Dame Joanna Lumley is one of Britain’s best-loved actresses.
But even someone with such an impressive list of credits can’t avoid being surprised by the TV phenomenon everyone is talking about – Celebrity Traitors.
With a career spanning over 60 years, Dame Joanna has had a bit of everything, with the star known for her warmth, quick wit and undeniable screen presence.
From playing the brilliantly abusive Patsy Stone in Absolutely Fabulous to her recent role as Felicity in Amandaland, she’s never shied away from the spotlight.
Away from acting, Dame Joanna has been at the center of several travel documentaries, where she has taken audiences around the world and shared her curiosity about different cultures and places.
In recent weeks, his insatiable curiosity has led him to watch Celebrity Traitors, which ended with Faithful Romesh Ranganathan and Sebastian ‘Bash’ Croft winning a combined £83,000 for their chosen charity. Despite following every twist and turn, Dame Joanna’s opinion of the biggest show on British telly may surprise you.
During my chat with The Wolf of Wall Street actress at this year’s Aldeburgh Comedy Weekend in Suffolk, I had to ask Metro Was she watching this year’s celebrity edition of the hit BBC One show?
At the time of the interview, viewers were apparently awaiting the results of the murders of Maya Jama, James Acaster and King Kenny.
While Dame Joanna had a lot to say on the current series, she admitted there was a time when she wondered what all the fuss was about!
‘I didn’t see the first Traitors we had, but everyone was telling me about it, and I thought, how good could it be? Then the first Celebrity Traitors came out, because I knew people in it, I thought, we’ll watch it. My husband and I became completely addicted to it.
‘When I saw this next batch was coming, I told him, I don’t care what you say, we’re going to see it. He said, “It will never be as good as the last one!”
After sharing the hugely surprising news that she was never asked to take part in the celebrity version of the game, Dame Joanna laughed: ‘People say, would you be the traitor or would you be the loyalist? And the thing is, you can’t choose.’
Despite being a fan herself, describing it as ‘extremely good television’, Dame Joanna admitted that she ‘can’t really understand’ why it is such a hit.
It’s not surprising that The Traitors is so popular. The civilian version has attracted a huge audience since its launch in 2022, but the celebrity spin-off has taken things to another level.
Celebrity Traitors season 2 began in October, with the BBC later confirming that 15.7 million viewers watched the first episode, and the second episode seven days later was watched by 15.2 million viewers.
But, to quote Dame Joanna, why is it so good? Well, it’s irresistible to watch a group of people try to figure out who’s lying to them, especially when the audience knows what’s really going on.
Round table debates, betrayals and desperate attempts to stay in the game make for great television, and the fact that there’s always another twist around the corner means the drama never wanes.
Seeing familiar faces in a celebrity edition is very different from seeing a group of strangers thrown together in a castle. When that carefully constructed public persona starts to crack, it’s hard not to get invested.
Like everyone else these days, Dame Joanna loves event television such as The Traitors, but she also enjoys watching boxsets. When asked what’s on her watchlist, there were two series that stood out to her the most for the 80-year-old actress:
‘We have seen the time. Bloody hell, it’s so sad. We saw the first and second with three girls, which was brilliantly done. I guess we’ll just have to get through it because the acting and writing is out of this world. Jimmy McGovern, as best we can.’
When Dame Joanna isn’t in the mood for Time, a powerful, serious and tough drama about life in prison, she clicks on something a little more heart-touching.
‘I will tell you what, I absolutely adored Colin from Accounts. I think it’s the best television ever’, he declared.
‘I thought Colin’s office program from Accounts was going to be dull. It’s Australian, and I think it’s just a shining lighthouse. This is fantastic. It’s really touching. Very ridiculous. Great performance, great cameo.
In just a few weeks, Joanna will be back on our screens as Felicity in the Amanda Land Christmas special.
Describing this year’s episode as ‘heaven on a stick’, Joanna loves that the comedy show is now setting the standard for festive viewing.
‘This year is so much fun’, she smiled.
‘It’s also a nightmare because it shows that if, like Amanda, you start telling half-truths, they catch you.’
Joanna also described her character as a ‘nightmare mother’ and a woman who simply ‘loves trousers’, suggesting that Amanda’s (Lucy Punch) poor neighbor Mal (Samuel Anderson) may once again be on the receiving end of Felicity’s flirting during the festivities!
‘She always thinks she’s miles younger than him,’ he said, laughing.
‘She’s like a little mutton in lamb’s clothing and likes all the young people. Always fluttering her eyelashes at people.
The 2026 Amandaland Christmas special will air on BBC One and BBC iPlayer.
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