The BBC has responded to claims that James Acaster was made to feel 'uncomfortable' by Romesh Ranganathan and Rob Beckett on Celebrity Traitors, calling the allegations 'categorically untrue'.
The three comedians, who have been close friends for years, are part of the group of celebrities who descended on Ardross Castle to play Claudia Winkleman's game of cloak and daggers this summer. James is one of the three Traitors remaining, alongside Maya Jama and King Kenny, who replaced Professor Hannah Fry after she was banished at the roundtable on Thursday.
Reported Claims Quashed
Despite the game, the players appear to be getting along well, but a report alleged that Rob and Romesh's jokes went too far, with claims that James complained to producers. An insider told the Daily Mail: 'When Rob and Romesh get going together they are unstoppable and hilarious, but not at all malicious – it was more a misunderstanding. Rob and Romesh's gags were all meant in good humour, but James just didn't see it that way. They're completely different characters, and obviously with Rob and Romesh being such close friends away from the show, it meant they were totally on the same page and he just wasn't.'
However, a spokesperson for Celebrity Traitors has quashed the report, telling Metro: 'Claims of teasing amongst the cast on the show and claims of complaints about teasing are categorically untrue. There were no incidents of this nature and there is no evidence to support these allegations.' Rob and Romesh's representatives also stressed that 'these claims are completely untrue and couldn't be further from the truth.'
Previous Stress Reports
It was previously claimed that James became so 'visibly stressed' during filming that shooting had to be paused. 'The show is incredibly intense, and during one particular scene at the castle, James became very anxious and panicked,' the insider told The Sun. 'Some of the other celebrities on the show spoke up and said cameras should stop rolling so he could calm down, and production were in agreement as well.'
James recently revealed that he was told off by Celebrity Traitors producers for spilling too much information during a phone call with his partner. Contestants are largely shut off from the outside world but do get the chance to make a call to friends and family for around 10 minutes, supervised with a member of production.
Phone Call Incident
The Off Menu host told The Times: 'A member of the production team is there with you, so you can't have an authentic conversation because you can't tell them anything that's happening. At one point my partner said, “Have you caught the sun?” I was saying, “Oh yeah, we were outside for one of the missions.” I was told I couldn't even tell her that.'
Celebrity Traitors airs Thursdays and Fridays at 8pm on BBC One.
