The Traitors season two officially greenlit by the BBC

The BBC has officially greenlit season two of The Traitors.

The hit reality series was released in late November last year, and immediately proved popular with fans both in the UK and internationally.

The Traitors has had 34 million views on BBC iPlayer, making it the biggest brand-new entertainment launch for the public broadcaster in two years.

It was also the biggest new series for young audiences in 2022 and the BBC’s highest-rated new entertainment show for young viewers since 2017.

It will come as little surprise then that The Traitors has been renewed for a second outing. Applications to participate in the new season are now open.

Hosted by Claudia Winkleman, the series is a psychological reality competition which sees 22 strangers play “the ultimate game of detection, backstabbing, and trust” in the hope of winning up to £120,000.

The series is based on the Dutch show De Verraders, which premiered in 2021. An American iteration of the same show – presented by Scottish star Alan Cumming – was released on Peacock in January this year.

Similar to the original Dutch version – which is filmed around Castle Erenstein in Kerkrade, Netherlands – the UK show is filmed at a castle in the Scottish Highlands.

Winkleman became known for her striking knitwear choices on the programme.

Speaking about the renewal, she said: “I can’t wait to go back to the castle to watch people play the greatest game on television. I’m knitting a high funnel sweater immediately.”

Kalpna Patel-Knight, head of entertainment at the BBC, added: “Last year’s ambitious and bingeable hit The Traitors with Claudia Winkleman is coming back with the brilliant team at Studio Lambert set to bring viewers another magnificent series full of drama and suspense.

“We can certainly expect even more deceit and psychological games for the Traitors and the Faithfuls.”

A release date is yet to be announced for the second series.