A gameshow like no other, The Traitors is like a mix between a murder mystery and a reality show. It has birthed some iconic pop culture moments, from Maddy trusting no one in series one, to essentially everything Diane did in series two, to host Claudia Winkleman’s knitwear collection.

Speaking of Winkleman, she welcomes 25 contestants back to the castle in the Scottish Highlands to play the ultimate game of deception. On arrival, she chooses a few to become ‘Traitors’, who will secretly pick off the ‘Faithful’ contestants. The Faithfuls will have a chance to fight back and send someone home at nightly round table discussions, but will they manage to find the Traitors, or banish one of their own?

Read on to meet this year’s line up, from retired opera singers to former diplomats (spoilers ahead)...

Alex, 29

Care Manager

Whitby

Faithful

Alex thinks the secret to his success could be his silliness being taken as stupidity, allowing him to fly under the radar.

Alex decided to apply after loving the “psychological warfare”/gameshow combination The Traitors brings to our screens. Also, his mum thought he’d be good at it.

Alexander, 38

Former British Diplomat

London

For Alexander, The Traitors is just one more adventure in a long line of many. Recent activities have included visiting London’s abandoned underground stations, the sewers of Bologna, and both the northernmost McDonalds and a nuclear icebreaker in Murmansk. What a trip!

This particular adventure has been cut a bit short, as alongside Fozia and Jack, Alexander chose to sacrifice his place in the competition after Winkleman revealed the series' first big twist. Viewers speculate their time might not be over yet, as two contestants were similarly cut in series one but returned later on!

Anna, 28

Swimming Teacher

County Wicklow, Ireland

Faithful

Anna was adamant throughout the casting process that she wanted to be a Faithful, but now she feels like she’ll be stressed no matter what happens. Anna describes The Traitors as “mental gymnastics.” What a shame she’s a swimming teacher…

Armani, 27

Financial Investigator

London

Traitor

Armani recently gave the previous series a rewatch, and thinks the past contestants played the game “all wrong!” She’s planning to be very strategic: “I’ll be planting seeds everywhere I go. You need to strike a fine balance between oversharing and then not sharing enough,” she says.

Charlotte, 32

Business Director

London

Faithful

Charlotte says she’ll be taking inspiration from last series’ Jazatha Christie – not following the crowd with her opinions, whilst still keeping her head below the parapet, and not being too vocal. However, it seems Charlotte has decided to throw that out of the window and take a little more inspiration from Amanda and speak in a Welsh accent for the series duration.

Dan, 33

Bank Risk Manager

Liverpool

Faithful

Dan thinks the secret to winning is the “two different faces of [his] personality”. Outwardly he gives “charming smiley Scouse”, but inwardly, he’ll be constantly evaluating his next moves, and ensuring he doesn’t become a target.

Fozia, 50

Community Development Manager

Birmingham

Fozia is going to give her all for The Traitors. Even though she is known to get competitive in a board game, she never, ever, cheats. Her strategy, if she gets to return after her shock episode one exit, will be focused on building alliances and working on her poker face, or as she calls it, her “don’t mess with Fozia face!”

Francesca, 44

Interior Designer

East Sussex

Faithful

Francesca has been training in case she gets chosen as a Traitor… by lying to her kids about where she’s going!

“I've made up this very elaborate lie and it just gets worse and worse […]  Maybe this has just unleashed an inner deceptiveness in me!”

Freddie, 20

Politics Student

Peterborough

Faithful

As an ex-athlete Freddie feels like he’ll be great at missions, and is hoping this will make his teammates keep him in. He thinks another secret to success might be being a bit of a “mummy’s boy” and hoping people want to look after him.

Jack, 24

Market trader and landscaper

Yorkshire

Jack has wanted to be a Traitor from the very start. “The Faithful are the players, and the Traitors are the game masters,” he says. Although he says he is naturally competitive, and that winning is very important to him, he sacrificed himself in episode one. Let's hope he is rewarded with a return as a Traitor.

Jake, 28

Project Manager

Barrow-in-Furness

Faithful

Jake used to play for the cerebral palsy England football team and thinks this time has prepared him for both the missions, and for the high intensity environments he’s going to be in.

