traitors to date<\/p>\n The problem is \u2014 as bemoaned by the programme\u2019s Faithfuls on discovering that they have banished yet another innocent they believed was two-faced \u2014 most people are remarkably useless at spotting a snake.<\/p>\n![\"Ardross](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/\/fc952486-9834-441d-94c1-243ccc760c40.png\")
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