Celebrity Traitors hit by a sexism row as female stars are disproportionately banished - days after Myha'la claimed 'unconscious racial bias' on show

Celebrity Traitors has been embroiled in a sexism row after viewers noted that of the six contestants to be banished, only two have been men. 

Friday's episode ended on a cliffhanger following a deadlocked vote at the Round Table, with Traitor King Kenny set to seal the fate of either Irish comedian Joanne McNally or Scottish actress Sharon Rooney, after being awarded a double, deciding vote. 

Yet viewers couldn't help but notice that yet again it was a woman on the chopping block, taking to social media to lament 'so many men leading the charge against women'. 

Faithfuls Myha'la, Julie Hesmondhalgh, Jerry Hall and Traitor Professor Hannah Fry are the females who have been banished, with Joanne or Sharon soon set to join them. 

In contrast, the only men to be banished have been Richard E Grant – who openly admitted he was a Traitor – and Joe Lycett, who publicly asked to be recruited by the Traitors. 

Taking to X/Twitter, female viewers claimed they had noticed the pattern and that the 'sexism' shown in this year's series was far more than before. 

Fans tweeted: 'They’ve only banished two men at the table, one who told them he was a traitor and one they knew wanted to be a traitor. I’ve honestly never noticed the sexism as much in the past. So many men leading the charge against women (apart from the one who’s very beautiful of course). So many patterns of behaviour women recognise from their working life. #CelebrityTraitors';

'the way the two men banished are the ones who literally told everyone and theyre like hmm suspicious. meanwhile the women are out here playing chess while the men think theyre playing checkers. the workplace patterns bit is so real though.';

'the way all the women in that castle clocked the pattern before the men even noticed it says everything about who actually reads the room';

'I was just thinking this! of the people left, the only ones with any real suspicion on them are women, despite the point about Michael being an obvious target for murder or recruitment being raised';

'That's exactly what I said on another post. Maya getting through without challenge as she's pretty and quiet, Sharon finds her voice but that is seen as suspicious for her to voice opinions';

'Yeah I picked up on how it's only women (apart from the two you said) who's been banished from the round tables. Even the ones currently who are receiving heat from the round table are all women. None of the men have really received any heat at all really.';

Other viewers claimed there was racist and classist elements to voting, tweeting: ''It’s the same as the ‘racism’ it’s not plain and obvious straight racism and sexism but it’s a reflection of society where it’s just unconsciously ingrained in the majority of people'; 

'Let's not forget classism. Working class Scot cracked the code but the posh esteemed gentleman decided she was performative...'

Yet not everyone was convinced, noting that women had also been voting for other women and tweeting: 'oh my God les turn everything into sex and race, give me a break, absolute nonsense';

'Who did the banishing? Was it just the men?';

'So the women participate in sexism against their self as they vote too? Im tired robbie.' 

Over the years The Traitors has been accused of having an issue with unconscious bias, with mutterings from fans on TikTok that contestants have shown microaggressions towards people of colour on the show.

This accusation arose again when Myha’la was banished, with one fan commenting on her Instagram: 'Unfortunately you were banished because you are BLACK.

'This is a consistent thread in this racist show. You were the first one to be strategically banished.' 

Myha’la was quick to defend her co-stars, replying: 'I understand why you feel this way, and I may have agreed with you had I not… sealed my own fate,' highlighting that she’d winked at Traitor Richard before voting for him. 

She continued: 'That early in the game, there is very little to grasp on to, and I gave them a lot.' 

Yet she did claim that there is an element of unconscious bias on the show, as she added: 'However, I do agree that unconscious racial and cultural bias exists in this game where my authenticity or honesty or the ways in which I choose to express myself look suspicious to people who are unfamiliar with people like me. 

'I had this fear coming into the game, as I am a BIG fan and also clocked right away how prevalent this is in this game.

'I’m not saying it’s right, I’m not saying racism doesn’t exist, but I do have to defend my dear friends on this show who in no way consciously put bias on me because of my race. That’s not a fair or complete assessment of what really happened in my case.'

She went on to say that she believes games like The Traitors should encourage 'more conversation around unconscious bias'. 

Myha’la's comments are said to have left show bosses dumbfounded after producers went to great lengths to ensure there was a diverse cast following decades of criticism that BBC shows featured too many white men.

Six out of the 21 contestants on this year's series are people of colour – meaning they account for approximately 28.5 per cent of the total cast.

There is also an almost 50:50 gender split and an LGBTQ contestant in actor Bella Ramsey, who identifies as non-binary. 

So BBC chiefs were left bewildered as the show found itself subject to accusations of racism. You can read more about that here.

Complaints aside, the series has continued to be a ratings hit, with Friday's episode of Celebrity Traitors drawing in a peak audience of 9.7 million viewers.

The Celebrity Traitors continues on Thursday at 8pm on BBC One and iPlayer