James Acaster stunned viewers of Celebrity Traitors by revealing at the roundtable that he was one of the traitors before the vote had even begun.
The comedian, who had become an unlikely favourite during the series, said he had never wanted the role and had been hoping to play as a Faithful.
Acaster and Maya Jama had come under suspicion after the Faithfuls linked them to the murder of Ross Kemp in plain sight. Jama defended herself, while Michael Sheen told her: “If you are Traitors, you’ve done it brilliantly.”
Sheen then questioned Acaster about the details of the killing, including how he knew about the deadly perfume bottle.
Acaster replied: “I understand how you’ve put it all together. I can’t really argue that it sounds feasible, and that sounds like it could have happened. I can promise you that I didn’t spray him.”
He then addressed the group, saying: “I just want to explain my situation. I was made a Traitor without wanting to be.
“I’ve had a unique experience on this that no one has had before, where I wanted to be a Faithful; that’s all I wanted to be. I couldn’t just go, ‘Guys, it’s me, vote for me.’ But that’s all I can do, really.”
Filming was paused while Acaster gathered himself after becoming anxious. He went on to receive every vote at the roundtable.
Before leaving, he said he was proud that he had managed to help the Faithfuls catch traitors despite being reluctantly placed in the opposing camp.
“When I came into this experience, I told Claudia that all I wanted to be was a Faithful and all I wanted to do was go round this castle and help the Faithfuls as much as possible, catching Traitors,” he said.
“I’m really proud to say that’s what I’ve been able to do under the circumstances. I am, reluctantly, a Traitor.”
Acaster later described the experience as more intense than he had expected. “It was confronting. It was more hardcore than I could ever have imagined, and the speed at which you get sucked into the game is frightening,” he said.
He added: “You go in, everyone’s holding hands and laughing, and within 24 hours you’re living in a palace of paranoia, accusing your own mother of killing people, and she’s not even in the show.”
The traitors’ position had begun to unravel earlier in the episode when Acaster, Jama and King Kenny chose to murder Scottish actress Sharon Rooney, despite her having attracted suspicion at the previous roundtable.
Jama said: “This could actually ruin all of our futures,” while Acaster described the decision as “a risky move” and said he was proud they were taking “such a big gamble”.
Jama also narrowly avoided exposing herself when she mistakenly called for the traitors to be murdered, rather than banished, during a conversation at breakfast.
Faithful Joanne McNally was also banished after the previous episode’s cliffhanger, while Rooney was subsequently murdered by the traitors.
Jama later said Acaster’s revelation had left her unable to react. “Tonight was the hardest night of the whole experience,” she told viewers.
“I knew James didn’t want to be a Traitor after we chose him. There was not one piece of me that could jump up when he said he was a Traitor. I’ve played a good acting game so far, but that part I just couldn’t pretend.”
The remaining contestants will compete for a charity prize pot currently worth £64,500. They include Jama, Kenny, Sheen, Romesh Ranganathan, James Blunt, Leigh-Anne Pinnock and Sebastian Croft.
But suspicion has already turned towards Jama. After the group raised a glass outside Ardross Castle with host Claudia Winkleman, Sheen said: “Right at the end there, it was just me and Maya again. Just the two of us. And yet now I think she’s a Traitor.
“I’m just sort of thinking, is this the last night I have here? Only the night will tell.”
