Richard E Grant admits Traitors blunder: 'I never thought they would take me seriously'
Actor Richard E Grant told a BBC programme why he left reality show The Celebrity Traitors early. He said revealing his secret role as a traitor to other contestants was a mistake.
British actor Richard E Grant, known for the film Withnail and I, has explained his early exit from the BBC reality show The Celebrity Traitors, in which famous contestants play a game of deception. Speaking on the BBC programme Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg, he admitted it was a mistake to reveal his true role so soon.
In the first episode Grant was picked as a traitor and appeared delighted about it. When fellow contestant Joe Lycett asked which side he was on, Grant confessed. Lycett called it a bold strategy that had never been tried in the game. Grant was subsequently voted out.
A 'catastrophically idiotic' move
Grant said he never expected the others to take him seriously. He described his decision as catastrophically idiotic and joked that the strategy of no strategy was clearly the strategy. According to him, his daughter had warned him before filming that he would be "slaughtered" because he could not hide his feelings about people.
The actor said that in hindsight he should have turned it into a joke by asking everyone whether they were a traitor and declaring himself one. He conceded that might have made things even worse.
Isolation and routine
Grant described how contestants are isolated in a room with a guard outside the door, have food delivered and have no internet access. They are also not told the time and have their outfits prescribed each day. In his view, this leaves people feeling infantilised and institutionalised.
Grant has chosen not to watch the series. He said it is uncomfortable for an actor to watch himself, and that in an unscripted programme there is no place to hide.
