Traitors 2 start date revealed: and there's a twist!

The Traitors host Claudia Winkleman poses with two hooded figures
Are you faithful or a traitor? (Image credit: BBC)

The Traitors 2 is upon us and fans won't have to wait much longer before the second instalment of the nail-biting reality show arrives.

It's a great start to 2024 for The Traitors fans, as the BBC — who has revealed its Christmas schedule — has confirmed that the series will be back on our screens on Wednesday, January 3 at 9 pm on BBC One. In a twist, the show is taking over BBC One's evening schedule as there are also episodes on Thursday and Friday that week.

Not only that but episodes 2 and 3 will be available on BBC iPlayer immediately after the first, for fans who are desperate to stay in the know and follow along with our new group of traitors.

If you're new or just need a refresher, in the BAFTA-winning guessing game, we see 22 strangers residing in a 19th-century castle where they compete in daily challenges and three "Traitors" are secretly assigned to "murder" fellow contestants, hoping to stay cloaked in darkness and earn the trust of the others.

It is up to the remaining players, the "Faithfuls", to deduce who is being dishonest and eliminate them before they take over and potentially take the winnings for themselves. There's a lot on the line here too, because everyone is playing for a maximum jackpot of £120,000.

The second season will once again be hosted by Claudia Winkleman, who won Best Entertainment Performance for her role in the first installment. We will also see a brand new lineup of players hoping to make it all the way to the end.

The Traitors UK winners posing with Claudia Winkleman

Aaron, Hannah and Meryl were the Faithful trio who won The Traitors season 1. (Image credit: BBC)

The Traitors 2 actually made television history before it aired when it received 26 times more applicants than the first series, with players up and down the country desperate to take part.

Speaking about the monumental response to the show, executive producer Sarah Fay said at the time: "Series 1 had 1,500 applications. As of this morning, series 2 has had 40,000. Our casting team are happy to change the way we approach it this year! We will look at all 40,000."

We're sure that whittling it down to 22 was no easy task, and the first episode will introduce us to the ones who made it through the competitive application process. 

Missed out on The Traitors 2? Don't worry, because applications are already open for the third season. You can find out more here.

The Traitors returns in 2024 with season 1 available to stream now via BBC iPlayer.

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Lucy Buglass
Senior Staff Writer

Lucy joined the WhatToWatch.com team in 2021, where she writes series guides for must-watch programmes, reviews and the latest TV news. Now she works for our sister site TechRadar in the same role. Originally from Northumberland, she graduated from Oxford Brookes University with a degree in Film Studies and moved to London to begin a career writing about entertainment.

She is a Rotten Tomatoes approved film critic and has a huge passion for cinema. She especially loves horror, thriller and anything crime-related. Her favourite TV programmes include Inside No 9, American Horror Story, Stranger Things and Black Mirror but she is also partial to a quiz show or a bit of Say Yes to the Dress