Ivan Radford | On 22, Dec 2022

Reality TV is having something of a moment. After Love Island became a smash hit several years ago, the small screen world has been racing to get a slice of the reality pie, from Selling Sunset to Married at First Sight. Competition shows, meanwhile, such as The Masked Singer, Strictly Come Dancing and The Great British Bake Off, are one of the things – along with live sport – that can still create event TV viewing in an on-demand age. BBC One’s The Traitors is a fiendish combination of the two. That formula has made it appointment viewing over the past few weeks – and the fact that it’s really, really good.

The series sees 22 strangers live together in a remote castle, while taking on challenges to build up a prize pot of up £120,000. But among them are several traitors, who are conspiring to sabotage the whole thing – and if they succeed, and make it to the end of the series, they get to take the cash home. Sounds familiar? That’s because it’s essentially a remix of The Mole, possibly the best reality TV show of all time and a show that Netflix tellingly revived for a new series this year. The Traitors, though, has gone one better, by telling us who the traitors are and giving them the power to bump off other players each night – think Wink Murder, but we all get to be in on it.

All this is overseen by host Claudia Winkleman, who is clearly having a ball making dramatic statements from beneath a particularly sinister-feeling fringe. From the very first challenge, she ruthlessly underlines the fact that nobody is safe, switching from friendly humour to deadpan ultimatums in the blink of a smoky eye.

She’s given a flawlessly picked ensemble of people to interact with – as with all the best reality TV shows, the secret to success lies in the casting. The Faithfuls (those who aren’t traitors) never miss a chance to stab each other in the back and gleefully talk to the camera about how their gameplan will make them smarter than everyone else – only for everyone to say exactly the same thing. One has a degree in psychology and hopes it will help. Another is a magician so is good at misdirection. The fact that they’re also a secret couple only adds to the tension of who will betray who.

The fun of seeing the traitors attempt to outwit the rest of the gang – while also leaving room to make each other look suspicious – doubles up the people-watching enjoyment. It all comes to a head with the Round Table climax, when the group have to sit around a table and decide who will be voted off as a traitor – think a televised version of the board game The Resistance – and then pretend to be sad about whoever it is that gets the boot.

The series is silly in the smartest way possible, wisely serving up three episodes a week to avoid Love Island-style burnout or a Netflix-style short shelf life. The result is a melting pot of social tensions and politics the likes of which hasn’t been seen in living rooms since the early seasons of Big Brother. Be prepared to be hooked and binge the whole lot.

 

The Tratiors is available on BBC iPlayer until December 2023

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