James Acaster has addressed his experience on Celebrity Traitors, insisting he had no complaints about his fellow contestants, amid reports of tensions with Romesh Ranganathan.
The 41-year-old comedian was among the famous faces taking part in the BBC reality series, which saw Romesh crowned one of the winners alongside Sebastian 'Bash' Croft. Speculation has since emerged about an alleged fallout between James and some of his fellow contestants.
James Acaster on his fellow players
Speaking on Alan Carr's Life's A Beach podcast, James was asked about the reaction to his appearance and spoke about those he had competed alongside.
"I was like, I've been friends with those guys for like over 10 years. They were lovely, the entire show. I didn't complain about any of my fellow players," he said.
Alan suggested James might now find himself regularly approached by members of the public wanting to discuss the hit series.
"Well, listen, I'm sure you're bored, but you know now this is it. People are just going to corner you about The Traitors," the comedian said.
James replied: "I've not really had any of that. Yes, since it's been out, I've just had friends of mine, Romesh and people, who is my friend."
However, Alan joked: "Yeah, I don't believe a word of that."
Public encounters and reactions
James went on to explain that he had not experienced the same level of public attention as some of his fellow contestants.
"He's like, every five seconds, you get stopped on the street. I don't get it. I was like, no," he said.
Alan suggested people might be reluctant to approach James because of his emotional moments during the competition.
"I think people see how triggered you are on the show, and don't want to bring it up. They're being nice," he joked.
James then recalled one particularly memorable encounter with a member of the public.
"Yeah. I did have a white van man pull up and tell me he felt sorry for me. So I think that's the only interaction I've had," he said.
Alan responded: "That's so lovely though." James agreed, adding: "It was nice."
Reports of strained relationships
His comments come amid reports of a strained relationship involving James, Romesh and fellow comedian Rob Beckett during filming.
According to the Daily Mail, James allegedly felt increasingly singled out by the pair, with tensions said to have centred on differences in their social backgrounds.
A show insider claimed James had been uncomfortable with certain remarks made during the competition, suggesting he felt some comments were aimed at his upbringing rather than simply being friendly exchanges between comedians.
The source told the publication: "At the heart of it you had a middle-class man and two working class men. James felt that some of the remarks were directed not simply at him as a fellow comedian, but at his background and upbringing."
Romesh, 48, and Rob, 40, were reportedly of the view that their comments amounted to harmless banter, while James was said to have experienced the exchanges differently. The insider also claimed James had discussed feeling increasingly targeted with friends as the competition progressed.
Following Friday's final, much of the cast reportedly came together to celebrate Romesh and Bash's victory. James was notably absent from the gathering, while Uncloaked presenter Ed Gamble did not mention him during the celebrations. Rob, Jerry Hall and Joanne McNally were also among those to have missed the event.
