Miranda Hart was the latest celebrity to be “murdered” on The Celebrity Traitors, leaving the BBC reality series in a dramatic Friday night twist.
The 53-year-old comedian was targeted by Traitors Maya Jama, James Acaster and King Kenny, who believed Miranda was beginning to uncover their identities.
After opening the letter confirming her fate, a shocked Miranda exclaimed: “No! Absolutely not. Oh, bottoms. I knew it. I’m so cross with myself.”
She continued: “Ultimately, in my little personal story, this has been quite extraordinary. I’ve been able to come back and do the work I love professionally, as well as the things I love personally — wandering through the Scottish Highlands, spending time in nature, laughing and connecting.”
“There were times when I didn’t think any of that would be possible again.”
Miranda’s unexpected departure from The Celebrity Traitors left viewers heartbroken, with some fans even threatening to stop watching the BBC show following her exit.
Miranda Hart was eliminated from The Celebrity Traitors in a dramatic Friday night episode.
Miranda reacted with disbelief after reading the murder letter, saying: “No! Absolutely not. Oh, bottoms. I knew it. I’m so cross with myself.”
Posting on X, one disappointed viewer wrote: “Traitors not worth watching anymore.”
Others posted: “Miranda off, TV off”; and: “Cancel my TV licence right now.”
Another fan admitted: “The way I just screamed at my TV. I’m devastated.”
One angry viewer said: “I’m actually raging! I was only watching the show for Miranda! F*** you, Traitors! Such fun!”
A further post read: “Nope, I’m done. Absolutely fuming! My poor galloping queen. R.I.P. Miranda.”
During her exit interview, Miranda said appearing on the BBC programme represented the end of a “very hard road” back to television after years of ill health.
“I’ve missed television so much,” she explained. “It’s been incredibly difficult to reach a point where, after a long-term illness, I was well enough to do something like this again.”
Miranda also revealed that she had been agonisingly close to identifying both Maya Jama, 32, and James Acaster, 41, before the Traitors made their move.
She said Rob Beckett’s confidence that Joanne McNally was a Faithful helped her realise that Jama had changed position during the blindfold challenge. Miranda had also begun questioning Acaster because of an earlier vote.
“I was so close to being able to whisper to James B and Michael that I thought I’d worked it out,” she said.
Viewers were devastated by Miranda Hart’s shock exit from The Celebrity Traitors, with some saying they would no longer watch the BBC series without her.
Miranda described her appearance on the BBC show as the culmination of a “very hard road” back to television after years of health problems.
Miranda also revealed in the interview that she had come agonisingly close to unmasking Jama, 32, and Acaster, 41, before they struck
It comes as the BBC was accused of giving away Hart’s fate in a clumsy editing blunder at the end of Thursday’s episode.
The episode ended with the Traitors narrowing their hit list to Hart, Romesh Ranganathan and Sebastian ‘Bash’ Croft.
But as Jama and Acaster watched in the turret, eagle-eyed viewers noticed Kenny, 29, appeared to begin writing Miranda’s name on the scroll before the camera cut away.
One viewer wrote: ‘Well done, you literally had one job producers, and you’ve ruined it.’
Elsewhere in the episode, the stars entered a ‘field of screams’, where scarecrows bearing each of their names stood beside pitchforks.
Working in pairs, one celebrity collected bags of gold worth £500 while the other hung them on the pitchforks to bank the cash.
Three bags on one pitchfork blew up its scarecrow, knocking that celebrity out of the running for a secret power.
In a spectacular own goal, the group chose to protect Jama, Acaster and Kenny as the three contestants they ‘trusted most.’
Kenny was awarded a dagger carrying a double vote, while the stars added £13,500 to the charity prize fund, taking it to £59,500.
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His advantage was set to prove decisive when the Round Table vote left Sharon Rooney, 38, and McNally, 43, fighting for survival.
The episode ended on another cliffhanger with the group split between them, leaving Kenny’s dagger to decide who will be banished.
Elsewhere in the episode, the stars entered a ‘field of screams’, where scarecrows bearing each of their names stood beside pitchforks
Working in pairs, one celebrity collected bags of gold worth £500 while the other hung them on the pitchforks to bank the cash
In a spectacular own goal, the group chose to protect Jama, Acaster and Kenny as the three contestants they ‘trusted most’
Kenny was awarded a dagger carrying a double vote, while the stars added £13,500 to the charity prize fund, taking it to £59,500
Miranda’s untimely departure comes hot on the heels of fellow Faithful Ross Kemp, who fell victim to the Traitors’ latest murder, and their first in plain sight, on Thursday’s show.
The EastEnders actor’s growing paranoia was a major talking point at the start of the series – showcasing a very different side to his usual tough-guy persona.
He previously accused Bella Ramsey and Leigh-Anne Pinnock of murdering him in plain sight – and now, ironically, that was his demise.
Inhaling the ‘deadly sleeping powder’ by yawning, James then locked in the murder as he said: ‘Sorry Ross, am I boring you?’
Fans have now predicted Maya and King Kenny will throw James under the bus after he failed to help them during the mission.
As the contestants all gathered in the Traitors’ lair, they failed to win any money for the prize fund, which is currently at £46,000.
It was the Traitors who were responsible for winning the gold, as well as sabotaging the Faithfuls winning shields, as they were tasked with moving around the room to move pieces of the shield puzzles while the rest of the contestants remained in the same room blindfolded.
However, as Maya and King Kenny removed their blindfolds to complete the task, James remained hidden behind his blindfold as he told the camera he was ‘too scared’ to help.
Maya and King Kenny both looked visibly frustrated to see James not pulling his weight, but they obviously couldn’t confront him in the room full of Faithfuls.
Later in the turret, Maya and King Kenny, whose real name is Kenny Oghenovo Ojuederie, gave him a sharp telling off.
The Love Island host said: ‘You did leave us out to dry,’ to which James replied: ‘Listen, I didn’t want to be a Traitor, but I’m going to admit something to you now.
Miranda’s untimely departure comes hot on the heels of fellow Faithful Ross Kemp, who fell victim to the Traitors’ latest murder, and their first in plain sight, on Thursday’s show
Maya and King Kenny both looked visibly frustrated to see James not pulling his weight, but they obviously couldn’t confront him in the room full of Faithfuls
However as Maya and King Kenny removed their blindfolds to complete the task, James remained hidden behind his blindfold as he told the camera he was ‘too scared’ to help
‘When I killed Ross Kemp in plain sight, I loved it. And I have enjoyed today more.’
James’s revelation lifted the mood, with Maya saying: ‘Yay! James, I’m so proud of you.’
However fans are now convinced Maya and King Kenny could plan to throw James under the bus later down the line after he failed to prove his loyalty.
Taking to Twitter they penned: ‘James A – man up!’; ‘Kenny and Maya need to throw James under the bus’;
‘James will be the next traitor to go’; ‘Maya digging at James when it was him who murdered in plain sight and his reasoning for not doing the task sabotage was completely sound!’;
‘maya is 100% gonna turn on james and i’m not ready for that to happen’;
‘I feel like Maya and Kenny may well end up throwing James under the bus for this, but he’s so right. Kenny being between Jerry (who won’t notice a thing) and Maya means he’s the only one in a good position to pull this off!’
Another joked: ‘They should beat James up in the turret tonight.’
Others sided with James as they wrote: ‘Honestly think James not moving because of who is either side of him is a smart move’.