Amol Rajan, the first murdered Celebrity Traitors star this series, has admitted he 'played the wrong game' after being killed off in the show's second episode.
The 43-year-old former BBC journalist had the chance to be recruited into the turret alongside Maya Jama and Richard E Grant, but the pair opted to recruit comedian James Acaster instead. Rajan was left inside a coffin in the chapel, sealing his fate as the first contestant to go.
'I played the wrong game'
Speaking on the spin-off show Uncloaked, hosted by Ed Gamble, Rajan unpacked his gameplay and admitted he wished he had been picked. He said: 'It's hard not to watch it and think, obviously, with 20/20 hindsight, I played the wrong game. That was a crazy, crazy once-in-a-lifetime (opportunity).'
Reflecting on his approach, Rajan said: 'I knew the character I was going in was the journalist who asks all the awkward questions. I told myself in advance, just shut up! Just shut up!' He added: 'The one tactic you should try to abide by is to fly under the radar. Just shut up for the first few shows.'
Praise for James Acaster
The journalist described that night in the chapel as 'one of the most intense experiences of my life' and went on to praise Acaster, saying he will be 'brilliant' as a Traitor. As Uncloaked replayed clips from his time at Ardross Castle, Rajan was visibly frustrated at his inability to keep quiet, particularly when suspicion fell on Grant after his unforced error.
In his official exit interview with the BBC, Rajan added: '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. 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 in it when it's a show and a game I love so much is just a blessing, really. Even if you're someone who is on TV, there is still something amazing about actually being in the place that you see on TV. The kind of theatrical energy and character of that roundtable itself… It's iconic. To actually be there, well, it's spine-tingling.'
What's next
As for what comes next on Celebrity Traitors, viewers will have to wait until next week to discover if Grant becomes the first turncoat to be banished at the first roundtable. Celebrity Traitors will return on Thursday at 8pm on BBC One and iPlayer.
