Fresh off the heels of the acclaimed celebrity version, The Traitors has just returned with its fourth season. Naturally, there are some new features, but perceptive fans noticed a big slip-up about one of the secret twists.
The beloved BBC reality series not only introduced the new 'secret Traitor' twist during Thursday's (1 January) episode, but it also concealed two connections between some of the players from the 22-strong cast.
It was confirmed that two of this year's contestants, Roxy and Judy, are actually related. Before Roxy revealed that Judy is her adoptive mother, some viewers spotted a major blunder that almost let the ruse slip in front of their co-stars.
During the first mission of the season, the group were tasked with rowing on a loch, looking for 12 coffins out of a hundred with money inside. In the moment, Roxy shouted some instructions at Judy, saying: "Stop, mum. Stop, stop, stop, guys!"
While the other contestants didn't seem to take notice of the slip-up, some viewers certainly did, with one writing on X: "Did anyone hear Roxy calling Judy, Mum in the coffin task?"
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"Why's no one talking about Roxy saying 'Stop Rowing Mum' in the challenge," added one other viewer, while a third noted: "Did anyone else spot Roxy calling Judy mum in the boat? I doubt that secret is going to last long."
"Why did no one comment on Roxy saying 'stop Mum, stop stop' to Judy in the boat?" someone else noted, while a fifth person wrote: "how did no one catch Roxy calling Judy mum during the challenge??"
Elsewhere, it was revealed that Netty and Ross had previously met through a mutual friend several years ago, though a producer for the series stressed that they weren't fully aware of how close the pair were.
Mike Cotton, creative director of The Traitors production company Studio Lambert, confirmed they run background checks on the contestants but cast them as individuals.
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"We do really lengthy background checks on who takes part, and as part of that we discovered that they [Netty and Ross] follow each other on social media," Cotton explained (via BBC).
"So we knew there was a tenuous link, but we didn't know whether they would recognise each other, or how they would react."
The Traitors airs on BBC One and BBC iPlayer.
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Reporter, Digital Spy
Stefania is a freelance writer specialising in TV and movies. After graduating from City University, London, she covered LGBTQ+ news and pursued a career in entertainment journalism, with her work appearing in outlets including Little White Lies, The Skinny, Radio Times and Digital Spy.
Her beats are horror films and period dramas, especially if fronted by queer women. She can argue why Scream is the best slasher in four languages (and a half).
