The comedian had spent the previous days shouting openly through the castle corridors about his ambition to cross enemy lines and join the secret society of Traitors. However, his strategy backfired spectacularly during Friday night’s episode, as a major slip-up at the roundtable handed his adversaries all the ammunition they needed.
When the contestants gathered for the morning breakfast, they were immediately aware that a nocturnal recruitment had taken place under the cover of darkness. Joe quickly chimed in to distance himself from the sinister proceedings, boldly declaring to the group, "It wasn’t me!"
Yet, his transparent eagerness to switch sides over the preceding days had already planted seeds of deep suspicion among the Faithfuls. The tension finally boiled over at the roundtable, where Joe received the majority of votes following an epic logical blunder that gave away far too much insider knowledge about the mechanics of the game.
Trying to parse out the nocturnal activities of the secret saboteurs, Joe stumbled over his words and offered up a revealing scenario to the group. He reasoned, "Let’s say they were down to two last night and they recruited, there’s so much heat on me for what I was doing last night that there’s a good chance that I’ll go tonight, which means that they will then have to recruit again tonight, denying them of murder."
Musician James Blunt was quick to pounce on the linguistic giveaway. Pointing out the fatal flaw in Joe’s logic, James noted, "I thought you said, if they banish me tonight, they will have to recruit another person tomorrow, which would imply…"
The glaring slip-up immediately sent a wave of confusion and suspicion rippling across the roundtable, sealing Joe’s fate as a marked man. Despite the damning evidence, not everyone at the castle was prepared to turn on the comedian. His newfound and fiercely loyal ally, actress Miranda Hart, steadfastly refused to cast a vote against him, letting emotion completely override the cold calculation of the game.
"Forgive me for doing the cardinal rule of letting emotion get to me; I’ve put Ross," Miranda confessed to the group, sparking a burst of laughter from the surrounding contestants while a visibly concerned Ross Kemp looked on. Turning directly to Joe, she added emotionally, "I physically couldn’t write your name down."
Standing before the group as the votes were tallied and his banishment was confirmed, a gracious Joe took his exit in high spirits. "Absolutely loved it. Like a total dream," he told his fellow contestants. "I do sort of feel like we are all a family now and, as such, expect to be in all of your wills. Very sad to be going, but what a wonderful group of people."
Reflecting on his original ambitions for the game, Joe added, "I always wanted to start as a Faithful and end as a Traitor. I started as a Faithful, and I did not get my wish. I am a Faithful."
Viewers at home took to social media to react to the high-drama departure, with many expressing sympathy for the close bond that had formed between the departing comedian and the actress. On X, formerly Twitter, one fan wrote, "I feel for Miranda losing the love of her life Joe Lycett." Another added, "Gosh @Joe Lycett making me cry, lol maybe hormones but felt so sad watching that, he just wanted to be recruited, so unfair x," while a third chimed in with, "Oh dear #traitors Joe you signed your own fate last night."
In his official exit interview following his departure from the castle, the comedian admitted that he was genuinely disappointed he had never been picked to join the clandestine circle of Traitors. But while Joe managed to take his exit in good humor, his departure proved to be a profoundly emotional blow to Miranda, who broke down in tears after losing her closest companion in the game.
"I can’t believe how emotional I’m getting," Miranda admitted, reflecting on the intense environment of the castle. "Connection and laughter and joy are bigger than this game. And to meet someone and just play and laugh, it is all us humans need. I’ve had times in my life when I haven’t had that through illness, and it has brought up that silly, sensitive soul."
In a heartwarming effort to cheer up the visibly upset actress, fellow contestant Leigh-Anne Pinnock stepped in with an unexpected distraction. The singer offered to teach Miranda a portion of the choreography from Little Mix’s hit song Touch.
"I want to make your dreams come true," Leigh-Anne told the actress, before guiding her through some of the iconic dance moves from the chart-topping girl group. As the pair immersed themselves in the lesson, Miranda added some comedic relief by asking, "Where am I thrusting from?" before proudly announcing to the room, "Introducing Little Mix and Big Mix!"
While this lighthearted scene unfolded in one corner of the estate, a far more sinister and calculated plot was simultaneously taking shape elsewhere in the castle. Traitors Maya Jama, James Acaster, and newly recruited member King Kenny were handed a dark assignment: they were tasked with carrying out a murder in plain sight.
The trio received a mysterious letter outlining their clandestine mission, which instructed them to select a target and literally "bore them to death." Their chosen weapon for the task was a decorative peacock bottle filled with a deadly sleeping powder, which had been cunningly hidden away in the castle library.
"Is this a joke? This is what I called out on day one," James quipped, immediately highlighting the amusing irony of the assignment.
Newly minted Traitor Kenny shared a similar sentiment, adding, "I just got the job as a Traitor, and I’m already being asked to murder in plain sight. Are you having a laugh?"
Executing the plan, Kenny successfully retrieved the peacock bottle from its hiding place and sprayed the deadly powder into the lounge area. The mechanics of the murder required the Traitors to lure their unsuspecting victim into the room and deliberately prompt them to yawn, forcing them to inhale the contaminated air.
The terrifying prospect of falling victim to the plot now hangs directly over Jerry Hall and Ross, the latter of whom has spent a considerable amount of time being paranoid about the very real threat of being murdered in plain sight. True to form, however, the BBC has once again left viewers hanging with a dramatic cliffhanger, forcing fans to wait until next week to discover whose fate has been sealed.
