The Traitors…whimsy, intelligent TV gold!
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Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you might have noticed lately that there is a real hype around the tv show, The Traitors, in particular The Celebrity Traitors on the BBC. Friends and family who have never watched the normal Traitors programme were raving about this new show, the celebrity version, and I can totally understand why. I have been a fan of The Traitors (UK) from the very first episode of series 1. I am not usually a reality tv fan, but this is not your average show. It has a whimsical approach, it’s set in a castle in Scotland, epic scenery surrounding it, the perfect backdrop for an OTT tv show about murder and betrayal.
Yes, it appeals to the side of me that loves a good murder mystery, my years of reading Point Crime, Agatha Christie and Karin Slaughter books were my prep in order to embrace this concept of a tv programme with open arms. This tv show was made for bookish people like me, people who love a puzzle, a riddle, of strategy and psychology. And not to blow my own trumpet here, but it’s an intelligent form of entertainment. You only need to look at the class of celebrities lining up to participate to know that this is a well-respected show with great minds itching to play it! And most of them want to be Traitors, of course they do, celebrities are known for their love of drama and theatrics, aren’t they?!
The dynamic is totally different between the normal show and the celebrity version. The normal contestants are unknown to us, so we don’t know how they will play the game, and that gives us a chance to figure them out as we go along too. We all feel like we know the celebrities, but they can surprise us too, what we see in their showbiz persona is what they want us to see…this show gives them a chance to show off other aspects of their personalities and abilities. But let’s talk about Claudia, the fabulous, funny, kooky Claudia Winkleman. She is the perfect host for this show, she has an amazing sense of humour and a flair for the dramatic, she has great comedy timing and balances it perfectly with dramatic effect. I am not sure this show, in the UK anyway, would work without her presence.
I love that it airs at 8pm, so it gives us, as parents, confidence that it’s ok for our children to watch, it’s actually really nice to have such an intelligent entertainment show that the whole family can enjoy. They do have challenges in order to add money to the pot of gold for the winner(s), some are mental and can be horrific and / or hilarious, but I’ll be honest, the physical challenges are probably my least favourite part of the show, they are the parts I think I would hate if I was on it, they look exhausting!!! One of my favourite things about the show is the music, every episode of every series, I’m like, wow, I love this song, I love this music, it’s so beautiful, it’s so haunting, and I do believe it’s possible to get the soundtracks online, so that’s what I’ll be listening to from now on!
It is not a surprise that there are some merchandise celebrating this show, and it makes total sense that there are board games, they had to be done! I’ve added a few The Traitors finds here just to add a bit of colour to this page!
This might be at the top of the list of board games to buy as gifts for the family. It’s always cool to give playing something like this a go yourself, isn’t it? I can imagine children wanting to play this. It is the official board game based on the tv show, you need 4-6 players, and I can see why, you need enough players to make it a fun strategic game. If I get a chance to play this game at some point, I will write a proper review.
If one board game isn’t enough, you can get another one, this is the second edition and included six new adventures. Again, it requires 4-6 players, so you could really make a dramatic night of it if you have both board games ready to play!
Maybe you just want to look the part, yes, I have found a cosplay cloak, officially licensed for The Traitors. Imagine being sat there playing the game, and wearing this just to psych out your playmates!
And maybe you just want to create the theatrical ambience with a themed candle! Yankee candle, yes you read that right, the amazing Yankee Candle company have released two different candles, the oh so dramatic black to represent the Traitors, it smells like dark woods, warm spice and patchouli. The pure, innocent white represents the Faithful and is scented with cashmere, vanilla and rose. Both sound amazing in my opinion. They’d make amazing gifts!
I know I would have to play as a faithful if I was taking part in the tv show, I love playing detective, and also, I think my face would give it away if I was a traitor! What would you prefer to be? Do you watch it? If not, have I tempted you into tuning in?