Richard E Grant has spoken out after his banishment from The Celebrity Traitors, revealing he was “convinced” his fellow traitor James Acaster would not vote to remove him from the game.
The actor was banished in Thursday’s episode after accidentally revealing he was a traitor moments after the first roundtable. He and fellow traitor Maya Jama had recruited comedian James Acaster to join them after he said he would help ease other players’ suspicions of Grant.
Traitor recruitment and murder
Together, the three traitors murdered broadcaster Amol Rajan. But at the latest roundtable, both of Grant’s fellow traitors voted to banish him.
Speaking on spin-off show The Celebrity Traitors: Uncloaked, Grant said: “I thought Maya would definitely stab me because I put her in an untenable position so I perfectly understood.
“I was so convinced by James Acaster’s determination not to kill me off when he gave his big plea in the church after Amol, I naively thought, ‘Oh well, maybe James, because he’s so trustworthy, he would come through for me.’
“Not one word came out of James’s mouth to support me.”
No tactic behind slip-up
Grant also admitted there was “no tactic” to his decision to tell Joe Lycett that he was a traitor, and he was simply so excited to be chosen.
He said: “When I walked into the bar, I was in such a state of genuine shock that I had no memory it was Joe Lycett who asked me that question.
“There was no tactic, it was my 69th birthday present. When Claudia tapped me on the shoulder, I went, yes!”
Grant also acknowledged that actress Miranda Hart had been suspicious of him even before the slip-up. He said: “The roundtable bit, by the time Claudia has walked round four times, you think by that point, there’s no chance now.
“When she tapped me on the shoulder, I thought ‘Don’t show any emotion whatsoever and you try your best not to.’
“Of course, Miranda Hart, sitting right next to me, I think she said she could immediately feel the vibrations of joy coming out.”
New traitor recruited
After Grant’s banishment, Acaster and Jama recruited mathematician Hannah Fry to be a traitor. After seeing her fellow traitors for the first time, she said: “I was sure you were faithfuls, you absolute legends.
“Oh, it’s going to be so fun!”
Later in the episode, actress Myha’la received the majority of votes from her fellow celebrities and was banished from the castle.
The Celebrity Traitors airs on Friday at 8pm on BBC One.
