The action on Celebrity Traitors series two might be being kept tightly under wraps, but that didn’t stop Richard E Grant from letting some clues slip during a recent interview.
The BBC series is returning this autumn with a starrier cast than ever, following the success of the gameshow’s first British celebrity series which saw Alan Carr win against the odds as a Traitor.
Michael Sheen, Jerry Hall, Joe Lycett and Maya Jama are among the contestants, with filming having taken place in the Scottish Highlands in May. You can find the full cast list here.
During an appearance on The One Show on Thursday (4 June), Withnail and I star Grant was grilled about his time in the Traitors castle.
While remaining schtum, the actor, 69, let slip some clues about the new series while sharing the advice he’d received from his friend and series one break-out star Celia Imrie.
“When it was announced who was going to be in it, I called her, because we’ve known each other for 40 years. And I said, ‘Celia, what is the thing that you can’t be prepared for?’” he said.
“She said, ‘the cruelty of people who you instinctively want to trust, in a room like this where suddenly every single person suspects you.’ I think that’s a very accurate thing to have said.”
Having joked earlier in the interview that he couldn’t share too much because “I value my knees, and I don’t want the BBC’s security to break them”, Grant then stuffed his fist in his mouth, adding that he’d “already said too much”.
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Following months of speculation, the BBC announced the cast of Celebrity Traitors series two in May with a picture mocking the poor spelling of names often seen by the show’s contestants during the vote each episode.
The first series was praised for the calibre of the contestants, particularly in comparison to the US version of the show where the cast is overwhelmingly composed of reality TV stars.
In comparison, the first UK series featured a stacked line-up including Stephen Fry, Nick Mohammed, Clare Balding and Imrie.
Comedian Carr was chosen as a Traitor alongside presenter Jonathan Ross and musician Cat Burns; despite Carr’s near-constant giggling leaving viewers convinced he’d be caught quickly, the Chatty Man host ended up making it to the final and winning £87,500 for his chosen charity.
Somehow, the cast for series two is even more impressive, with presenter Amol Rajan, actor Bella Ramsey, singer Leigh-Anne Pinnock and comedian Romesh Ranganathan all taking part.