Claudia Winkleman turned down The Traitors role for one big reason

Strictly: Claudia Winkleman gets emotional

The Traitors frontwoman Claudia Winkleman has become a staple of the British gameshow, which sees a slew of people all lie and backstab for the chance to win a huge cash prize.

But the 52-year-old almost didn't take to the helm of the smash-hit show. Initially, the thought of spending over three weeks filming in Scotland was too much for the star, who didn’t want to stray too far from her family nest. Despite bagging her first BAFTA in 2023 for her charismatic presence on the iconic game show, she confessed that she very nearly passed on the job completely.

Speaking to The Midpoint podcast, Winkleman revealed the rollercoaster decision-making process. "The Traitors is something I initially turned down because I didn’t like leaving my bed or the kids," she explained. Her mind was made up not to go... until she caught the Dutch version and became "so obsessed" that she reversed her decision.

She added: “They were like 'would you go to Scotland for three and a half weeks?'

"And I was like 'I don’t think so' and then I watched the Dutch version and I became so obsessed.

Season 2’s finale was watched by more than eight million people (Image: BBC)

“I sent an email to Kate Phillips who offered me the job, who works at the BBC, saying I’ve booked a train, I want to do this more than anything because it is a privilege to watch the psychology and gameplay up close.”

Claudia didn’t shy away from discussing the personal sacrifices that come with her job. Living in London with her film producer husband, Kris Thykier, and their three kids, balancing family and a high-flying TV career is no walk in the park for the TV star. She quips that her husband is "a better parent than me," which eases the guilt when her TV duties call.

The TV star also confessed her children beg her to give them some space during the 10 months of the year when she's not busy presenting Strictly Come Dancing.

Speaking to MailOnline last year, she blamed the “awful” habit on her former newspaper editor mum Eve Pollard, 76.

The Traitors returns for a third series on New Year’s Day (Image: PA)

“I’m on telly sometimes but only for two months in the year and the rest of the time, I zip around. For the rest of the year, I lick the children.

“I follow them around and I’m a very annoying human being to them."

The Traitors returns for a third series on New Year’s Day with more than 300,000 people applying to take part.

Season 2’s finale was watched by more than eight million people in the UK and Winkleman has lifted the lid on what it’s like to film the famous round-table scenes at the end of each episode.

She said: "All the cameras are hidden. To stand in there and watch people try and work it out is an honour, it’s the thrill of my life.

"Sometimes they’re very short, sometimes they’re long, we don’t hurry anything, it’s shot as live, I get one chance, and when I go in there if I mess it up - which I have done because I’m so tense - then that’s what shown. We shoot the whole thing as is."