Richard E. Grant made his first West End appearance in 20 years on Thursday evening, shortly after millions of BBC viewers watched him make a catastrophic mistake on the new series of The Celebrity Traitors.
The seasoned actor is treading the boards at London's Wyndham's Theatre for the next three months in a new West End production of Noel Coward comedy Hay Fever - almost two decades after his last West End appearance in Simon Gray's Otherwise Engaged.
Opening night after on-screen blunder
He may well have been hoping his turn as narcissistic novelist David had the audience laughing for the right reasons during Thursday's opening night show, after leaving fans bemused with his antics at Ardross Castle - home of hit show The Traitors and its celebrity spin-off, in which Grant currently appears.
The actor, 69, is one of 21 stars to feature on the second series of the hugely popular reality series, pre-recorded on location at the baronial Scottish estate in May - but his introduction to the show went awry after he inexplicably exposed himself as a traitor within minutes of being hand-picked by host Claudia Winkleman.
Reaction from Claudia Winkleman
Viewers will now have to wait and see if Grant's unexpected act of self-sabotage results in his roundtable banishment when the show returns on Friday evening.
Winkleman, who also selected TV and radio presenter Maya Jama as a traitor, recently admitted she had no choice but to tap him on the shoulder.
“You just couldn't not give it to him, because he wanted it so much,” she laughed at a screening last week. “I couldn't believe he was literally in the castle. And yeah, he was giddy. The genius of the game is that everyone plays it completely differently, and he took that to the next level.
“I think it was excitement. I think he was genuinely so happy. He came into the church. He loved the game. He had to eat. He wanted to be a Traitor. He got picked for a Traitor. He just wanted to tell everyone.”
Producer and cast reactions
Producer Sarah Fay agreed: “Never in our wildest dreams did we think that we'd have a Traitor admit they were a Traitor five minutes on from the round table. We've never had anything like that happen before.
“I think it was just static delirium. I don’t know what he was thinking. I still can't believe it now, but yeah, Richard E Grant, how iconic.” She confessed that the star's astonishing faux pas had left her feeling conflicted in the moment: “It was a mixture of a little bit of sick coming up in my mouth and a punch at the same time.”
Ahead of being picked, Grant told Winkleman: “If I was lucky enough to be a Traitor, that would be one of my dreams come true - it's the only way to have some control. Friendships means diddly squit!”
And he won over the audience by speaking about his late wife Joan Washington, who told him four days before she died, in 2021, that he was to find “a pocketful of happiness” each day. “I feel like I’ve got a wheelbarrowful, and then some,” he marvelled.
But it wasn’t long before he boldly told Joe Lycett that he was “a Traitor” - leaving the group stunned. Luckily for him, Jerry Hall - who claimed in the show that she’d make a good Faithful because her uncle was one of the Texas Rangers who’d caught Bonnie and Clyde - quickly dismissed his outburst.
“Oh, that’s just Richard, he wanted to be a Traitor so bad,” she said. “I’ve known him for 30 years and he says and does eccentric things.”
Many of the group appeared to follow her lead, with actress Myha’la insisting he must have been joking because “he’s too smart for that”. But viewers saw Grant sigh on camera: “That might be the biggest mistake I have ever made in my life.”
The actor will appear in Noel Coward's Hay Fever until December 12.
