Episode two of Claudia Winkleman's brand new game show, The Traitors, aired on BBC One on Wednesday, November 30, and the show has viewers absolutely hooked, with many commenting on how the three Traitors chosen out of the 20 remaining contestants are playing the game excellently, having gone undetected since being chosen by the Strictly Come Dancing co-host in the first episode.
The series sees 22 contestants (which soon became 20 after a shock elimination at the start of the launch episode) headed to a castle in the Scottish Highlands for a game of deception and discovery, where £120,000 is up for grabs. Described as a "nail-biting psychological competition," the contestants must work as a team to complete physical and mental missions. However, there's a huge twist as hidden among the group are some Traitors.
While the viewers know who the Traitors are - Alyssa, Amanda and Wilfred - the rest of the contestants don't. The Traitors' role is to 'murder' one of their fellow players each and every night while remaining undetected - their first victim became 23-year-old masters' graduate Aisha, revealed on tonight's show. The others, who are called the Faithfuls, must work out who is betraying them and get them banished from the game.
Read more: BBC The Traitors viewers horrified by Claudia Winkleman's 'savage' move minutes into show
And it seems that Amanda, an estate agent from Swansea, has an unwavering poker face as her fellow contestants are none the wiser in thinking she is in any way a Traitor, claiming she would not be able to hide her true identity as well as she is.
After a day of challenges in a bid to win some money, in which the contestants split into groups with one performing well-known pieces of music on church bells and the other guessing what that piece of music was, the cohort congregated and debated, in separate groups, who they thought the opposition was.
During these discussions, one contestant, Hannah, a 32-year-old comedian, turned and pointed to the 54-year-old Welsh contestant and said: “Amanda is probably one of the purest people I’ve ever met..."
Andrea, 72, chimed: “Pure Welsh water…”
Hannah continued: “And if she was given the role of Traitor, I think she would literally come in the next morning and I think your emotions would…”
Amanda cut in and bluffed: ”I don’t think I could go into the breakfast room.”
Away from her castmates, Amanda laughed on the VT and said smugly: “I thought ‘Yes! Yeah, I wouldn’t be able to do it’.”
And while various other names, such as Nicky, Imran and Fay (read more on the full cast here) were thrown around, Amanda still felt on edge: "None of us know what’s going to happen, how it’s going to go, everybody’s very on edge.”
Following this discussion, the Faithfuls and Traitors casted their vote for who they want to banish - assuming they are the culprit. The one with the most votes gets banished regardless of whether they are a faithful.
Playing her part well, Amanda debated: “I’ve got two people in mind. Their characters have changed since I first met them and observed them.” And when it came to her turn to vote, she said: "I’m going for Nicky too. You haven’t behaved like I suppose and a lot of us have instantly behaved - and that might be you… I’m so sorry.”
With the majority of votes for Accounts Supervisor Nicky, she became the first to be banished and revealed that she, in fact, was a faithful.
Viewers, it seems, can't get over how well the three traitors are doing in deceiving their fellow castmates, with many taking to Twitter to voice their thoughts.
One user, @Robbie0611, wrote: "Wil, Amanda and Alyssa are playing a blinder so far. No one is suspecting them #TheTraitors", while @CSRizzoli23 said: "Omg cant believe Nicky got banished that shocked me! Roll on the next episode i cant wait, wonder who #TheTraitors will murder next. 2 of the traitors are playing it well so far. Alyssa and Amanda. I think Wilf will struggle".
A third @sarahisnothere added: "I think Amanda might be my favourite TV contestant in an age. A total QUEEN #TheTraitors" as well as @liamandrews123 who commented: "Amanda is an icon #TheTraitors"
But while some are saying she's hiding her guilt well, other fans of the show aren't so convinced.
@Survivinthe20s said: "Amanda would be one of the first I'd suspect, far too hiding in the background. #TheTraitors".
User @drogersuk, too, added: "Amanda already too talkative at the table as a traitor. That would have been a tell for me. It is difficult though because you get a lot of excitement / ego to begin with from lots of people. #TheTraitors."
It's not just this deception viewers are going wild at either. Claudia Winkleman's newfound savagery, too, has many in shock.
@danielsw1997 wrote on Twitter: "Claudia is doing a fab job at playing a darker side of herself - the perfect fit for this show #TheTraitors", alongside Matthew Rimmer who said: "Savage Claudia is savage. #TheTraitors @ClaudiaWinkle". The Traitors continues tomorrow night on BBC One at 9pm.
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