Sir Stephen Fry has revealed that the Prince of Wales and his family were captivated by "The Celebrity Traitors," while co-star Jonathan Ross described his role as a traitor in the BBC reality show as emotionally draining. The contrasting experiences highlight the intense dynamics of the hit charity competition ahead of the main series' return on January 1.
The 68-year-old broadcaster shared the royal family's reaction during an appearance on Good Morning Britain. He said the Prince told him at the Royal Variety Performance: «we were locked into it.» Fry added: «We had no idea what impact it would have across the demographic. Extraordinary.»
Strategic choice
Fry explained why he deliberately avoided becoming a traitor in the show. He told presenter Claudia Winkleman he lacked the necessary skills for deception.
«The tension – I just don't think I would have been very good,» he said. «One of the interesting things is people accuse you of being intelligent and David (Olusoga) is obviously hugely intelligent, but there are different kinds of intelligence, one of them is cunning. And I don't have that.»
Emotional toll
Ross, who was the first traitor banished from the series, found the experience deeply uncomfortable despite being praised for his game of deceit. «I'll be honest with you, I didn't enjoy it. I don't think I enjoyed it as much as the faithfuls did,» he said.
The presenter described lying to fellow contestants as particularly difficult. «I wound up kind of hating it because they're all such lovely people and you're lying through your teeth and then you would see someone banished and stand there and be quite emotional, and know that they were leaving something they wanted to continue,» Ross explained.
He added: «They wanted more of the experience and realise that you played a substantial part in either engineering them out, but certainly not stepping in the way when you knew they were innocent. So it was in some ways, quite unpleasant.»
Show success
The celebrity spin-off proved a ratings winner for the BBC. Comedian Alan Carr ultimately won the series, defeating faithfuls David Olusoga and Nick Mohammed in the finale.
The main series returns for its fourth run on January 1 at 8pm on BBC One and iPlayer. Ross reflected positively overall: «I'm thrilled I did it. I had a great time. It was a great experience, once in a lifetime experience for all of us.»
Note: This article was created with Artificial Intelligence (AI).
