BBC issues urgent statement as finale of Celebrity Traitors accidentally leaked

The BBC has issued an urgent statement to Canadian fans of The Celebrity Traitors after the finale of the show was accidentally uploaded onto Crave 24 hours early. Crave is a Canadian streaming service and premium television company that through agreements with the BBC has licencing rights to certain shows including The Traitors and Doctor Who. On Wednesday night, Crave accidentally uploaded the hit show’s final episode, which will see whether ‘Traitors’ Alan Carr and Cat Burns have been able to pull the wool over the remaining ‘Faithfuls’.

HELLO! understands that only a few hundred people watched the episode before it was pulled a couple of hours after it was uploaded. As the news broke, a spokesperson for the BBC urged viewers who had managed to watch the episode not to spoil it for those waiting for the outcome. “We kindly ask anyone who thinks they know the outcome of The Celebrity Traitors to keep whatever they believe they know to themselves,” it read.

“Please avoid sharing potential spoilers so that the millions of fans who have been faithfully following every twist and turn of the series can enjoy the final this evening.” The show has been a massive success for the BBC, who reported last month that internal viewing figures showed that 11.7 million people were tuning in for the series; more than double the amount who tuned in for the launch show of this year’s Strictly Come Dancing.

This year’s Celebrity Traitors

After airing three seasons of a civilian version, this year the BBC also broadcast The Celebrity Traitors with an all-star cast. This series has seen Alan Carr, Cat Burns, Celia Imrie, Charlotte Church, Clare Balding, David Olusoga, Joe Marler, Joe Wilkinson, Jonathan Ross, Kate Garraway, Lucy Beaumont, Mark Bonnar, Nick Mohammed, Niko Omilana, Paloma Faith, Ruth Codd, Stephen Fry, Tameka Empson and Tom Daley all compete in TV’s biggest mind game.

After Alan, Cat and Jonathan were selected as the ‘Traitors’, the trio managed to keep their identities under wraps for most of the series, successfully ‘murdering’ several other players and watching the Faithful turn on their own. The only Traitor to have been caught during the series was Jonathan, who was rumbled by several players, but managed to survive several rounds at the Roundtable.

© CREDIT LINE:BBC/Studio Lambert/Euan Cherry

Jonathan was uncovered as a Traitor

Viewers will be tuning in tonight to see whether the remaining Faithfuls, David, Joe and Nick are able to uncover Alan and Cat as the remaining Traitors or whether the wool will be pulled over their eyes once again. With two Traitors remaining in the game, it’s possible that the pair could remain in the game if they stay united, but as last week’s episode ended, Joe revealed that he was suspicious of both Alan and Cat. 

Major moments

The series has been hailed by plenty of viewers as one of the best seasons yet, thanks to Alan’s seeming ineptitude at being a Traitor, with the comedian joking that he was “worse than Linda” and an iconic moment in the third episode when beloved actress Celia Imrie passed wind during a tense moment in an abandoned cabin. At the time, one fan enthused: “THIS MOMENT DESERVES A BAFTA,” while a second posted: “#CelebrityTraitors right that’s it. Everyone pack up and go home. We’re never beating Celia Imrie dropping her guts on prime time T.V. We’ve peaked as a nation.”

© BBC

Fans have loved every second of this year’s Celebrity Traitors

Jonathan Ross’ elimination was also highly praised by fans, with the talk show presenter seemingly indicating that he was truly a Faithful, before revealing to the remaining players that he was, indeed, a Traitor. Some thought that the star hinted that Cat was a fellow Traitor during his final Roundtable when he looked visibly surprised that the singer cast a vote in his direction. “The way Jonathan looked shocked at Cat… you’re gonna give people away,” one noted on X.