Jeremy Clarkson questions whether there's a real secret weapon for The Traitors' huge success
"I bow down in awe," said Clarkson.
Jeremy Clarkson has ruffled some feathers by questioning how much of hit BBC TV show The Traitors is "for real".
While noting that he loves the show and describing it as a "belter", the former Top Gear presenter appeared to question whether some of the events of The Traitors are orchestrated by producers.
According to The Sun, the Clarkson's Farm star said: "Come on, I’ve worked in television for 30 years. You’re not going to spend that much money on a programme where there’s a risk it all falls to pieces.
"So, I’ve no idea how they’re doing it, but I bow down to them."
He added: "I just don’t believe it’s all for real, because nothing in television is. I’m sitting there going, how are they doing this? It could just be unbelievably painstaking editing."
Asked if he thought producers could be manipulating the show behind the scenes, he answered: "They must be, and I’m not just being a cynic, I know how television is made.
"You can’t actually say to a contestant, ‘Say this’ and ‘say that’, you can’t but..."
Clarkson has since clarified his comments in a post on X, suggesting that the editors are the show's real secret weapon.
He wrote: "Whoa. People are saying I think that Traitors is faked. What I actually said is that I bow down in awe to the people who edit it."
Studio Lambert has responded to Clarkson's claims and explained that producers are "very hands-off".
Sam Rees-Jones, who oversees The Traitors US, said: "We’ve created the game and the format’s there, and we let them play it. We’re very hands-off producer-wise. We don’t tell people to go and talk to certain people. We don’t tell them because we don’t want to impact on the game."
Clarkson's remarks come after a fourth season of The Traitors – the regular civilian version – was recently confirmed to begin on New Year's Day.
This follows the huge success of the first ever celebrity iteration of the show, which received over 15 million consolidated views and crowned comedian Alan Carr as its champion.
The Celebrity Traitors is available to watch on BBC iPlayer.
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Authors
Phoebe Kowhai Barnes is a Freelance Writer who covers pop culture and entertainment programmes for the Radio Times. She previously worked as the Senior Assistant Editor at The Tab where she managed its local department. She obtained a BA (Hons) in English Literature from University of Nottingham.
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