The first series of the Traitors was multi award-winning, did you anticipate the show doing so well when you signed up for the series?

We absolutely didn’t. We really had no idea and when it did well we just couldn’t believe it. It floored all of us and made us extremely happy.

We are back, how excited are you for everyone to see series two?

So excited. I’m obviously terrified people won’t like it as much as series 1, but that’s normal right?

Favourite moment of the last series?

I have too many! The first round table, the Traitors meeting in the conclave the first time. The Traitors turning on each other was extraordinary and something we did not predict. But there were brilliantly funny moments too, when they’d all laugh together on the missions. I love the friendships that were created in a mad world of betrayal.

Did you find it hard to keep secrets last series? Were any celebrity fans asking you for the inside scoop?

I am rarely not in my bed so it was easy to keep the secrets of the final. I also know that giving away the ending or any part of it would have ruined it so I just kept schtum.

The contestants last year were incredible, can you tell us anything about this year’s hopefuls?

They are all excellent. They come having seen the first series so are more quick to suspect but they all play a brilliant game. I wish I could say more but I’ll be fired…

Did you have a change in tactics for selecting this year’s Traitors?

You’ll have to see. Yes, I realise I’m annoying.

Do you think that the contestants this year have an advantage? Does watching last year give them some tips?

It definitely gave them some tips and you can see some arrive and play the game immediately. But the game itself is so strong that however prepared you think you are, you’re not.

Did people come in with more strategies?

They did…

Can you give us any hints on anything new to come in this new series?

I wish I could. I think I’m allowed to say the armoury has gone and now there’s a kitchen. That’s it!

Can you tell us a bit about this year’s challenges? They were tough last year but have they ramped up?

The missions this year are epic. The producers are so clever as the missions are incredibly important as it is a chance for the contestants to switch off from strategising and plotting. They get fresh air, they run around, they work as a team. The scale this year is beyond.

Last year you were rooting for both the Faithful and the Traitors? Has that changed this year, is it time for a Traitor to steal the gold?

I was really rooting for both. It’s a really strange thing, I stand at that round table trying to just melt into the walls and I’m backing both sides. I so want them to catch a Traitor and I also want the Traitors to get away with it. In the end I respect and admire gameplay and there’s a lot of that in this series. I want both the Faithful and Traitors to win, which is confusing.

How was the nerve of this year’s contestants? Was it even more tense in series two?

It definitely gets extremely tense, it did in the first series too but there’s one round table in this episode when I came out shaking.

Are there any stand out moments from this series?

There are. I can’t say anything else.

You were back in the castle in Scotland once again, how did it feel to return to the highlands?

I love Scotland so much. Where we film might just be the most beautiful place on earth, the landscape is breath-taking. But also the people you meet are so welcoming and kind and hopefully happy we’re back. I got off the train and the lovely man who worked at the station just casually said to me “I hope you’ve got your cloak”.

Your outfits were iconic in series one, can we expect more tweed in series two?

There’s an awful lot of tweed.

There are lots of versions of the Traitors, what is it about the UK version that you love the most?

¢I love all the versions. It’s just an incredible game but if I had to say why ours is good it’s because of the cast. They’re just knockout.

In this nail-biting psychological reality competition, Claudia Winkleman greets 22 strangers as they arrive at a beautiful castle in the Scottish Highlands to play the ultimate game of detection, backstabbing and trust, in the hope of winning up to £120,000.

But hidden amongst them are The Traitors whose job is to secretly murder a player every night, without getting caught.

It’s up to the others, the Faithfuls, to try to detect who the traitors are, and banish them from the game, before they become their next victim.

For the lucky ones who survive to the end, they have the chance of winning that life-changing cash. But if a Traitor remains undetected, they’ll steal all the money.

The Traitors series 2 comes to BBC One and BBC iPlayer from 3 January 2024. Find out everything you need to know about the new series here: https://bit.ly/3uICoIi