The Celebrity Traitors has a problem: it keeps getting rid of its best stars. But that is kind of the point of the game. In the space of 24 hours, the BBC series lost four of its most entertaining players: Richard E. Grant, Myha'la, Bella Ramsey and Julie Hesmondhalgh.
Richard E. Grant's Early Exit
Thursday (October 8) was tough when Richard E. Grant was banished just five minutes into the episode. It was a treat watching the lord of chaos in the Scottish Highlands, who admittedly gave himself away as a traitor in the series opener, trying to amend his fatal error.
At least when Richard was voted off, viewers had a new star to root for: Industry actress Myha'la, who winked at Richard when voting for him in spite of being a faithful. But viewers did not even get to see her try to dig herself out of a hole, with her banished in the same episode as Richard.
Bella Ramsey and Julie Hesmondhalgh Follow
On Friday night (October 9), traitors Maya Jama, James Acaster and Hannah Fry made the brutal decision of getting rid of Bella Ramsey. The Last of Us star, who uses they/them pronouns, did not go into detective mode as assumed. Their exit means no more interactions between them and EastEnders actor Ross Kemp. The moment where he became paranoid about them putting a hat on his head, assuming he was murdered in plain sight, is what The Traitors is all about.
Following a challenge, which was pretty boring besides when Miranda Hart threw up, it was back to the roundtable. It quickly became clear that either Hannah or Julie Hesmondhalgh was not long for the game. Sadly, it was Coronation Street legend Julie Hesmondhalgh who received the most votes. The only thing she did wrong was being too friendly. Seeing her stand up and say she was indeed a faithful was almost as sad as when Hayley Cropper bid farewell to the cobbles.
Where the Entertainment Comes From
Losing Richard, Myha'la, Bella and Julie in the space of 24 hours leaves viewers wondering where the entertainment is going to come from. Each one of these four brought something unique to the table, from Richard's eccentricity to Julie's warm personality. There is a handful of players who have done next to nothing in the castle to date. You would be forgiven for forgetting Michael Sheen is indeed one of the contestants due to him making as much of an impact as one of the paintings on the wall.
The issue with having 21 players at the beginning is that no one on the production team knows who is going to be a hit. This is a game that punishes those with too much personality, unless you're Alan Carr of course.
A Twist in the Turret
Just when viewers were getting ready to vent frustrations, Claudia Winkleman appeared in the turret to tell the traitors that they would not be committing murder. Instead, they had to nominate four faithfuls to take part in a game of hide and seek with a twist. In the end they picked Little Mix singer Leigh-Anne Pinnock, Ross, and comedians Romesh Ranganathan and Rob Beckett. Brought outside in the middle of the night, the group decided to give Leigh-Anne a key which would keep her safe from next week's murder.
You could not even be annoyed at Leigh-Anne, another star you could forget is on the show, getting the key as all of a sudden Claudia shouted 'run'. What followed was hilariously dramatic shots of the stars running through the forest in the middle of the night. Unless you really put it under the microscope, The Traitors will never give you a chance to get annoyed. There is always a new twist around the corner that will reel you back in and turn your anger towards the fact we have to wait a full week to find out what happens next.
