Spoiler warning: This article reveals details from the sixth episode of The Celebrity Traitors
As a self-confessed Traitors superfan, you might have expected Line of Duty actor Mark Bonar to jump at the chance to appear in the celebrity version.
But the Scottish star who has also appeared in Guilt, Shetland, and Dept Q, has revealed he spent some time considering the offer before agreeing to take part.
“I took quite a while to make up my mind about it,” he told BBC Radio Scotland’s Lunchtime Live. “I really wasn’t sure because I’ve never done anything like that before…I’m not a celebrity, I’m an actor.
“I balked a wee bit at first but I’m so glad I said yes because it’s been the most incredible experience.”
Bonar – a Faithful – was banished at the beginning of episode six, after a tense round table which ended in deadlock.
Both he and historian David Olusoga received an equal number of votes from their fellow celebrities who suspected them (wrongly) of being Traitors.
It meant their fate was left up to chance and when Olusoga opened a wooden box containing a protective shield, Bonar knew his time in the Traitors castle was up.
“I was very disappointed at the time,” he said. “But with hindsight – first of all I can start to enjoy watching it again.
“If I was to go at any point, that was probably the way I would want to go.”
Bonar told Claudia Winkleman in the first episode that he wanted to be a Faithful [BBC]
Bonar, who has famously played a series of particularly nasty villains during his career, blamed fellow Faithful Joe Marler and Traitor Alan Carr for the outcome.
“Joe Marler – bless him, he’s a pal – but he’d been watching Line of Duty while we were in there,” Bonar said.
“And I don’t think anybody, with the best will in the world, would look at my face across that table and not have suspicions after watching Line of Duty.
“Of course he was egged on by Alan and as we all know, Alan isn’t a Faithful. Alan saw an opportunity and jumped on it.”
He said that despite being an actor, he harboured no desire to be a Traitor when he entered Ardross Castle in the Highlands, where the show is filmed.
One of the highlights of the series saw celebrities “digging their own graves” [BBC]
“The Traitors are under intense pressure because they’ve got to maintain a facade all the time,” he said. “Although I think you grow into it, as Alan he shown.
“I didn’t want that pressure. I always maintained that being a Faithful, trying to root the Traitors out, would be the best course of action.”
He said he had “fleeting suspicions” about Carr and Tameka Empson at the very beginning of the game.
The EastEnders actress – another Faithful – was banished in episode three.
Mark worked alongside Cat Burns in this challenge [BBC]
The programme was filmed earlier this year and the contestants have remained remarkably tight-lipped about it ahead of broadcast.
Asked what it was like to finally be able to watch it back, Bonar said: “It’s great actually.
“What’s great is watching it with Lucy [his wife] and the kids because we’re a fan of the show and we always watch it. It’s such a great series.
“It’s fascinating from a personal point of view to see all the conversations that were going on while I wasn’t there. Who was talking about me? Who had suspicions about who? It’s brilliant, a really great thing to be part of. “
