This article first appeared in Radio Times magazine.
Amol Rajan describes The Traitors as “the last great TV show” – which makes it all the more galling that he was the very first to leave this year’s celebrity edition.
“Thank you for the reminder – I appreciate that very much,” he laughs. “I can see a kind of club emerging. Alumni of The Traitors who have been the first out. Me, Paloma Faith...”
Still, Rajan’s brief sojourn in the Scottish Highlands did give him an insight into his fellow players. “Before I went in, I did an unbelievable amount of research on absolutely everyone,” he says. “Anyone who says they didn’t do that is lying. I tried to find little areas of commonality to find alliances. Sadly, I didn’t get to use that.”
And even though he’s been watching the rest of the series unfold at home along with the rest of the nation since Claudia Winkleman slammed that coffin lid shut on him, Rajan has thoughts on the game. For his money, if you want to see someone who’ll make it to the final, watch out for the quiet ones – your Sharon Rooneys or Leigh-Anne Pinnocks – and not the round-table hotheads.
“It wouldn’t be someone like Richard E Grant, or Ross,” he says. “I think if you’re a loud, big character, it’s a problem for you.”
As for the rest – including those already murdered or banished, in no particular order – here’s what he thought of their traitorous tactics...
Richard E Grant
Lord of chaos. The biggest gap between what I expected and what I got. I think his madness will be felt for a very long time.
Maya Jama
Love her and hate her. A huge satanic, villainous power. She was able to inhabit the role of a traitor 100 per cent.
James Acaster
One of the funniest comedians in the world – but also a seeker of patterns. That can be very effective.
Joe Lycett
Big dog energy. He uses humour, not as a weapon but to generate alliances.
Professor Hannah Fry
One of the nicest people; one of the smartest people too. Good with numbers. A terrifying player because she’s smarter than you.
Michael Sheen
Michael Sheen is one of the greatest actors of his generation. I was always struggling to work out which Michael I was getting – is he acting or not? He’s brilliant.
Jerry Hall
She had an obvious ploy – “beneath this dumb blonde, there’s a smart brunette” – and I think she did that because she was worried about being perceived as a “big dog”.
Julie Hesmondhalgh
I’m forever in her debt because she said she’d avenge my death. As an actor, she’s more conscious than anyone that she can play a role.
Bella Ramsey
Clever, with a strategic mind. A remarkable and thoughtful individual, with really strong opinions.
Joanne McNally
One of the funniest, most brilliant people I’ve ever met. More than anyone she wears a mask, playing a kind of performative stupidity, as she calls it. A dark horse.
James Blunt
He confounds expectations for a living. Forgot he’s a singer – he’s a military man. He knows about war zones!
King Kenny
One of the hardest-to-read people in there. He would say things to make you think, “Does he know where he is and what he’s doing?” He does.
Leigh-Anne Pinnock
Leigh-Anne seemed an introvert: quiet, shy, lacking in confidence. It will be interesting whether that allows her to fly under the radar.
Miranda Hart
I just adore her, even though she briefly looked like Hitler in episode two. Very, very funny. She just radiates a kind of sincerity and warmth.
Myha’la
I found it hard to distinguish her from her character in Industry, Harper Stern, who’s a bit of a psychopath. And then she turns out to be really nice.
Rob Beckett
One of the funniest men. He may benefit from the fact that people think that he’s not as smart as he actually is.
Romesh Ranganathan
Very difficult to read. Resting indifferent face, as he calls it. It makes him inscrutable... it makes him a threat.
Sharon Rooney
I was getting on so well with Sharon, but I never got the full measure of her.
Ross Kemp
Most paranoid man I’ve ever met. He has a hard-nut exterior that conceals a big sensitive softie. Maybe if you spend time in war zones, you don’t want to be on The Traitors.
Sebastian “Bash” Croft
He used the power of silence more than anyone else. I wish I’d known more about that power...
The Celebrity Traitors continues on Thursday 15 October at 8pm on BBC One and BBC iPlayer.
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