Richard E. Grant was banished from Celebrity Traitors after accidentally revealing his identity as a Traitor, with fans saying they 'feel so bad' for the actor. The Withnail and I star faced an uphill battle on the BBC series after telling fellow players he was a Traitor moments after Claudia Winkleman appointed him and Maya Jama as her tricksters in the Scottish Highlands.
During the first episode of Celebrity Traitors series two, Richard was asked if he was a faithful or traitor by Joe Lycett. In a moment that drew laughter, he gave away his true identity, which he later admitted was a huge mistake as he got caught up in the excitement.
One-sided vote at the roundtable
Following a cliffhanger last week, the third episode picked up with the stars revealing who they wanted to banish. In what turned out to be one of the most one-sided votes in the show's history, Richard received votes from everyone except a handful of other players.
Both Jerry Hall and comedian Joanne McNally voted for Little Mix singer Leigh-Anne Pinnock, while singer James Blunt voted for mathematician Hannah Fry. As for Richard, he voted for Game of Thrones and The Last of Us actress Bella Ramsey.
Richard's farewell and fan reaction
Stepping up to reveal his identity, Richard said: "Thank you for having me and giving almost a full house of votes. I have always wanted to be a traitor as you know. Sometimes in life your dreams do come true and sometimes they don't. I am an unfaithful traitor."
The room immediately exploded into a chorus of cheers, with former EastEnders star Ross Kemp the loudest among them. Richard's fellow traitors Maya and James Acaster didn't show any signs of disappointment.
Speaking in a talking head, Richard noted: "I have been annihilated. I have managed to checkmate myself, which as far as I'm aware has never been done. My daughter is going to be like 'oh dad'. Oh, but I've just had a blast."
Richard is the first traitor in the history of the series to be caught out at the very first roundtable. Some believed he may have pulled off the impossible and won the entire series like Alan Carr last year.
Following Richard's elimination, Celebrity Traitors viewers flocked to X, previously known as Twitter, to express their sadness that he only lasted two episodes and five minutes into the series. @comingupstyles said: "I feel so bad for Richard he was just so excited to be picked to be a traitor #CelebrityTraitors." @hanauchocolat added: "shame we didn't get to see more of richardy #celebritytraitors."
@eds_afterglow wrote: "Richard E Grant sabotaging his time on the show 3 minutes after entering the castle is crazy, the worst traitor ever but an icon." @Scottish_Suzi posted: "Richard E Grant, you'll always be famous bravo, Sir! #CelebrityTraitors." @jjkracha commented: "For saying richard was so excited to be a traitor he played TERRIBLY #celebritytraitors." @jlb26_ noted: "james acaster immediately voting for richard at the first round table after being recruited, bro didn't even try to defend his fellow traitor."
