The Celebrity Traitors has quashed reports of any tension between its stars, branding rumours that James Acaster was made to feel “uncomfortable” by two stars as “categorically untrue”.
Acaster, 41, is just one of several comedians competing in this year’s competition, with Rob Beckett, Joe Lycett, Joanne McNally, Miranda Hart and Romesh Ranganathan also part of the 2026 line-up.
While the group will all know one another from the British comedy circuit, reports in The Mail on Sunday over the weekend claimed that it was no laughing matter for Acaster where Beckett and Ranganathan’s jokes were concerned.
An insider told the publication that Acaster complained to producers that he was being “teased and mocked” by the pair, who were “going too far” with some of their jokes.
“Rob and Romesh clearly thought they were having a bit of a laugh, but James began to feel quite a lot of it was at his expense, and away from the cameras he started to get annoyed and upset by it,” they continued, adding that the duo’s jokes were “not at all malicious” and “more of a misunderstanding”.
Now, the BBC show’s team has spoken out on the reports, stating that there were “no incidents of this nature”.
“Claims of teasing amongst the cast on the show and claims of complaints about teasing are categorically untrue,” a spokesperson told The Independent.
“There were no incidents of this nature and there is no evidence to support these allegations.”
Representatives for Beckett and Ranganathan also told The Independent that “these claims are completely untrue and couldn’t be further from the truth”.
The Independent has contacted the BBC and Acaster for comment.
The Mail on Sunday reported on Sunday (18 October) that Acaster became “uncomfortable” with Beckett and Ranganathan’s “macho banter”, with a source adding: “Rob and Romesh’s gags were all meant in good humour, but James just didn’t see it that way.
“They’re completely different characters, and obviously with Rob and Romesh being such close friends away from the show, it meant they were totally on the same page and he just wasn’t.”
Beckett became one of the latest stars to be “murdered” by the Traitors during last week’s episodes of the BBC show, joining fellow victims Amol Rajan and Bella Ramsey.
Meanwhile, five stars have been banished so far – including two Traitors (Richard E Grant and Hannah Fry) and three Faithfuls (Myha’la, Julie Hesmondhalgh and Joe Lycett).
Following Fry’s banishment last week, the remaining Traitors – Maya Jama and James Acaster – chose to recruit content creator King Kenny into the turret with them.
Celebrity Traitors has broken records since it began airing earlier this month, with the show becoming the most-watched debut of any UK season to date with an average audience of 8.9 million.
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