Claudia Winkleman believes her bright fake tan is the secret to The Traitors' success. The presenter, 54, is known for her trademark orange complexion, which she says helps disguise what she's thinking so she doesn't ruin the game for players.
Claudia said: "The orange fake tan helps. This might sound ridiculous, but we all take the game seriously and it's not fair on the players if I mess it up with my face."
Building tension with clompy footwear
Claudia also thinks her chunky shoes are perfect for making the show extra tense during filming. She added: "The walk round the table is very tense. I really try and build the tension which is hideously mean but also quite addictive. I try and wear clompy footwear to add to it. It gets a bit flamenco."
She added: "Alan Carr recently said I walk round the table like a carthorse - and he's bang on."
Front row seat to drama
Claudia said she likes to make the game as nail-biting and difficult as possible because she loves it when there's loads of edge-of-the-seat drama. As the host, she gets a front row seat to see it all unfold.
She said: "I love watching them at breakfast. The second they walk in and react to each other over a plate of sliced cheese is fascinating to me. I love the bonding and the excitement of the missions, but the round table is probably the bit I get most excited about. Watching how they play, it's addictive."
Hosting The Piano on Channel 4
Despite her success in the castle, there's one thing Claudia hasn't quite mastered – music. The Traitors and ex-Strictly Come Dancing host is fronting the new series of The Piano on Channel 4, but admits tickling the ivories is not her forte.
Claudia, 54, says of her missing musical prowess: "I know absolutely nothing, but nobody seems to mind. They haven't shouted at me, so I'm like the idiot of the group. I know what moves me, but I'm just there as a conduit. I'm there to chat to people and make them as comfortable as possible and try and hear as much of their story as possible, so that the mentors can then get to know them a bit before they play."
In the show, unwitting amateur maestros play on public pianos in train stations across the UK and are secretly judged by professional musicians. Claudia says: "I love it so much. We're so lucky because when we did it for the first time, we thought we'd only get one go. It is an absolute privilege to wait in stations for these amazing pianists who surprise us. We learn about their lives, meet their friends and family and we learn about why playing the piano is important to them."
"For all of us involved it's an honour. I can't wait to see who we're going to meet. What's so thrilling about this amazing show, Hello, is you have no idea who's Birmingham just around the corner and is walking towards Street, can you through the station." When asked what she wants to hear more of, Claudia says: "I am longing for someone to play some Elton John."
Career advice and early days
After 30 years in showbusiness, Claudia would advise wannabe media stars to seek hands-on experience. She says: "Don't study at university. Go, but don't study subjects like media studies. I would study something else. It is just about experience. I don't think you need to study media. Work around it."
When she felt the urge to try TV, after working in a gallery, she says: "At the age of 24, I applied to the former TV company Planet 24 and got a call from Janet Street-Porter's office and I just continued. I worry about people who know what direction they want to go in. It is OK not to know."
But Claudia admits that her career has involved some weird assignments. She says: "Once I dressed up as a fruit for Fruit Awareness Week on This Morning. I was a kiwi!"
Claudia graduated with an honours degree in fine art from Cambridge University, although her charm was nurtured during her days as a pupil at the City of London School for Girls. "I had the most amazing history of art teacher, but my friend and I thought it would be easy," she says. "We wore fishnets, smoked and flirted with boys. It was like 'paintings? Yadayada.' We were not bad but of naughty. I remember one day our teacher, Mrs Dale, in the first lesson, clicked her fingers and made us all walk to St Paul's Cathedral. She said 'I have had enough. You look up and this is what we are going to teach you'. She was unbelievable and the way she introduced art to us was great. She took us to Venice and made us appreciate Titian. She was brilliant."
Claudia – whose BBC1 chat show, launched in March, was axed after lukewarm reviews – says of her love of live TV: "Live is exciting. It is like doing exams at school, I know it is weird but I like being tested. I like a test. I like the nerves. When I used to do Strictly with Tess [Daly] I just used to grip her upper arm all the time."
