Body language expert Judi James has revealed what she believes is the secret behind Maya Jama's success on The Celebrity Traitors, where the presenter remains the only original Traitor left in the line-up. Maya, 32, was chosen as a Traitor by host Claudia Winkleman alongside Richard E. Grant, but the actor quickly gave away the secret and was banished. Since then, Maya has recruited comedian James Acaster, Professor Hannah Fry, who was soon replaced with former boxer and influencer King Kenny, and has avoided suspicion from the Faithfuls.
The 'purr' tell that goes unnoticed
Speaking to Paddy Power, Judi James explained that Maya has a facial tell, but it is one that may not help Faithfuls identify her true role. "It appears when she's in a 'purr' state of pleasure rather than suffering from lie stress or anxiety," she said. "Maya's 'purr' tell is the small muscle that appears at the side of her nose. This tell, in turn, should help to explain why Maya is tending to be such a successful Traitor."
Judi also suggested that Maya's background as the host of ITV's Love Island plays a part in her effectiveness. "The secret to Maya's success is not coming from her ability to lie as she doesn't need to," she said. "Maya is the host of Love Island, a reality game show with similar emphasis on ruthless cruelty and blatant disloyalty as Traitors. Her role is comparable to Claudia's meaning she's working this show at that level, monitoring the drama and entertainment factor and giving pep talks to her fellow Traitors to get better performances out of them."
Host's perspective brings calm confidence
Judi noted that Maya "genuinely feels no fear because she sees it through a host's and show producer's eyes," unlike the other players. "Like Claudia she drops into her own show to cause mayhem, create fear and paranoia and to create feelings of helplessness in the players," she added. "This also creates her current authoritative approach with the others. Authority with a lack of signals of any fear was the powerful blend that created the win for Rachel (in The Traitors series 4)."
Comic Joe Lycett, after discovering the Traitors' identities, admitted: "No one will catch them."
Breakfast behaviour keeps suspicion away
Judi also highlighted breakfast as "a key time for everyone to wear their fear and paranoia on their sleeves," but Maya uses the moment to eat with an elegant and 'confident flourish'. She compared this to Hannah Fry's approach, saying: "Anyone who can eat like she (Maya) does during what for the others is a time of utter tension and even building grief is going to appear innocent. As Hannah went into body language melt-down with verbal diarrhoea, Maya held one of many slices of toast dramatically aloft in one hand and her knife in the other, unable to verbalise because her mouth was full."
Judi described how Maya remained calm even as Claudia arrived and everyone froze in fear, noting: "She stood and ate and she sat and ate. Someone might just spot this is Bond Villain levels of calm behaviour but at present, its keeping her out of suspicion." The Celebrity Traitors airs Thursdays and Fridays at 8pm on BBC One and iPlayer.
