James Acaster banished from The Celebrity Traitors after round table confession
The comedian stunned fellow players on BBC One by admitting his secret identity right before the series 2 grand final.
Comedian James Acaster was banished from BBC One’s The Celebrity Traitors series 2 on Thursday, October 29, after stunning his fellow competitors with an unprompted confession at the round table right before the grand final.
During the penultimate episode of the reality competition, Acaster came clean to the remaining cast members about his role in the castle, becoming the second Traitor this series to openly reveal his identity after Richard E. Grant did the same earlier in the run. Every eligible vote at the round table was subsequently cast against him.
What happened at the round table
Acaster explained to the group that he had been recruited into the Traitors against his will, having entered the castle hoping only to hunt them down as a Faithful. As pressure mounted, he acknowledged actively trying to sabotage his own side by pointing out the perfume bottles used in the plain-sight murder of contestant Ross Kemp.
“When I came into this experience I told Claudia that all I wanted to be was a faithful, and all I wanted to do is go around this castle and try and help the faithfuls as much as possible catching traitors,” Acaster said during the broadcast. He added: “I just want to explain my situation, I was made a traitor without wanting to be, I’ve had a unique experience on this that no-one’s had before, where I wanted to be a faithful and that’s all I’ve wanted to be.”
The comedian made clear that he could no longer keep up the deception. “I couldn’t just go, ‘guys it’s me, vote for me, but that’s all I can do really’,” Acaster told the table, concluding, “I am, reluctantly, a traitor.” When his exit was sealed, he remarked, “I’m glad that I was so faithful, that I couldn’t make it to the end as a traitor.”
The confession capped off an already tense evening in the Scottish Highlands. Earlier in the episode, comedian Joanne McNally was banished, and actress Sharon Rooney was murdered. Tensions also flared during the discussion when Faithful contestant James Blunt challenged Michael Sheen, calling him the “father” figure who had steered the Faithfuls in the wrong direction, while Sheen grilled Acaster on his whereabouts during Kemp’s murder.
Rule book compliance and what comes next
Despite the dramatic disclosure, production insiders confirmed to the Daily Record that Acaster did not violate show rules regarding outed players. Because he did not name or implicate his fellow Traitors, Maya Jama and King Kenny, his only punishment was in-game banishment.
Appearing on spin-off show The Celebrity Traitors: Uncloaked immediately after the episode, Acaster stood by his exit. “They caught me fair and square. Now we’ve got a proper final on our hands,” he said, explaining that carrying three Traitors into the finale would have made the outcome an unfair certainty.
How players and viewers reacted
Inside the castle, the fallout was immediate. Fellow Traitor Maya Jama described the dramatic round table as the “hardest day” of the entire competition.
Online, viewers were deeply divided over Acaster’s self-sabotage, according to WalesOnline. Some reacted with total disbelief, with one viewer writing, “I genuinely cannot believe what I’ve just watched on Celebrity Traitors.” Others felt his confession broke the spirit of the game, with another viewer arguing, “James Acaster has ruined this season of Celebrity Traitors.”
The second series of the UK celebrity spin-off, hosted by Claudia Winkleman, launched on BBC One on October 1, 2026. Jama and Grant were the original Traitors chosen, with Acaster and content creator King Kenny later joining the fold after Grant’s early banishment. Heading into Friday’s grand final on October 30, viewers do not yet know which players will walk away with the charity prize fund, following in the footsteps of series 1 winner Alan Carr.
