James Acaster has revealed that the BBC edit of The Celebrity Traitors cut out most of what he said at the roundtable. The comedian shared the behind-the-scenes insight during an appearance on Alan Carr's Life's A Beach podcast on Monday.
The second series of the celebrity spin-off concluded with Romesh Ranganathan and Sebastian "Bash" Croft winning as Faithfuls and taking home their share of the prize money in Friday's episode. The Traitors met an unlucky end when Kenny turned on Maya in the finale.
Acaster's Roundtable Strategy
James, who was appointed a "reluctant Traitor" despite telling host Claudia Winkleman he wanted to be a Faithful, explained that he wanted to be vocal during roundtable scenes so people would not suspect him. He told Alan: "I actually said a lot more around the roundtable than the edit would suggest. I had it in my head that all the Traitors are the quiet ones around the roundtable, so I went for it."
He added: "Most of the time, they want to keep how the Traitors vote as a surprise so they don’t want to give hints. So a lot of the time, what I said at the roundtable has been cut out, so then what I vote is a reveal, so that makes sense."
Hint to Jerry Hall Cut
The 41-year-old, best known for stand-up comedy, also revealed he hinted to Jerry Hall that he was a Traitor, but the moment was not shown. He said: "They cut it out, but Jerry Hall came up to my face and said ‘I think you’re a Traitor’ and I looked her in the eye and said 'I think it might be me as well Jerry'. I told her 'I am sneaky and it might be me', I thought surely that’s going in the edit but it didn’t."
James entered the game as a Faithful but was appointed by the Traitors after a few days in the castle. In a show first, he broke his façade at the roundtable during the penultimate episode, telling co-stars he was responsible for murdering Ross Kemp in plain sight earlier in the series.
Filming Paused
An insider reportedly told the Daily Mail that filming was paused because James became "anxious" and had to gather himself before making his speech. Following the episode, a BBC spokesperson said: "Our highest priority is always the safety and welfare of everyone taking part. Players are closely monitored and supported throughout by production which includes a dedicated and experienced welfare team."
