Thursday night delivered another shocking episode of The Celebrity Traitors, with a murder in plain sight, a nerve-wracking mission and a bombshell banishment that left viewers reeling.
In a challenge dubbed ‘Bored to Death’, the Traitors were tasked with spraying a special “peacock perfume” inside a room before luring an unsuspecting Faithful into their trap. All they needed was for their victim to yawn naturally before delivering the killer line: “Am I boring you?”.
And unfortunately for Ross Kemp, he fell straight into their trap.
The former EastEnders hard man became the latest celebrity to meet his maker, leaving fans devastated after weeks of providing some of the series' funniest memes.
In a cruel twist of irony, Kemp had spent much of his time in the castle terrified of being murdered in plain sight. Yet despite his best efforts to avoid a deadly handshake, hug or suspicious encounter, it was a simple yawn that sealed his fate.
Reacting to the news of his murder, Kemp admitted: “Oh no, it had to happen at some point.”
Reflecting on his time in the castle, he confessed just how wary he had become of his fellow contestants.
Ross Kemp was murdered in plain sight in Thursday’s episode
PA Media
“I was really sensitive to people coming close to me. Could have been a cheers. Could have been anything.
“There’s a great line from Shakespeare, I think it’s Polonius’s advice to his son: ‘to thine own self be true’.
“I have been true to myself and I have been true to the faithfuls.
“Well played traitors, but you’re always going to be traitors, and I know where you live.”
But Kemp’s exit wasn’t the only dramatic moment on Thursday evening.
The Traitors faced their riskiest mission yet, with their secret identities hanging in the balance as they attempted to creep across creaking floorboards and complete a puzzle-building challenge, all while surrounded by blindfolded Faithfuls.
The pressure proved too much for James Acaster, who refused to take part altogether, much to the frustration of his fellow Traitors. Convinced that even the slightest noise would give him away, the comedian decided the risk wasn't worth taking.
Meanwhile, Maya and Kenny attempted to sabotage the shield-making exercise, but their efforts failed to secure any cash for the prize pot as fears of being exposed got the better of them.
Jerry Hall was banished on Thursday’s episode
BBC/Studio Lambert/Cody Burridge/BBC Creative
Meanwhile, tensions reached boiling point at the Roundtable as the confused and frustrated Faithfuls turned their suspicions on American model and actress Jerry Hall.
But their desperate stab in the dark didn’t pay off, with Hall’s banishment proving to be yet another mistake in their hunt for the Traitors.
On last Friday's episode, comedian Joe Lycett was banished from the castle after his plea to be recruited backfired and he fell under suspicion.
The TV star had been vocal about his hopes to join the treacherous famous faces in the BBC series but remained faithful until the end.
Kenny filled the vacancy left by Hannah Fry, after she was banished during the roundtable in last Thursday’s episode and exposed as a traitor.
Lycett said that he wanted to be her replacement, which prompted suspicion at the roundtable in last Friday’s instalment.
Asked if he had indeed been recruited, he replied: “I did not and I am sad about it, because that is something I wanted in this game.
“I’ve probably been too vocal about it.”
Pleading his case as he fell under suspicion, Lycett said it would be “too obvious” for the traitors to recruit him.
However he sealed his fate when he told the group: “If you banish me tonight, they will have to recruit again,” prompting members of the roundtable to assume he had let slip he was indeed a traitor.
As he revealed his true identity after he was voted off, Lycett said: “I always wanted to start as a faithful and end as a traitor. I started as a faithful, I did not get my wish, I am a faithful.”