Between his puzzle wizardry, Olympic-level athleticism and hilarious one-liners, Nick Mohammed has been one of the best Faithfuls on this year’s The Celebrity Traitors.
Very early on, the comedian’s spidey senses were completely spot on when he grew suspicious of Traitors Cat Burns and Jonathan Ross. His gameplay was smart, though: he kept his theory under wraps in an attempt to get closer to them. That theory, despite some hiccups along the way (more on that later), has seen him sail through to the final.
While “clever” Faithfuls are often the first to go – because the Traitors view them as a threat – Mohammed has somehow survived against all odds.
During the first challenge, the Ted Lasso actor wowed his fellow contestants by completing a tricky puzzle in a matter of seconds. And throughout the game, he frequently used his impressive maths skills to figure out odds and statistics in the most crucial moments.
We also can’t forget his athletic agility when it came to the challenges. In episode seven, Mohammed traversed a very precarious, wobbly bridge with the air of an elegant feline (Celia Imrie remarked he was “very balletic”).
He also channelled his inner MI6 agent as he gracefully weaved through the laser challenge in record time during episode eight. It’s almost as if he had been waiting his whole life for this series.
In hindsight, not all of his clever plans actually panned out very well. Things flopped rather disastrously during episode six’s chessboard challenge, where Mohammed admitted to purposefully sabotaging the game because he believed that he had more Traitors in his group than the opposing team (in this instance, he was extremely wrong).
But if you put that aside, his intelligence and Traitor-hunting abilities have seen him dubbed as the “Jaz of the series”, a nod to Jaz Singh, the contestant in The Traitors series two who earned the nickname “Jazatha Christie” for his investigative finesse.
It proves that the cool, calm and collected can rise from beneath the calamity of the more unruly Faithfuls (side-eyeing Kate Garraway right now).
Mohammed is no one-trick pony, either. He’s genuinely been a much-loved contestant on the series, with his popularity spawning fan-edits on TikTok that interpolate his best facial expressions from throughout the series.
He’s had a lot of affection for his fellow contestants, too. His rapport with the cheeky Imrie has been show-stealing in itself (“Nick, you are so brave!”). And, did you spot that Mohammed always drew a tiny love-heart on his board at each round table?
The comedian’s own one-liners have been particularly memorable, as well. In one of the final episodes, when host Claudia Winkleman suddenly announced a dinner party after the players had just eaten their tea, Mohammed said: “A dinner party tonight… now? I’ve just had a lasagne!”
Here’s hoping that Mohammed and his fellow Traitor hunters, Joe Marler and David Olusoga, can win back the game in the final. Viva la Faithfuls!
The Celebrity Traitors finale airs on Thursday 6 November on BBC One.
