Singer-songwriter James Blunt is among the famous faces appearing in the second series of BBC One's The Celebrity Traitors, which started this week. The 52-year-old was one of the biggest-selling artists of the 2000s, with his single You're Beautiful spending five weeks at number one in 2005, and he remains a staple on playlists globally today.
He has swapped the stage for a different arena, donning the iconic hooded cloak and taking a seat around the round table alongside other celebrities to take part in the mind game. Spoilers follow.
Faithful contender faces Traitors
In the first two episodes, James, who was picked as a Faithful, has kept his head down, but it may not be long before he comes face-to-face with one of the Traitors, whether that is Love Island presenter Maya Jama, actor Richard E. Grant – provided he can survive having instantly revealed he was a Traitor – or comedian James Acaster.
When that happens, fans are hoping James has one of his legendary clapbacks ready. Despite still filling arenas worldwide, not everyone is a fan, and some share their feelings on social media.
Famous Twitter comebacks
While most celebrities ignore online criticism, James is known for frequently retweeting people who criticise his music and replying with a withering comeback, reports the Mirror. One user on X shared some of their favourite razor-sharp comebacks from the singer, saying: "Every time I see James Blunt I think about his clap back tweets, clocks every time."
In one exchange, an X user wrote: "I broke up with my girlfriend because she likes your music. She's obviously deaf." James hit back: "If she was your girlfriend she was probably blind as well." Another user posted: "If it wasn't for Twitter everyone would've forgot about @JamesBlunt tbh!" James replied: "And the most relevant you'll ever be is that one time James Blunt tweeted you."
In another exchange, someone wrote: "I have an ex who LOVED James Blunt's You're Beautiful song and I had to pretend that wasn't embarrassing." James responded: "A man of questionable taste in pretty much everything."
Lighthearted banter and broadcast details
James also engages with criticism of his own music. Responding to a tweet stating: "My favourite thing to do at gigs is to sing really loud but badly so that people who film all the songs have their videos ruined," James quipped: "Been doing this for years." In another instance, he responded to someone asking: "There's a 'best of' James Blunt? Really?", replying: "Yup, it's called 'Greatest Hit'."
The Celebrity Traitors airs on BBC One twice weekly, on Thursdays and Fridays at 8pm. It will continue for five weeks, with the grand finale set for Friday, October 30. An official video podcast, The Celebrity Traitors: Uncloaked, presented by comedian Ed Gamble, is shown straight after each episode.
