‘To survive The Traitors you HAVE to hide your real job’ Winner Harry and 3 more players explain why

by

Staying quiet about your role can actually help you win on The Traitors, according to season two champion Harry Clark and three other past contestants who spoke with Digital Spy. However, they also caution against getting caught in lies.

Harriet Tyce recently revealed she’s a crime writer and used to be a lawyer, explaining why she kept her background quiet. She told Digital Spy she worried people would be immediately distrustful if they knew her profession, so she intentionally presented herself as less intimidating.

Both Amanda Collier, who was expelled, and Maz Bana, who was falsely reported as murdered, were also dishonest about their histories with the police. Unfortunately, this didn’t help them in the end.

What to Read Next

Ellie Buckley is still competing, but she’s been hiding two things: she’s a psychologist, and she’s dating Ross Garshong, a player who was previously eliminated. Rachel is also keeping secrets – beyond being a Traitor, she hasn’t shared that she works in strategic communications, which explains her ability to persuade others.

Digital Spy recently chatted with some of the most popular and talked-about contestants from the Ardross castle season, including winner Harry Clark, runner-up Charlotte Berman (who pretended to be Welsh), Lisa Coupland, who claimed to be a priest, and Hugo Lodge, who was removed from the game in part because of his profession as a barrister.

The Traitors winner Harry Clark’s strategy

Harry, who won £95,105 and has been called the biggest betrayer in the game’s history, believes hiding your profession from other players can be a clever strategy – if they can manage it.

He told Digital Spy that keeping some things secret can be beneficial, as it prevents others from understanding your methods. However, he cautioned that the key is effective storytelling. He specifically advised against pretending to have skills you lack, as it will quickly become obvious.

He added: “You need as many advantages as possible so you don’t get caught out.”

Harry explained that keeping your job hidden from other players is a “personal choice.” He didn’t do it himself while competing. “If you prefer not to share details about your personal life, then it’s understandable to keep it private,” he added.

As a huge fan, I always feel like secrets have a way of surfacing, and it’s better to just be honest. Harry’s totally right – he always says everything eventually comes out, and he’s never wrong!

What it’s like to lie about your job on The Traitors

In the third season, Reverend Lisa Coupland kept her profession a secret, worried it would make her vulnerable, but eventually revealed she was a priest.

She explained to Digital Spy that certain jobs automatically change how people perceive and treat you. If a job implies you have strong moral principles, understand people well, or are good at planning, it can unfortunately make people view you with suspicion or hostility, even before you’ve had a chance to prove yourself.

She explained that being a priest comes with a lot of assumptions – people expect you to be trustworthy, honest, influential, and to have good judgment. As a woman in that role, she felt there was even more pressure, as people might project their own ideas onto her. She was concerned people would either not trust her or expect her to be perfect, and she simply wanted to be accepted for who she was, not as a representation of something else.

Revd Lisa advises keeping private any work that involves understanding people, persuading them, or exercising authority – such as roles like psychologists, lawyers, public relations specialists, or religious leaders.

As a fan, I’ve noticed something really cool about the game: it’s not just about what makes sense logically, it’s about the stories each player creates. A character’s backstory is huge! It instantly gives you ideas like, ‘This person seems like they could easily deceive others,’ or ‘People naturally gravitate towards them.’ It’s interesting because traitors often target those who are well-liked, seem calm, or are really good at reading people. A strong backstory can either make you too powerful to eliminate or too risky to leave alive – it really adds a lot to the game!

Lisa said this year’s players Harriet, Ellie and Rachel had “played it very intelligently”.

Individuals with professions like crime writing, law, psychology, or communications often face the risk of being seen as naturally scheming or controlling. By not emphasizing these career aspects, they’ve managed to avoid being pigeonholed into predictable stereotypes.

The ‘unspoken safe careers’ on The Traitors

Charlotte Berman, a finalist from season three, was known for her clever strategy: she pretended to be Welsh to seem more believable and gain the trust of other players.

She didn’t misrepresent her job, but her deception about being from Wales actually got her to the final round. She joked that maybe keeping secrets helped her stay focused in the competitive environment.

I believe using a Welsh accent initially helped people see me as more trustworthy, likely because it’s generally perceived as warm and friendly.

It also made me more mindful of my words, which likely helped me avoid awkward situations. Most importantly, it constantly reminded me that it was all just a game!

Everyone in the castle is quick to suspect each other, and honestly, a lot of jobs could look suspicious – remember when Maddy revealed she was an actress in the first series? Or the fact that some people are detectives or lawyers, like we’re seeing now. I work in marketing and advertising, and I decided to be honest about that – it seems to be one of the careers people don’t question!

She said, “Everything feels off.” Some jobs just naturally make people think you might have an advantage in the game.

Should The Traitors’ contestants lie about their careers?

During a discussion, Harriet revealed she shared a professional background in law with Hugo Lodge, using this knowledge to challenge him.

He told Digital Spy that he was very impressed with Harriet’s argument, saying she won the debate quickly and skillfully. He felt like she was a highly experienced lawyer expertly questioning him, and acknowledged her success.

Hugo briefly thought about downplaying his career, even considering telling people he worked in bank compliance to avoid standing out. But he ultimately decided to embrace being flamboyant and attention-grabbing, believing it would ironically help him blend in. He reasoned that anyone in a powerful position who causes too much trouble wouldn’t last long, and he deliberately chose a bold, unpredictable path.

Hugo believes it would be better if people were more open about their accomplishments and skills. He feels it’s unfortunate that people often downplay their strengths, creating an uneven playing field. As he puts it, people traditionally hide things that might make them appear capable or strong.

When the next season begins, I hope everyone is honest about their jobs and relationships within the castle. It’s unfair to value professional achievements over things like raising a family, or to see someone with many qualifications as more important than someone who successfully built a business on their own.

I got kicked out because my behavior was too extreme and made a couple of my fellow players uncomfortable. Let’s focus on how we’re acting within the game itself, and not worry about our personalities outside of it – those are different things.

The Traitors airs on BBC One and BBC iPlayer. You can see when it’s on next here.

The new edition of Living Legends, celebrating music icon Dolly Parton, is here! Buy Dolly at 80 in newsagents or online, priced at just £8.99.

Read More

2026-01-16 16:13