One of the many pleasures of The Celebrity Traitors lies in immersing yourself in the very nature of celebrity itself – and nowhere is this seen more than in the personalities of major players Jonathan Ross and Stephen Fry.
After Ross survived another belligerent Round Table in Thursday’s episode, during which he was in serious danger of being banished by his fellow contestants, the delighted presenter said in his confessional interview: “How am I still here? I’ve got to be the luckiest Traitor in the history of the game.”
Ross is being modest. He’s a generally savvy operator and fought back passionately when he was accused of nefarious behaviour, until Clare Balding got the boot instead. But the real answer to that question lies in one word: “celebrity”.
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Yes, by the very nature of this special edition, everyone in the cast is famous. But let’s be honest: there’s a clear hierarchy here. The show is giving us a fascinating insight into how these celebs actually stack up when they only have one another to compare themselves with, rather than us plebs – and who ultimately comes out on top.
Social media prankster Niko Omilana might have more than eight million followers on YouTube, yet compared to Fry, he’s a total nobody. Even “murdered” Olympian Tom Daley wound up looking like a civilian. But Ross is a major figure in British pop culture, transcending his particular industry. He’s now wielding his all-powerful, decades-long celebrity to keep himself in the game – and it’s proving to be a totally irresistible force.
It’s all the more impressive given that rugby player Joe Marler is right on the money with his “Big Dog” theory. Marler believes that clever-clogs Faithful leader Fry has been specifically pitted against sneaky Traitor Ross – two big names, and big personalities, duking it out.
That delicious prospect is almost certainly what the producers had in mind, and we’re already seeing the dynamic develop.
And in his own way, Fry is just as untouchable as Ross. I had assumed the other players would be threatened by his vast intellect, but instead, this narrator of the Harry Potter audiobooks is being treated like a real-life Dumbledore: a kindly magical mentor who is completely above suspicion. It’s a very different vibe to Ross’s more aggressive, bullish approach, but no less powerful.
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It was telling that Ross decided to cosy up to Fry by gifting him a shield (“a treasure for a treasure”), simultaneously currying favour with the group, who were unilaterally happy to cede this immunity to Fry. Just as notable was the fact that Fry himself was more than happy to take it. A lesser mortal might have worried that it made them look greedy, or guilty. But he is somehow on a higher plane.
However, the downside of Fry’s gentle reign is that he has so far failed to corral his team. Although the reverence for him has essentially given him a protective cloak, he hasn’t managed to parlay the others’ awe into any tangible influence.
His attempt to limit the Faithfuls’ hysterical herd mentality by suggesting they write down people’s names without discussing them at the Round Table was a brilliant, utterly radical suggestion – and promptly ignored. Which is for the best, really, for us if not the Faithfuls, as the vicious mud-slinging makes for fantastic television.
But Fry’s failed coup allowed Ross to put his plan into action. Over the course of the day, he had had a quiet, persuasive word with people individually, like a showbiz mafia don, gradually putting Balding into the frame. She might be a national treasure with nearly the same magnitude as Fry whose earnest head-girl energy made her well-liked in the castle, but she was no match for Ross.
He has cleverly used his edgy, propulsive, transgressive chat-show persona to simultaneously seduce and steam-roller everyone else. It doesn’t matter that he’s looking increasingly desperate and, to us at least, obviously treacherous. He’s used to swaggering on to his show and taking charge of Hollywood A-listers. Now, he’s using that well-honed authority to intimidate the Traitors cast into submission.
Nothing, so far, has punctured Ross’s real shield: his superior celebrity. If ever you needed evidence of just what this superpower can get you – beyond a table at the best restaurant, or free designer clothes – just watch a gleeful Ross emerging unscathed.
Even the gloriously unfiltered and unpredictable Celia Imrie (herself someone who engenders an intense admiration among the group) admitted that she had suspected Ross for most of the day, but when it came to the Round Table, she was somehow bewitched by him once more.
Although the celebrities are taking the game seriously, some might also have in the back of their minds that this is also an entertainment show, and it would be mad to get rid of the biggest names too early on. Perhaps that’s why the first three contestants banished from the castle were basically Muggles: Omilana, Tameka Empson and Ruth Codd. You don’t want to be the person whose vote sees the likes of Fry or Ross packing their bag in week one.
Omilana and Codd in particular, two of the youngest and least recognisable contestants, always knew they were toast. While travelling in a car with Ross and Balding, and discussing their relative obscurity and lack of established luvvie relationships, Omilana sighed: “We’re in trouble.” He was right.
The celebrity dynamic has given us a fascinating twist on the Traitors format. This time, it’s not just what you do in the castle – it’s who you are. Ross’s fellow Traitor Alan Carr, who is utilising his well-known persona in a whole different way (who would ever suspect giggly, gossipy Alan?), observed in the latest episode: “Jonathan, he’s like Mr Teflon. Nothing sticks.”
We now have definitive proof that Ross is the top dog, even in a room full of celebrities, and he’s going to use his supremacy to keep them barking up the wrong tree for as long as possible. Unless, of course, Fry manages to get his mighty paws on him.
The Celebrity Traitors continues on BBC One and iPlayer on Wednesday, October 22 at 9pm