Celebrity Traitors final sees shock murder, dramatic betrayals and tense endgame showdown

The Celebrity Traitors came to a dramatic end on Friday night as the remaining contestants entered the final episode with one question hanging over them - could the faithfuls root out the last traitors before it was too late?With £64,500 already in the prize fund and the finish line in sight, emotions were running high among the surviving celebrities, many of whom believed they were closing in on the truth after a series of dramatic banishments and murders throughout the competition.So who did emerge triumphant? Read on for spoilers.The final took place on Friday (BBC/Studio Lambert)Comedian Romesh Ranganathan and actor Sebastian Croft have won the 2026 series of The Celebrity Traitors as faithfuls.The pair were the last two remaining at the firepit at the end of the BBC reality gameshow, with the players having voted out traitor and TV presenter Maya Jama during the final roundtable, with her fellow traitor, social media star King Kenny sealing her fate.Speaking as they revealed their identities, Croft told Ranganathan: “I began this game as a faithful, but I’m ending this game as a faithful.”Ranganathan said: “Bash, I began this game as a faithful, and I’m ending this game as a faithful.”The pair then cheered and embraced shouting “oh my God”.Speaking in an emotional cutaway scene, Croft said: “That was just incredible, this might actually be the best day of my life.”Ranganathan added: “I just really hope my mum’s proud, and also my youngest son Charlie, who wanted me to come on the show. Dad won, please show me some respect.”The final victory comes after players opted to banish again three times at the firepit (BBC/Studio Lambert)The episode opened with the two remaining traitors, Maya Jama and King Kenny, meeting in the turret to decide who would become their final victim.Read MoreKenny was wary of Sebastian "Bash" Croft because he felt the social media star had been watching him closely during recent discussions, while Maya had found herself under pressure from Michael Sheen during the previous Round Table. Ultimately, the pair decided the Welsh actor posed too great a threat to keep in the game.Their decision stunned the remaining contestants when Claudia Winkleman revealed that Sheen had been murdered overnight.Reacting to his exit, Sheen said he was "incredibly disappointed" to fall so close to the final and described his time on the BBC show as "absolutely unforgettable".The finalists then took part in one last mission in a bid to increase the prize pot. Divided into helicopter and ground teams, they were tasked with locating dynamite and identifying the correct bunker to explode in search of hidden gold.The mission proved a success, with the group adding £18,500 to the fund and taking the final total to £83,000. Sebastian earned special praise from Romesh Ranganathan, who described him as "the biggest hero of the mission".Attention then turned to the final Round Table, where suspicion increasingly centred on Maya. Romesh argued that her approach was consistent with how an effective traitor would behave, while Sebastian questioned why she had often contributed only limited amounts during discussions.The final of Celebrity Traitors follows a dramatic series of twists and turnsPADespite support from Leigh-Anne Pinnock, Maya received enough votes to be banished. In a dramatic twist, fellow traitor Kenny also voted against her. As she left the game, Maya warned the remaining contestants: "Good luck, you're going to need it."Her departure left Kenny as the final remaining traitor.The endgame phase then began, with Romesh, Sebastian, James Blunt, Leigh-Anne and Kenny forced to decide whether to continue banishing players or end the game. All five initially voted to continue.Leigh-Anne became the next contestant eliminated after receiving votes from the rest of the group. As the circle tightened, Kenny was the sole contestant to vote for endgame, while the others voted to carry on banishing.The vote led to a tie, with two votes for Kenny and two for James Blunt, leaving Sebastian and Romesh to confer over who to banish. Sebastian successfully pieced together the game's final mystery, correctly identifying that Kenny had probably been recruited after the banishment of traitor Hannah earlier in the series. His arguments eventually convinced Romesh to change course.Comedian Romesh Ranganathan and actor Sebastian Croft after they have won the 2026 series of BBC1's The Celebrity Traitors as faithfulsPAKenny was subsequently banished, vanquishing the final traitor from the game and leaving three faithfuls standing: Romesh, Sebastian and James Blunt.One final disagreement remained. While Romesh and Sebastian believed the game should end, Blunt remained unconvinced and pushed for another banishment.The final vote saw Blunt eliminated, leaving Romesh and Sebastian as the last two players standing. Both revealed they were faithfuls, prompting celebrations as they realised they had successfully defeated the traitors.The pair shared the £83,000 prize fund between their chosen charities. Romesh was playing for the Refugee Council, while Sebastian's winnings went to Choose Love, which supports refugees and displaced people, including LGBTQ+ communities.After weeks of murders, banishments and deception, the Celebrity Traitors ended with a rare victory for the faithfuls.