FIVE STARS
No banishments. No murders. No players eliminated before they can even step over the castle threshold. Has The Traitors lost its killer streak?
For all the gothic camp, as Claudia Winkleman returned with a new series of the world’s most devious gameshow, the format appeared to be defanged… like Dracula without his dentures.
But this show has become a national addiction since its launch in 2022, precisely because its appearances are invariably deceptive. The Traitors always slips a knife in, but never in the same place twice.
This time, we had advance warning. In a trailer released on Christmas Day, Claudia teased us with a glimpse of a red cloak.
What could it mean? That another pinch of genius has been sprinkled over the show, that’s what.
We’ve become accustomed to the way Lady Winkleman selects her traitors. First, resplendent in purple velvet, she interviewed the players one by one, over drinks beside the fireplace in the castle library.
For all the gothic camp, as Claudia Winkleman returned with a new series of The Traitors, the format appeared to be defanged… like Dracula without his dentures
This show has become a national addiction since its launch in 2022, precisely because its appearances are invariably deceptive
This year, all but one of them professed an eagerness to wield the dagger. They seem a psychotic lot – a marked contrast to the niceness of last autumn’s celebrity cast.
She assembled all 22 contestants at the round table and blindfolded them as usual, before circling the room slowly and picking three assassins.
But here’s the twist… a fourth traitor was also chosen, and we have no idea who it is.
In every previous series, we’ve known the identity of the hooded villains, and spied on their machinations.
But for the first time, viewers are able to join in the game, trying to spot who is lying.
The moment when a traitor takes Claudia’s oath of double-dealing and deception is always a high point of the opening episode.
This time, to prevent us from guessing which player is the secret traitor, she faced the camera and spoke directly to us as she held out the red cloak.
For a moment, I wondered whether she could be the quisling herself. Red is her colour, after all, especially for fingerless leather gloves. But surely this would be a twist too far, because as presenter she can’t be eliminated.
In a trailer released on ChristmasDay, Claudia teased us with a glimpse of a red cloak
This year, all but one of them professed an eagerness to wield the dagger. They seem a psychotic lot – a marked contrast to the niceness of last autumn’s celebrity cast
That leaves us in a frenzy of frustrated guesswork. Of course, we only see what the producers want us to see… and it’s impossible to know whether they are serving up hints or misdirection.
Take Fiona, a local government officer from Swansea and one of the oldest players at 62… are we being encouraged to suspect her?
On a car journey to the first of the competitive tasks, one of the other players remarked she was sure that all her fellow passengers were ‘faithfuls’, not traitors. The camera cut to Fiona, who positively licked her lips with glee.
To compound that, she began deliberately acting daffy, pretending not to understand the rules of the challenge, despite the fact they were literally burned onto a giant wooden signpost.
And it wasn’t all that complicated – the players simply had to retrieve coffins from a lake and lower them into open graves to add cash to their prize fund.
Each gravestone had a player’s name on it. That’s so comically macabre, it became no more sinister than a ghost train at the funfair.
We’ve become accustomed to the way Claudia selects her traitors, but this year there was a brand new twist
Though none of the players are celebs, they are not all complete unknowns. Harriet Tyce, 52, is a crime novelist whose bestseller Blood Orange opens with a solo sex game too twisted even for The Traitors.
One pair discovered they knew each other. Nursery teacher Netty, 42, and 37-year-old personal trainer Ross claimed not to have met for years but they recognised each other instantly.
A coincidence, surprising even to the producers? Call me cynical, but I doubt it.
Two players are related, a mother and daughter who revealed their connection to us in the closing minutes.
Roxy, a recruiter aged 32 who now lives in Amsterdam, was adopted by child liaison officer Judy when she was five years old.
Both have Doncaster accents but that is unlikely to give them away. A greater problem is that Judy is the victim of the first wave of irrational whispering among the faithful. We’ve seen this before: a pack mentality sets in, with people set upon and exiled for no reason. They cannot count on friends to save them. There’s no such thing as loyalty, even among the faithful.
Of course, we only see what the producers want us to see… and it’s impossible to know whether they are serving up hints or misdirection
Account manager Sam, 34, boasted: ‘I’m a fantastic liar and I will throw anyone under the bus.’
What a treacherous trait, yet a strange one to be so proud of. But he wasn’t alone in congratulating himself on his untrustworthiness.
Rachel, 42, from Northern Ireland, picked as a traitor, declared: ‘There’s nothing I won’t do to win.’
Bearded barrister Hugo, 52, also chosen as a traitor, described himself as ‘a psychopathic teddybear’ and bragged: ‘There’s a hug in my name, but get too close, there’ll be a dagger in your back.’
You don’t need witchcraft to know that it’s all going to turn nasty very soon.