The Celebrity Traitors mural in Manchester's Northern Quarter has been vandalised ahead of the series final, with a cleaning operation taking place to restore the artwork.
The mural, located on the corner of Thomas Street and High Street, was created by Mural Republic over a two-week period to celebrate the hit BBC reality show's second series. It features portraits of the celebrity contestants, with a cross painted over each face as they are banished or murdered, mirroring the players' fates in the castle.
Vandalism and Restoration
Following the penultimate episode, the mural was damaged and left in need of attention. The incident came as a disappointment after the time and care taken to create the piece. A cleaning operation took place today to restore the mural to its original condition.
Richard Biggs, Executive Creative Director of BBC Creative, said: "There's not much that unites the UK like watching celebrities trying to murder each other. So, it felt right to celebrate this cultural phenomenon by bringing the show's iconic portrait wall into the real world, for all to enjoy. Let the backstabbing begin."
Game Twists and Confessions
The second series has seen Maya Jama and Richard E Grant selected as the original Traitors. Richard made history as the earliest Traitor to be banished from the castle.
Thursday's (October 29) episode brought another dramatic roundtable, with Joanne McNally becoming the first contestant to be banished before Sharon Rooney was murdered by the Traitors.
James Acaster stunned fellow contestants and viewers with an unexpected confession during the latest round of accusations. Admitting he had never wanted to be a Traitor, the comedian revealed he had been trying to play the game as though he were a Faithful, despite his secret role.
He told the group: "I was made a traitor without wanting to be. I had a unique experience on this that no one's had before, where I wanted to be a faithful that's all I wanted to be."
Remaining Contestants
With James's confession out in the open, Kenny and Maya are the only Traitors remaining in the final, while Faithfuls Michael Sheen, James Blunt, Romesh Ranganathan, Leigh-Anne Pinnock and Sebastian Croft are still hoping to claim victory.
