★★★★★
The latest season of the ultimate psychological reality show is packed with tension and twists within the Traitors’ turret.
The fourth series of beloved BBC game show The Traitors has proven, yet again, that the Scottish Highlands, Claudia Winkleman, and 22 strangers suspecting one another of deception makes the perfect mix for electric television.
With a cash prize of up to £120,000 up for grabs, the latest season premiered on New Year’s Day, broadcasting throughout the week and concluding on Friday 23 January with one of the most tense and emotional finals to date.
For those unfamiliar with The Traitors (where have you been?) the show sees contestants complete missions to build a prize fund, as a secret group of assigned ‘Traitors’ must deceive the others while ‘murdering’ one player each night. The remaining Faithfuls are tasked with identifying and banishing Traitors through votes at the Round Table at the end of each day. If one or more Traitors reach the end, they win the money but if all Traitors are banished, the Faithfuls share the winnings.
Based on the Dutch reality series De Verraders, which became an instant hit in the Netherlands after launching in 2021, the UK version first came to BBC One in 2022. It has since gone on to become a ratings sensation as well as introducing an equally successful celebrity spinoff in 2025, cementing itself as one of the BBC’s best reality game show formats.
For the first time ever this year, the audience had a taste of what it’s like to be a Faithful as the show introduced a “Secret Traitor” in the first episode—with the audience and even the Traitors themselves clueless as to their identity. This created a whirlwind of online content sparking theories of who it could be, and proved to the public that the show isn’t as easy as it seems. Thanks to an early original Traitor banishment, the Secret Traitor was revealed only three episodes in but that was enough to spark engagement with viewers.
With a show like The Traitors where the premise can get old quickly, this addition to keep audiences guessing was certainly a great way to kick off a memorable series.
Fan theories are part of the fun with The Traitors and series four did not disappoint. It was revealed in episode one that a mother and daughter duo were in the castle, and later theories began swirling of a familial connections series thanks to a family tree with all the players visible in the castle. Another connection was announced later in the series, which only sparked further curiosity. Once again, The Traitors demonstrated that its storytelling extends far beyond what is shown on screen, thriving in the space between episodes where audiences eagerly fill in the gaps.
Series four was not without its twists and turns, and included arguably one of the best Traitors cliffhangers ever. Faithful Matthew Hyndman was given the chance to ask the Traitors two questions; he used his opportunity to find out who they next planned to murder, then requested he be recruited after the murder of that fellow Faithful. Viewers had to wait five days to learn the Traitors’ response to Matty’s proposal, and several more episodes to learn they had—not surprisingly—lied to him in their acceptance.
The tradition of hosting a dinner party with the final handful of players so they can share what they wish to spend the prize money on allows the audience to fall in love with their favourite contestants a little more, and is often the tipping point for viewers to decide who they want to take home the cash prize. This year saw players hope for pilgrimage, house deposits, memory-making, and to simply treat the ones they love—it’s a simple reminder to viewers and fellow players that there are no bad people in this game, only those tasked with doing bad things.
Presenter Claudia Winkleman remained on-hand throughout the series to deliver impeccable fashion, fantastic one-liners, and the now-iconic snarky commentary whenever a fellow Faithful is banished. Five series in, if you include The Celebrity Traitors, she has become synonymous with the show.
Over the years we have seen Traitor-on-Traitor showdowns, devastating acts of betrayal, and plenty of Faithfuls banished in error. But 2026’s series had something we’d never seen before: a Traitor alliance that survived until the very end.
Original Traitors Rachel Duffy and Stephen Libby vowed to never put the other’s name up for banishment; a promise that has been made before, but has been broken promptly afterwards—sometimes even in the very same episode. Instead, this duo stuck together until the very end despite what it may have seemed like to fellow contestants and viewers, who were left questioning when they would turn on each other rather than if.
By the final, Rachel was under scrutiny and Stephen had an easy path to gain the whole £95,750 prize fund for himself. While many would have taken the full winnings, Stephen stayed true to his word and displayed the ultimate act of integrity by allowing himself and Rachel—who intended to use the money to make memories with her ailing mother—to each win £47,875. Devastatingly, Rachel announced this week that her mum sadly passed not long after the final episode of the series aired.
This is the second time in UK Traitors history that we’ve had a Traitor win, and the first time there’s been more than one Traitor stood next to the pile of gold at the end. In the words of Claudia as the duo raised a glass to their success: “Two Traitors—completely faithful to each other.”
Series four of The Traitors delivered everything we know and love from previous seasons; tensions, deception, friendship, and hope. But its defining legacy is the addition of actual loyalty between two Traitors who stuck by one another until the bitter end; a storyline that has elevated this season into one of the most memorable yet.
The Verdict
A programme revealing the full range of human emotions that sometimes sees you backing the antiheroes, The Traitors remains one of the best shows to catch on terrestrial television.
Words by Sophie Coombs
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