Spoiler alert: This article contains details of the final of the second series of The Traitors. You have been warned.
Judas level treachery, the advent of Jazatha Christie, and death by fizzy rosé – this series of The Traitors has had it all.
After 12 episodes, the nail-biting finale saw baby-faced British army engineer turned arch-manipulator Harry winning the entire prize pot of almost £100,000 – leaving faithful Mollie, his closest friend in the group, with nothing.
Viewers of the hit show have watched Harry, 22, play a near perfect game throughout the series, fooling almost everyone while quietly “murdering” the faithfuls one by one, and hanging his fellow traitors out to dry when the heat was on.
The Traitors finalists (L-R) Harry, Andrew, Evie, host Claudia Winkleman, Jaz and Mollie. Pic: Studio Lambert/Paul Chappells/BBC
Such was the secrecy surrounding the ending that all the contestants – bar the final three – were kept in the dark about the result; they watched the finale together, finding out the outcome at the same time as viewers.
Speaking after the big reveal, Harry admitted he did feel guilty, despite making the daily betrayal seem effortless.
“I feel like everyone deserved the chance of that money,” he said. “And I was the reason none of them got it… so I was sort of hard on myself, but then it was the game and I was like, if the shoe was on the other foot, they would do the same to me.”
‘It makes you feel you’re about to do something naughty’
After telling host Claudia Winkleman at the start that he wanted to be a traitor, Harry said he initially regretted it as he waited to see whether or not he would get the shoulder squeeze inviting him to the dark side.
“I was like, oh my gosh, what have I done? I didn’t want to be tapped. Because of the pressure… how am I going to lie to everyone’s face and keep a poker face? Then as soon as she tapped me, I sort of was like, okay, cool, I’ve got a job to do now, let’s get it done.”
And putting on his traitors cloak each night was a highlight of the game.
“It just makes you feel like you’re about to do something naughty. Every time I put it on I was like, now I feel evil.”
Harry lied his way to winning almost £100,000. Pic: Studio Lambert/BBC
Harry has been applauded for his Machiavellian game play on the BBC show – but how do his family feel about seeing this side to him?
“My mum calls me the dumbest, smartest person she’s ever met,” he said. “They laugh and joke about not being able to ever trust me again, but they know that I would do anything for them.”
Five contestants – faithfuls Evie, Jaz and Mollie, and traitors Harry and Andrew – made it through to the final. Evie and Andrew were banished – leaving Jaz convinced of Harry’s guilt, but Mollie desperate to believe his innocence.
The dramatic last vote saw Mollie, 21, initially picking Harry as a traitor – a move which would have seen the prize pot split between her and Jaz – before changing her mind at the last minute.
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Viewers saw her swear and storm out of the room after it was revealed she had been lied to by her friend.
“My head was scrambled in that moment,” she said, adding that her friendship with Harry “took over for me and I just couldn’t do it to him”, even though there was a niggling doubt.
Throughout the series, the bond between the pair, who were two of the younger contestants, was evident.
“It hurt in the moment,” she said, addressing his betrayal. “I was upset but it was a game… you know that you’re going to have people that betray you in there, you can’t hold a grudge.”
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‘He had me totally fooled’
Despite saying before the final reveal that she would never speak to him again should he turn out to be a traitor, there is “no beef” between Mollie and Harry now.
“Watching it back, you can see what a good game he played. He had me totally fooled. I think he had a lot of people fooled in there.”
Away from family and friends and with so much at stake, emotions are high. “Being away from your support system, you do have to trust someone,” Mollie said. “I obviously chose the wrong person to trust in there.”
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Andrew, who was initially a faithful but found himself recruited to the traitors halfway through the series, found it tough – and worried about “disappointing” his mum.
“I struggled with it,” the 45-year-old said. “I knew it was a game, a very intense game, a different game, but even then I still found it hard… every time I was accusing people and I knew they were telling the truth… my insides were turning like a washing machine.”
He also had to contend with a wardrobe malfunction. “It’s a good quality cloak and I struggled because it is quite long… I kept tripping over it at the start. So getting used to wearing it was quite difficult, the first day or so. I think they actually adjusted it, they got it altered for me then after the first night.”
‘I didn’t know who Agatha Christie was’
Perhaps the only person who had Harry sussed was Jaz, now christened Jazatha Christie on social media thanks to his canny detective work.
“I didn’t know who Agatha Christie was,” he said. “I had to Google that person.”
On Harry’s game play, Jaz added: “He started to get everything right. The guy was making no mistakes and I thought, your card’s marked, I’m coming for you. But when the time is right.”
Sadly, his instincts weren’t enough to secure a faithfuls victory. But Evie says there are no hard feelings towards Harry.
“We love him,” the 29-year-old said. “I’m like equal parts proud and equal parts annoyed. It’s so difficult to watch yourself be played like that but he did amazing. Hats off to him. If I was in his position I would want to play the game like he did.”