James Blunt has revealed that the BBC edit of James Acaster's dramatic exit from Celebrity Traitors concealed the full extent of what happened, insisting the comedian did not simply fall on his sword.
Acaster stunned fellow contestants in the Scottish castle by declaring himself a traitor after suspicion mounted from actor Michael Sheen and musician James Blunt. He had been recruited earlier in the competition by Maya Jama and Richard E. Grant.
The strain on Acaster led producers to pause recording while the welfare team assessed his wellbeing, and the broadcast was edited to present the roundtable exchange as uninterrupted.
Blunt reveals what viewers did not see
Speaking to the BBC, Blunt suggested there was considerably more to the sequence than audiences witnessed, implying Acaster had been caught out over a perfume bottle involved in an earlier task. He said: "He didn't fall on his sword. That's what you saw, that's what you feel, but he didn't. You didn't see the full extent of his interrogation. It was heavy in there and it was clear-cut."
He added: "He was pinned to a post. We got him. We really, really got him. I think how that played out hasn't really been revealed to you, but he didn't just say: 'Oh guys, you got me.'"
Acaster has also spoken candidly about his time on the programme, including on Alan Carr's Life's A Beach podcast, where he revealed his apparent quietness did not reflect what actually took place during recording. He explained: "I actually said a lot more around that round table than the edit would suggest."
Blunt's near-miss and album promotion
Blunt himself came close to victory. Eventual joint winner Romesh Ranganathan incorrectly believed the singer was a traitor and cast his vote to banish him alongside fellow winner Sebastian 'Bash' Croft.
Blunt had been trying to secure his exit almost from the moment he arrived at the castle, according to the singer himself. His latest album, Airplane Mode, is released on Friday (November 6), and he suggested this was a significant factor behind his decision to join the programme.
When the BBC questioned whether he had signed up to promote the album, Blunt responded: "I think you may have hit the nail on the head. I don't think otherwise I would have signed up to be imprisoned in a castle in Scotland."
