Last night, the stars of Celebrity Traitors series 2 gathered in a London studio to perform autopsies on the grand finale.
Viewers saw Faithfull, Romesh Ranganathan and Sebastian Croft defeat the Traitors and take home a shared £83,000 prize for their chosen charity.
Sadly, James Blunt was left out in the cold with fellow Faithfull and Little Mix singer, Leigh-Anne Pinnock, but he successfully fended off traitorous King Kenny and Maya Jama….
This was really interesting and perfect fodder for Ed Gamble to talk about on The Traitors Uncloaked.
However, when Ed and host Claudia Winkleman talked to Romesh, James B, Leigh Anne and Kenny about the finale, fans couldn’t help but notice one glaring absence.
Neither the cast nor the host appeared to be talking about recently fallen traitor James Acaster.
This left viewers shocked and concerned, as James was the second longest-serving traitor, one of the show’s biggest personalities, and involved in one of the show’s most dramatic moments.
‘I hope James Acaster is OK,’ wrote TV host Dan Walker on X. ‘No appearance and not even mention in the show Uncloaked.
Dr. Andy Hershon was similarly concerned, asking: ‘[Is] James Acaster okay?
The strange thing was not mentioned in the Uncloaked show.
@TheVocalHero meanwhile said: ‘Really sad not to see James Acaster here at Uncloaked. Whatever you think of what he did, he provided one of the most memorable moments on the show.’
Meanwhile, on Reddit, user u/travelprofessor asked fellow fans, ‘Why is no one mentioning James Acaster? It’s like it never happened, weird.’
Hellebel24 replied, ‘No celebrity is even mentioning his name.’ ‘It seems like they were all told before the show not to speak about him.’
CoolRanchBaby noted: ‘It’s weird that they erased him, instead of mentioning him as part of the show. They don’t need to talk about what happened that wasn’t shown or anything. Acting like it didn’t exist is making it a “thing.”
This led to speculation online as to why James skipped the Uncloaked final, especially after earlier reports that filming was halted during his last roundtable because he was struggling with the pressure.
‘The pressure on him had increased and it was clear he was finding it difficult,’ a source told the Daily Mail. ‘Everyone agreed that filming should be stopped before things got too heated.
‘Everyone was aware of the pressure James was under throughout the series; It was difficult to see him struggle.
In a statement, the BBC told Metro: ‘Our top priority is always the safety and welfare of everyone taking part.
‘Players are closely monitored and supported throughout production, which includes a dedicated and experienced welfare team.’
It’s also worth noting that James Uncloaked wasn’t the only star to miss the finals.
Bella Ramsay, Michael Sheen, Joanna McNally, Rob Beckett, Sharon Rooney, MyHa’La, Jerry Hall and Maya Jama were also absent from the studio.
Other fans, rather appropriately, pointed out that Uncloaked does not recap the entire series, also noting that they did not mention other exiled players by name.
Cake Bake Fergie on Reddit wrote, ‘There are a lot of people missing from the live Uncloaked show – and that’s not even mentioning them: Bella, Sharon, Jerry Hall.’
Metro James Acaster and the BBC have been contacted for comment.
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