Four huge Traitors behind the scenes secrets that are never shown on camera
BBC show The Traitors returns on Wednesday night with a new batch of contestants ready to bluff their way to victory.
The psychological reality series, hosted by Claudia Winkleman, is a game of deception with the winner taking home a whopping £120,000 cash prize.
But the layers of trickery go deeper than what we see on screen.
Roundtables
The arguing and shouting at the roundtable is very real – as contestents attempted to defend themselvees and implicate others.
Last season’s stars, Meryl, Aaron and Hannah, revealed the intense experience of filming the roundtables on This Morning.
Meryl described the pressure, questioning every move, while Hannah and Aaron insisted it is even more intense than the snippets that viewers get to see on telly.
Aaron revealed the rounds last 25 to 30 minutes and are filmed without breaks.
Hannah added: “I think it was more intense than it was on TV.”
Aaron shared: “Even as Faithfuls, we all knew we were Faithfuls, but you start questioning what a Faithful should do. It’s so nerve-wracking all the time.”
Filming schedule
Solidifying herself as a fan favourite early on in the smash hit BBC reality series, Maddy dished on taking part in The Traitors on social media.
She revealed the contestants do not live in the castle set in the Highlands but stay in accommodation thirty minutes away, and are given “a different driver each night” to ferry them there and back.
Among the many questions she received, the reality star was asked: “How long were you filming for?”
Revealing she’d used up all her annual leave from work to take part, Maddy disclosed: “So, I was there for three weeks before I was (given the chop). But yeah, three weeks, and I think they went another three or four days or something.”
She recounted feeling “exhausted” daily and thanked the welfare team for looking after her.
Security measures
Maddy also opened up on the measures taken to avoid show leaks and contestants accidentally giving away their ‘traitor’ or ‘faithful’ status.
One viewer asked her in an Instagram Q&A: “Were you allowed your phones?”
“Nope, no phones, nothing,” she replied, revealing that security checked their bags on starting the show.
She discussed a hairy moment she had with security. Her partner Tom had ordered a bobble hat but was mistakenly sent a balaclava.
She packed it in her suitcase, thinking it would go down well on the show.
“I had that in my bag as a joke,” she recalled.
Grimacing, she continued: “And I was going to be like ‘Oh look, tell that to the police [while in the show]’, but they checked your suitcase. So I had to explain to the security guard that it was just a joke.”
Hidden cameras and ‘scripted’ moments
A spectator questioned Maddy any moments were scripted or if it “was all genuine”?
Maddy answered: “I know Tom [Elderfield], the magician said it was scripted, but he was just joking.
“Nothing was scripted, only the bit where they [BBC] said, ‘Madd, you have got to repeat that again of you surviving breakfast’ [so I re-said] ‘and I survived breakfast.’
“So, I had to repeat the acting thing as I had said it off the cuff when we were taking our microphones off because I wanted to leave, and I was being dramatic. These things happen, but nothing was scripted, it’s not like Made in Chelsea, where they give you a topic. It is literally just the whole day and whatever they film.
“There are even cameras in the corner, so even when you think there is no one holding a camera at you, there are cameras.”
The second series will feature a clairvoyant, a poker player, a chess coach and a parliamentary adviser in the 22 strong line-up.
The first series saw secret Traitors tasked with ‘murdering’ Faithfuls.
Although the show will follow the same format Claudia has revealed a new twist, saying “the armoury has gone and now there’s a kitchen’.”
She added that “the scale this year is beyond” and the new series will feature “epic” challenges.