‘I’ve got to be the worst winner in the history of this entire game,’ Romesh Ranganathan told the Celebrity Traitors finalists before the fireworks popped.
With that, the thrilling finale came to a close, crowning Romesh and Sebastian ‘Bash’ Croft the 2026 winners and showing viewers who have moaned about the comedian’s TV ubiquity that there’s a reason he’s so in demand.
Up until the celebrity iteration of The Traitors, the number one rule of winning as a Faithful has been to be sort of forgettable (Bash) or forever wrong (James Blunt).
But Celebrity Traitors has introduced a third route to victory: be a comedian.
It was what buoyed all-timer Alan Carr to victory last series, because the Faithful dismissed some outrageously suspicious behaviour as Alan being Alan. They never eyed him as a realistic Traitor prospect, on the simple vibes basis that it couldn’t be Alan!
I spoke about the comedian axis of power earlier this season, in relation to James Acaster (before he self-immolated), but in the end it was Romesh who most benefited from being a funnyman.
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Michael Sheen woke up to his own preconceived bias, when he realised he had been giving Acaster a free pass for no apparent reason.
When playing as either a Traitor or a Faithful, the comedians in the castle can often diffuse situations with a joke, making it easier to avoid banishment (unless, like Joanne McNally, you have a total sense of humour failure when Miranda Hart accuses you).
Just look at Leigh-Anne Pinnock, the only woman in the final five, who was also the first to go when all the men voted her out: a point she quite rightly stated in the diary room.
Her crime? Thrusting hips and having a laugh with Miranda. Of course, Miranda’s motivations were never in question, and I suspect if Acaster or Romesh had led the dance-along instead (inconceivable, but come with me) it would not have been the smoking gun it became.
Romesh proved he was a Faithful by sniffling his way through the creaky floorboard mission, but being a laugh can help with dodging murder too.
For better or worse, this series has been less about the gameplay and plotting of normie Traitors, and more geared towards the celebrities having a jolly good time in the castle, while occasionally chatting about who the Traitors might be (when the Traitors weren’t just outing themselves to everyone).
Romesh is clearly a cracking hang. He’s a quip machine, even when he’s in a room with nothing but the cameras to perform to. He had much of the castle (and BBC viewers) in stitches. When everyone likes you (although Leigh-Anne might now be less convinced), it means you are less likely to be murdered, on the celebrity version at least.
In the bag-tossing bit of the final, Bash essentially got to decide who he would win the show with. Rather than Blunt, who the Heartstopper star had said was the player he was most sure was a Faithful, he took a touch more of a gamble and opted for Romesh. Why? Because he had grown very close to him.
No doubt, Blunt’s vengeful self-own, which earned one of the loudest gasps in the pub where I tuned in, did not help his case.
Romesh can’t be the worst winner in Traitors history, because he managed to arouse so little suspicion as a Faithful. That was in spite of the fact that he was one of the biggest names going in and did so as one half of a comedy duo, which might have been an obvious place to start looking for Traitors.
Admittedly, he wasn’t great at the Traitor-hunting bit. But when playing as a Faithful, the aim of the game is to survive, above all else.
I suspect both Alan and Acastar being Traitors might make it harder on the professionally funny people who sign up to the third Celebrity Traitors. But then again, Romesh has shown that humour can be such a winning force in the castle; I wouldn’t be surprised by another comedian victory yet.
Celebrity Traitors is available to stream on iPlayer.