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Steven McIntoshEntertainment reporter

'This is twisted' Claudia reveals shocking new Traitors surprise

• Spoiler warning: This article contains details of the first episode of the new series of The Traitors.

The Traitors has returned to TV screens with a major new twist - a secret fourth traitor whose identity has not even been revealed to viewers.

The secret traitor, who wears a red cloak instead of the usual green, has been given certain powers such as deciding which players the other traitors are allowed to murder.

The ingenious new twist changes the dynamic of the civilian series and marks the most significant format change since the show's launch in 2022.

It was revealed as the fourth regular series of the BBC show launched on Thursday, hot on the heels of the successful celebrity version, which attracted more than 15 million viewers.

The new crop of 22 players includes a former police detective and a crime novelist, as well as a mother and daughter keeping their connection a secret.

Two other players also recognised each other at the castle because they have a mutual friend. Their link was not known to producers beforehand (but more on that in a moment).

What does the secret traitor do?

Winkleman selected the secret traitor at the round table, but viewers did not see who it was

• Nobody, including the audience, knows the identity of the secret traitor - it is even kept from the other traitors

• Host Claudia Winkleman selected the secret traitor by tapping them on the shoulder at the round table in the usual way, but viewers could not see who it was

• Every night, the secret traitor will compile shortlist of three players the other traitors are allowed to murder (they will not put themselves on the list)

• The secret traitor is the only contestant this year who knows every other player's true status - including who the other three traitors are

• Their identity will remain a secret until the other traitors "earn their power back", Claudia explained, but it's not yet clear how long that will take or how it will happen

This is the first time a fourth traitor has been assigned in the opening episode, and it's fair to say the other traitors were not happy about somebody else holding some of the power.

"I do not require middle management," said traitor Hugo, speaking for the nation as he delivered the best line of the episode.

"The whole point of being a traitor is having perfect information."

Traitor Hugo said he was "so annoyed" about the twist, adding: "I do not require middle management"

For viewers who often complain that the faithful are useless at rooting out traitors, the twist will allow fans to play along and see whether they can do any better.

"I'm so glad they've done this, because it was so infuriating when people were like 'how did you not know?'," former Celebrity Traitors contestant Lucy Beaumont said on Uncloaked.

At the series launch last month, Winkleman told journalists the other traitors were "livid" when they found out about their anonymous companion.

"But it's really fantastic for the secret traitor," she added, "having the time of their lives."

The presenter reflected: "People who watch The Traitors endlessly go, 'How do they [the faithful] not know?' So I like the idea of, 'OK, have a go'."

But, some viewers might wonder, couldn't it be quite a lonely experience for the secret traitor, without the camaraderie of working with the other three? "Oh don't worry," Winkleman replied, "they have some fun."

All 22 contestants survived the train journey this year, with no pre-castle twist

The format change came about partly because of something viewers suggested on social media during earlier seasons.

"In series one, people said, 'Wouldn't it be interesting if the viewers didn't know who the traitors are?'" recalled Mike Cotton, creative director of production company Studio Lambert.

"And we don't agree with that, actually. I think we think that knowing who the traitors are, knowing their duplicity, is what makes it feel great.

"But we thought it would be interesting if you didn't know who one of them was. I think it could change the conversation slightly for this season."

• Detective and crime writer among new Traitors contestants
• Claudia Winkleman: The rise and rise of the Traitors host

Cotton added: "What's really interesting is the traitors are used to having all of the power, and for once they don't.

"There's a shortlist they can murder from, but they don't have free rein over who to kill, so what's going to be really interesting to see is how they navigate that."

Winkleman told journalists the secret traitor "has some fun" as the series progresses

After three seasons, producers clearly felt it was time to experiment with tweaks to the format – something networks often do to keep an established hit feeling fresh.

Although an intriguing idea, viewers will have to wait and see what impact the secret traitor has on the rest of the series.

Previous format changes have not always worked out, such as the highly unpopular "Seer" twist last year, which effectively made it impossible for one particular player to win, and removed the tension from the finale.

But this twist means the series is off to a promising start and will have people sharing their theories by water coolers in offices around the country.

Here are five other things we spotted in the opening episode:

1) Ross and Netty already know each other

Ross and Netty followed each other on social media, but producers did not know the nature of their connection

Perhaps the law of averages means this was bound to happen at some point, but, this season, two players already knew each other from having a mutual friend.

Although previous series have seen couples or family members deliberately cast together, Cotton said in this case it "was not intentional at all, we cast them as individuals".

"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," he recalled.

"So we knew there was a tenuous link, but we didn't know whether they would recognise each other, or how they would react."

2) Lots more contestants want to be traitors

This year's traitors, including Rachel, were chosen by Winkleman after her usual series of fireside chats

We aren't keeping count, but we're pretty sure more players than ever requested to be traitors this year during their fireside chats with Winkleman.

"A lot of them just say, 'I think it would be more fun'," Winkleman explained.

"And at some point, I'd really like to lean forward and say, 'That's actually not how you win, statistically'."

She added: "You had to pick someone who wanted it. In the celebrity version, lots of them asked to be faithful. In this cast I think it was one."

Eventually, Winkleman plumped for Rachel, Hugo and Stephen – plus, of course, the fourth traitor, whose identity remains a secret.

"You never know whether you've picked right," Winkleman concluded, "but I'd like to think there isn't a wrong."

3) The scale of the missions is getting bigger

The first mission saw the players set out on boats to retrieve floating coffins, dozens of which were spread out over a nearby loch.

The coffins were collected by the three teams in canoes and towed ashore, with each being worth £1,000 for the prize fund.

However, to complete the task, the contestants had to place the coffins in the named graves of players, automatically shortlisting them for murder.

Being British, all three teams opted to choose players from a different team to avoid any awkward conversations, and a total of 10 players were eventually selected for the murder shortlist.

4) Roxy is Judy's daughter

Judy (right) adopted Roxy when she was four - but the other players don't yet know about their link

Two of this year's players – Roxy and Judy – are also mother and daughter, with Judy explaining she adopted Roxy when she was four.

While this time the link was a deliberate piece of casting, the other players don't know about their connection yet.

"One of the great things about the regular series is the contestants can come in with secrets, whether that's about their lives or secret relationships," Cotton said.

Asked how producers decide when to reveal any relationship to other players and viewers, he said: "We never know when we're going to deploy it. When we're going into filming, we go in, and wait to see how it plays out."

5) Claudia's car soundtrack is impeccable

The episode opened with the presenter singing along to Fleetwood Mac's Little Lies, before skipping to The Fugees' cover of Killing Me Softly.

Both bangers, obviously, but also deliberately selected to be perfectly in keeping with the themes of the show.

For the fifth season, we are keeping our fingers crossed for Trick Me by Kelis, Walkin' After Midnight by Madeleine Peyroux, No Body, No Crime by Taylor Swift and Kill Bill by SZA (note: would require a contestant called Bill).

And if any pop stars are reading, if one of you could write a song with the word "roundtable" in the title before 2027, we'd appreciate it.

The Traitors continues on Friday 2 January at 20:00 GMT on BBC One and iPlayer.