Amol Rajan, the first contestant murdered on the new series of BBC's Celebrity Traitors, has revealed he received supportive messages from the wives of two former prime ministers after his exit. The journalist appeared on The One Show on Monday night, where he told hosts Alex Jones and Roman Kemp about the kind words he received.
The 43-year-old was among 21 famous faces who joined the new series of the hit competition in hopes of winning £100,000 for charity. Host Claudia Winkleman divided the group into Faithfuls and Traitors, choosing Love Island host Maya Jama and actor Richard E. Grant as her Traitor duo. The pair committed their first murder of the season in episode two, picking Amol as their first victim.
Messages from former PM wives
Speaking about the aftermath of his exit, the Indian-British writer said there was a trend of "wives of former prime ministers" among those who reached out. He told Roman and Alex: "Cherie Blair reached out [and] Carrie Symonds who's married to Boris Johnson. They all just said 'So sorry to see you go, would have loved it if you'd been a Traitor.' And all I can say is not as much as I would have loved it."
Cherie, 72, is a barrister and the spouse of former prime minister Sir Tony Blair. Carrie, 38, is a media consultant married to fellow ex-PM Boris Johnson.
Almost recruited as a Traitor
Amol was almost recruited by the Traitors before his exit, but comedian James Acaster was enlisted instead. If he had been chosen, the journalist said he would have betrayed fellow Traitor Richard to avoid suspicion. He admitted: "Having been a Faithful for a bit, I would've been so good, guys. But I would've murdered Richard."
Richard, 69, made a huge blunder when he told a room full of Faithfuls that he was a Traitor just minutes after being selected. He later explained that he was so excited to be one of this season's villains that he unintentionally revealed his identity. His co-stars have yet to determine whether he was being honest or bluffing as part of a bigger gameplan.
Reflecting on the experience
Looking back on his short time in the competition, Amol told the BBC: "I think it's much bigger than I expected. It's just an absolutely unforgettable ride of a lifetime."
He added: "And honestly, there's kind of an unhappy contrast right now, because I'm sort of grieving what might have been. In time I know that I'll come to look on this as honestly one of the greatest privileges of my life. In fact, I already do."
He continued: "What an amazing thing to do, and it was bigger, it was bolder, it was braver, it was brighter than it looks on TV. And to have been sort of in it when it's a show and a game I love so much is just a blessing, really." The One Show is available to stream on BBC iPlayer.
