'I was accused of being a Traitor in front of Claudia Winkleman - I won't forget it'

WalkIng in to The Traitors castle, you can’t help but feel nervous of what’s to come. Even though I’m only flanked by a bunch of fellow journalists and no one is actually being murdered or indeed winning any money, you still somehow feel like you’re in a massive competition with each other.

And it’s hard not to feel very excited by the realisation that only a few days before the likes of Stephen Fry, Clare Balding, Jonathan Ross and Kate Garraway were eating, chatting and round-tabling in the very places where we are now. With two peacocks watching their every move.

On arrival we were quickly ushered in to the beautifully decorated breakfast room - so familiar to viewers of The Traitors as the regular setting for the who-has-been-murdered moment. We all ate a bit of lunch while staring at the door and imagining Tom Daley popping in, sporting some fresh knitwear.

READ MORE: Why 'man of the people' Thomas Skinner has come last in Strictly's popularity vote

READ MORE: Kate Garraway's very sad reason for joining Celebrity Traitors after five hard years

The executive producers, Mike Cotton and Sarah Fay have seen their lives totally taken over by this huge hit of a show - so how was it making the psychologically intense game with starry players?

“They play it really differently because they think all know one another,” Mike explains. “But that’s really interesting because you can watch them discover and learn that their preconceived notions of each other aren’t necessarily right. They come with prior knowledge but it makes it feel fresh.”

Mike says once the game starts, they are treated in exactly the same way as any of the regular players. “You could book the biggest name in the world and they could be gone on day two,” he points out, as we wander around the castle and look at the astonishing 2,000acre grounds stretching into the distance. “We can’t control that.”

And then it’s time for our very own round-table. We sit down in our blindfolds while Claudia does her laps for picking the Traitors and afterwards we each proclaim solemnly that we are a Faithful. “The time for talking is over,” she declares, trying to look serious but clearly stifling a giggle. “Just point at someone you believe is a Traitor.” Hang on a second - point? Where are our little blackboards? (It turns out we’re playing the ever-so-quick press version.)

The nine of us point at someone we think might be a bit dodgy and, to my surprise, one man points at me. But luckily far more are directed at another player who stands up and says: “I think you’re all terrible judges of character but in this instance you are right, I am a Traitor.” So not terrible judges of character at all! We’ve literally stuck gold, very randomly, on our first go. Buoyed by our own brilliance, we set about finding another one. And this is where it all starts to go a bit wrong for me.

The quiet bloke who pointed at me before has decided he really doesn’t want to be quiet any more. “You didn’t deny it when I pointed at you,” he says. “Er, I’ve already said I’m a Faithful,” I counter, telling him to try his luck and he’ll find out that I’m being truthful. What’s rattled his cage?

“God, I’m turning into that guy who just accuses everyone,” he says, having the grace to look a bit ashamed. Well, yes mate, you are. But he’s not giving up yet. “I’m sticking with you,” he tells me, looking a bit desperate. Doing the only thing that is possible in the situation, I point right back at him.

And then - ha ha ha - it backfires and he’s picked as the Traitor. I mean, OK, he turned out to be a Faithful. But it serves him right for being so - noisy. And I was Faithful too.

Afterwards Claudia tells us that players sometimes SHOVE their shoulders at her as she walks around the table, so desperate are they to be chosen as Traitors. And asked how she developed her distinctive shuffle-walk around the table, she laughed: “Have you seen dressage?” So here’s the million dollar question for the presenter - is the celebrity version as good as the regular one - and what would she give it out of ten? “I’m not saying anything,” she insists. “But…12.”

- The Celebrity Traitors, BBC1, tomorrow and Thursday, 9pm

Like this story? For more of the latest showbiz news and gossip, follow Mirror Celebs on TikTok , Snapchat , Instagram , Twitter , Facebook , and Threads .