Joe, 37

English Teacher

Southampton

Faithful

Joe accidentally became a Traitors fan after it came on after EastEnders and immediately was hooked. One thing he thinks he might struggle with is biting his tongue and not speaking up too soon.

Kasim, 33

Doctor

Cambridge

Faithful

As a Faithful, Kasim plans to act dumb and “play up his uselessness,” although might decide to be a bit manipulative. “As a medic registrar often you're the person who has to come up with the final plan for a patient. […] I’ve learnt to make people think that my ideas are their idea.”

Leanne, 28

Veteran

Holywell, North Wales

Faithful

Leanne has decided to lie out of the gate. As an ex-soldier she’s worried fellow army-member Harry’s blinding game last year has given veterans an untrustworthy name, so she’s decided to say she’s a nail tech at the salon down the road.

Leon, 40

Retail Store Manager

East Midlands

Faithful

Leon is quite competitive… he doesn’t even let his 12-year-old beat him at Mario Kart! He also reckons to have a good poker face having practised it on his family and friends, who think he was in Barbados at the time of filming.

Linda, 70

Retired Opera Singer

Hertfordshire

Traitor

Linda likes lying and “can be ruthless” where there’s money involved. As a Traitor, she’ll be borrowing Harry’s tactic, and thinking of herself as a Faithful the whole way through – fake it till you make it (or at least try not to turn around again when Claudia addresses the Traitors...)!

Lisa, 62

Anglican Priest

Cornwall

Faithful

Agatha Christie fanatic Lisa is looking forward to solving a real mystery. Lisa’s family and friends often question how her competitive nature fits in with her life as a priest, but Lisa maintains it’s all for the love of the game. If she won the money, she wouldn’t keep it, she'd use it to help her community.

Olivia (Livi), 26

Beautician and Model

Horsham

Faithful

Although originally aiming to be a Faithful, after seeing Harry’s performance as a Traitor last year she is feeling more open to a game of deception. She says she “definitely won’t be a ringleader” though, her tactic being to sit back and observe, until she reaches the end and can “let loose!”

Maia, 25

Full-time Mum

Essex

Faithful

Maia is a reformed childhood liar, saying she had to stop when her sister Armani told her it was going too far. Luckily Armani will be there to keep her in check!

She’s excited to have an excuse to lie again, but probably doesn’t realise her Traitor sister will probably be telling most of the fibs.

Minah, 29

Call Centre Manager

Liverpool

Traitor

Minah thinks it would be great if two Traitors could win it together, but is aware that might be a pipe dream: “I suppose if it’s between you or throwing someone else under the bus, you’ve got to throw them under the bus, haven’t you?”

Tyler, 29

Barber

Leicester

Faithful

Tyler reckons his job as a barber will help him spot a liar because of the amount of different people he comes across day to day. One group he doesn’t trust is the youth: “I’m more mates with my dad’s mates.” Tyler sees himself forming bonds with the older Faithfuls in the group.

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Who has been banished/ murdered?

Yin, 34

Doctor of Communication

Berkshire

Faithful - Murdered

Yin is a storyteller at heart, and she feels a lifetime of “crafting stories” is going to help her spin a winning tale. Some things she’ll be excluding from her narrative are that she’s got into Oxford three times and works in AI because she thinks these things could be used against her

Elen, 24

Translator

Cardiff

Faithful - Banished

Elen’s taking inspiration from series one’s Amanda. She loved that Amanda embraces her Welshness and is completely herself. Welsh is Elen’s first language, and she doesn’t feel as confident speaking English, so she’s hoping Welsh pride will carry her through.  

Nathan, 39

Property Consultant

London

Faithful - Banished

Nathan says: “It's a game of manipulation, lies, building trust but also letting people down and stabbing people in the back. That's what the game is about.” Sounds like Paul from series two’s natural predecessor.

Keith, 65

Window Cleaner

Bournemouth

Faithful - Murdered

Taekwondo black-belt Keith is excited for most of the challenges but is terrified of heights. Even in his job as a window cleaner he keeps both feet firmly on the ground and uses extra-long sponges.

The Traitors begins New Years Day 2025, and continues every Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday on BBC One and iPlayer.