- Published
Spoiler warning: This article reveals details from the first two episodes of The Celebrity Traitors
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article → publish → Traitors
I know Rob very, very well.
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I → know → Rob
I mean, I've sat next to him as he's had a colonic."
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he → mean → colonic
That was Romesh Ranganathan, reminding us - in case we were in any doubt - of his close friendship with Rob Beckett in the opening episode of The Celebrity Traitors.
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we → remind → Traitors
His words sum up the key difference between this series and the regular civilian version.
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words → sum → series
In Celebrity Traitors, the players aren't just on-screen competitors - many actually know each other outside the show.
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many → know → show
Lots have worked together, and some are even friends.
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some → work → ?
And those previous connections can have a huge impact on the show's dynamics.
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connections → have → dynamics
It's also partly why it is quite so delightful to watch - as friendships unravel, and former co-stars turn on each other.
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stars → watch → other
We've been unpicking the six degrees of separation.
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We → unpick → separation
Here are some of the connections we've found - if you spot any more, we'd love to know.
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we → find → more
The Rob and Romesh bromance
The dynamic between Rob Beckett and Romesh Ranganathan is one of the most enjoyable to watch play out this year.
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dynamic → play → enjoyable
As well as being great friends in real life, they have also worked together repeatedly, including in their travel show, Rob & Romesh Vs.
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they → work → show
They've also frequently made joint appearances on panel shows such as Mock the Week.
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They → make → Week
But their friendship could count for nothing in the castle, Ranganathan said ahead of the show.
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Ranganathan → count → show
"Rob is one of my best friends, and we've worked together for a decade now, but I still won't be able to trust it," he said.
"
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he → work → it
I mean, he's just as easily going to be on my side as he is going to twist the knife in my back given the opportunity.
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he → mean → opportunity
Joe Lycett has said publicly that he's friends with James Acaster, and the pair have a running joke about how everyone gets them confused (Lycett cleared that up here, external).
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Lycett → say → that
They’ve also worked together on the TV show Travel Man.
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They → work → show
Lycett is also friends with Joanne McNally, external - he's described her as "one of my favourite people in the world".
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he → describe → world
But those loyalties could be about to be tested, especially now that Acaster has been recruited as a traitor (anyone remember how things panned out for "good friends" Alan Carr and Paloma Faith...?).
Lots of them are on the comedy circuit
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Lots → test → circuit
And they are all likely to know each other.
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they → know → other
In addition to the alliances above, Joe Lycett was on the TV show Last One Laughing with Rob Beckett.
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Lycett → laugh → Beckett
Joanne McNally and Romesh Ranganathan appeared on game show Unacceptable together, and James Acaster went on Ranganathan's hip hop podcast.
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Acaster → appear → podcast
Speaking ahead of the show, McNally insisted she and her fellow comedians "haven't been in cahoots at all".
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she → speak → cahoots
"We know that we're more than willing to throw each other under the bus," she said.
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she → know → bus
As for Acaster, he's admitted the other comedians are his “biggest threat” when it comes to being detected as a traitor.
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it → admit → traitor
“Romesh, Joe, Rob know me really well.
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Rob → know → me
They all know that I don’t change my mind overnight,” he said, as he pondered whether to turn and help fellow traitor Richard E Grant clear his name.
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he → know → name
Maya has rubbed shoulders with several of the stars
It won’t surprise you that the two broadcasters of the group - Maya Jama and Amol Rajan - have met their fair share of the other stars before.
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broadcasters → rub → stars
Rajan had previously hosted both Michael Sheen and Joe Lycett on the Radio 2 Breakfast show, and also interviewed Romesh Ranganathan on BBC Asian Network.
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Rajan → host → Network
He's also been joined on the One Show on separate occasions by Ross Kemp, Miranda Hart and James Blunt - and earlier this year, he discussed AI on stage with Hannah Fry.
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he → join → Fry
But in the end, Rajan became the first player to be murdered, before we really got to see the impact of those past connections.
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we → become → connections
Meanwhile, Maya Jama is best known for hosting Love Island, but she's also popped up in loads of other places - including at this year's Brit Awards, where she presented an award with James Blunt.
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she → know → Blunt
She's also been on Ranganathan's hip hop podcast, attended Milan Fashion Week with Leigh-Anne Pinnock, and she, Joe Lycett and James Acaster all appeared on The Big Fat Quiz of the Year.
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she → attend → Year
But Jama played down her connections on Celebrity Traitors, saying ahead of the show: “I've met a few people in the cast, but nobody really knows me, so we're all starting from scratch.”
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we → play → scratch
Bella and Sebastian are Westeros alumni
Usually the younger celebs in the castle tend to know fewer people, but Bella Ramsey is pretty well connected.
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Ramsey → tend → people
Notably, Ramsey and another younger cast member, Sebastian Croft, both starred in season six of Game of Thrones.
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Ramsey → star → Thrones
Ramsey also worked with James Blunt on the film Sunny Dancer, was interviewed by James Acaster on his Off Menu podcast - and had a funny chat about their "vegan-ish" diet with Romesh Ranganathan on The Jonathan Ross Show.
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Ramsey → work → Show
Ahead of the show, Croft said he didn't know many people aside from Ramsey before joining.
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he → say → Ramsey
…and 27 more, not listed.
The Aporia
