Richard E Grant accidentally revealed his role in Celebrity Traitors within five minutes of being chosen as a Traitor, in what has been described as the programme's most significant error.
During the opening episode, the actor openly confessed to being one of the selected Traitors in front of stunned fellow competitors at the Scottish castle. Grant, an avid enthusiast of the format, had been telling everyone how much he wished to be selected. Host Claudia Winkleman discreetly appointed both Grant and Love Island personality Maya Jama as the series' Traitors during the initial round table gathering.
Comedian's question triggers confession
Comedian Joe Lycett asked the Withnail And I actor which role he had been given, to which he responded immediately: "Traitor!" A startled Lycett reacted: "You're what?" However, Grant persisted: "Traitor, what's the point of being the game if you're not?"
Silence engulfed the drawing room and Grant evidently recognised he may have made a mistake. Lycett responded: "I think you've just done something that's never happened in the game. It is a bold strategy."
In the confessional room, a mortified Grant appeared devastated: "Well that may be the biggest mistake I have ever made in my life. I was so thrilled to have been chosen as a Traitor, that in my unguarded excitement, I said, Of course, I'm a Traitor. I clearly need to diffuse all the heat that's coming in my direction. Oh, brother!"
Production team stunned
Production staff working on the BBC programme were equally stunned by Grant's revelation, with series producer Sarah Fay experiencing a visceral response to the moment, reports the Daily Star. "A little bit of a little bit of sick came up in my mouth," she said. "We never had anything like that happen before. I mean, within five minutes of being out of the round table, he'd already mucked up. I I still can't believe it now - Richard E Grant, how iconic!"
Claudia Winkleman was similarly amazed by what had unfolded: "I think he was genuinely so happy. He got picked for a Traitor, and he just wanted to tell everyone. I don't think it was nerves. He was giddy, and about five minutes later, he went... 'Oh, dear'. The genius of the game is everybody plays as it completely differently, and he took that to the next level."
Ed Gamble, host of spin-off show Uncloaked, concurred: "He was just vibrating with excitement and the terror as well. It felt like he'd just been given the lead role in the film and he just had to tell everyone."
Fellow celebrities react
Several celebrities struggled to accept that the 69-year-old actor could make such an error of judgement. Modelling legend Jerry Hall remarked: "I just don't believe Richard's a Traitor. I've known him 30 years, and he's my neighbour. He says and does eccentric things. He's amazing guy. But I think he's acting out because he's not been chosen."
The programme began in morbid fashion with all 21 famous faces gathering at a wake in a church. A coffin was subsequently carried in and creaked open to reveal presenter Claudia Winkleman. Two participants received shields - Coronation Street star Julie Hesmondhalgh and Joe Lycett - protecting them from murder.
Yet Grant's blunder overshadowed proceedings, with discussion about his revelation persisting during a spectacular lakeside mission where contestants collected money hidden in submerged crates around a pirate ship that eventually exploded.
This series features a variation for the initial murder, as the Traitors were directed to select not one but two individuals for potential removal, with the other being enlisted as a third Traitor. They nominated comedian James Acaster and University Challenge host Amol Rajan, who were taken back to the church and made to plead for their survival. "Richard were you double, triple bluffing or what," reacted a stunned Rajan. "The sight of the two of them cloaks down united in evil I don't think I'll ever forget." Both promised to help "get the heat off" Grant in a nail-biting cliffhanger.
The Celebrity Traitors continues tomorrow night at 8pm on BBC One and iPlayer.
