With Kate Garraway, Clare Balding, Paloma Faith, Celia Imrie, Lucy Beaumont and Charlotte Church among the contestants appearing inThe Celebrity Traitors tonight, we're full of anticipation for the next dose of intrigue and tension.
But what's it like being in front of the cameras? We can't be the only ones watching and wondering things like 'do the Traitors contestants sleep in the castle?', 'how does it feel to sit around that round table?' and 'do they get distracted by Claudia Winkleman's Traitors outfits?'
One person who knows all about it is Reverend Lisa Coupland, 63, a contestant on The Traitors series 3 back in January who hid her identity as an Anglican priest for five episodes, before being eventually murdered by traitors Minah and Charlotte. We spoke exclusively to her to get the inside scoop.
Behind the scenes of The Traitors
"As the end credits of The Traitors 2024 aired, an advert appeared encouraging applications for the next series," remembers Lisa, who lives in Cornwall with her husband Mark, with whom she has three adult sons. "Leaving my husband dozing next to me, I popped upstairs to record an application video – then thought no more of it.
"Receiving a call from one of the researchers a couple of weeks later was therefore a shock! After a series of interviews and meetings online and face to face, I was amazed to find I would be a contestant.
"Keeping our identities secret before the show aired was vital, so I only told close family, but as a vicar, I needed permission from the bishop. Once I explained the premise, he gave his blessing.
"I used the excuse of a retreat to explain my absence from parish life for three weeks.
"I’m often asked if being on the show clashed with my faith, but I remind people it’s just a game."
Entering the Traitors castle
"I was both apprehensive and excited to board the steam train to the Traitors castle in Scotland, the first time I’d met the other contestants.
"Nothing was scripted or staged, so when host Claudia Winkleman disclosed which Faithful had been ‘murdered’ in the night at breakfast, that was the first we knew of it. The reactions you see on TV are very real.
"The castle is stunning. We’d spend all day there, from breakfast through to nightfall, then take the short drive to our lodgings. It was a blessing to unwind and refocus in your own room.
"Having cameras on you constantly and being miked up around the clock sounds daunting, but surprisingly, you adapt to it quickly.
"The emotional weight of the game can creep up on you, especially at the round table, although I think I got away quite lightly with not being under scrutiny too much.
"You’re sitting next to people you’ve built relationships with, and then they’re banished."
"I had thought the missions were about creating fun footage with props for effect – how wrong I was! Our second mission involved lugging oak caskets and sacks with actual gunpowder up a steep hill.
"When we rowed a Viking ship across a loch on another mission, there was no secret engine power. I suffer with chronic fatigue syndrome, so while fun, it was exhausting.
"My eventual ‘murder’ didn’t come as a complete surprise – I’d had an inkling when I called out Minah and Charlotte as Traitors at the round table. But viewers know so much more than we do, as the cameras and microphones give them a 360-degree view.
"I loved watching the series afterwards and remembering the relief I felt when I came clean that I was a priest.
"I’m still really close friends with Linda and Alex, and have met up with several of my fellow castmates since the show. The whole experience was tough, but phenomenal – we really feel like one big Traitors family."
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This article first appeared in the October 2025 issue of woman&home magazine. Subscribe to the magazine for £6 for 6 issues.
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