‘The Traitors’ is bringing ‘Big Brother’ like telly back to the UK

The finale last night led us to reflect on the good old dramatic reality TV days, as Twitter is already pining for the next season.

Fans of the nation’s new favourite TV show, The Traitors, have taken to Twitter in a frenzy following last night’s finale. If you haven’t been watching (where have you been?), Wilf was outed as the final Traitor of the bunch after he ruthlessly murdered and banished the rest of the players bar three, who got him in the end. But for those online, they have already picked their Kings and Queens of the castle, including Aaron in his tight pants, sneaky detective Maddy, Regina George-esque Keiran and hun-fave Amanda. 

Part of the appeal lies with the normality of the players, who instead of saying “I’m not putting all my eggs in one basket” like the young, beautiful influencers on other reigning reality TV, are passionately shouting “I am 100% a Faithful!” whilst crying and screaming and throwing each other under the bus.

Amongst betrayals, panic attacks and murders, the group won over the nation with what had proved to be quite a psychologically challenging test of trust. In the finale, even presenter Claudia Winkleman shed a tear, clearly emotionally invested, as the final three Faithfuls Meryl, Hannah and Aaron ran off with £33,683. 

Reminiscent of Big Brother, the memes and videos coming off the back of the reality show, that was watched by more UK viewers than Netflix’s Harry & Meghan, are proving a new era for reality TV. Big Brother, which started in 2000, displayed unsuspecting contestants, who were not in it for the brand deals after.  It was all quite a psychological affair, and went on to be mega successful, I mean, we still have videos pop up on our feed daily. The Traitors is eerily similar, and has us set to be watching it with our own kids in the years to come, as the icons to come off the back of the series could be a whole new ball game.

With Claudia paralleling Davina, both big in the shampoo ad industry, we can gladly agree with fans who are loving the presenter’s involvement in the show, stating she deserves to “win every award possible” for her work. Many would also give their spleen for Claudia Winkleman’s style, including the fabulous knitwear, saying “a big thanks to whoever dressed her because the looks were FIRE.”

The same user also stated how the general consensus between viewers was that the show has been “dynamic, mysterious and more importantly, high camp.” The Mean Girls memes, the public’s love for Aaron, Theo’s crying face and Amanda’s merch are just a few of the many reasons as to why The Traitors was so iconic.

Maybe this is the end of influencer culture stemming from reality TV, as we embrace the dramatics of amateur actors, doctors, magicians and everything in between. It was undeniably camp, including the campfire finale that left many in the race to create the best meme. 

Generally, the ending was satisfying in all its suspenseful glory, and included all the twists, turns, betrayals, trust and passion that any good reality TV show needs. In preparation for what is set to be a highly anticipated series 2, we are so invested we are holding our tongues from asking who’s a Traitor this Christmas, prepped to shout “I am 100% Faithful!!” over dinner.

Writer
Ella Chadwick
Banner Image Credit
Promo for BBC 1's 'The Traitors'