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Nick Mohammed will play the host in “The Traitors – Acts of Betrayal,” the West End stage adaptation of the hit competition format, after a video in which Claudia Winkleman swore him in to the role, producers Studio
Lambert and Neal Street Productions have revealed.
Written by John Finnemore (“Cabin Pressure”) and directed by Robert Hastie, “The Traitors – Acts of Betrayal” comprises five separate plays, each compressing a full round of the competition – from the naming of the traitors through the eliminations to a final winner – into a single sitting. The production is booked into the Gillian Lynne Theatre on Drury Lane in London’s West End, with previews beginning May 11, 2027.
The stage format allows for an outcome the show cannot offer on television. Monday through Friday performances open on identical terms but branch into five separate storylines, so a character eliminated in one version can go on to win in another. Saturday audiences pick which player takes on the cloak, and that choice sets which of the five scripts plays out.
The creative team includes production designer Ben Stones, with Mark Henderson on lighting, Alexandra Faye Braithwaite on sound, Kate Prince as choreographer, Martin Lowe writing the music and Stuart Burt CDG CSA as casting director.
Studio Lambert CEO Stephen Lambert said: “The actor who portrays The Host in these plays has to hold a live audience through an entire game each evening, five different ways. It needs charm, mischief, acting talent and complete control of the stage. Nick has all four, and the fact that he played the game and knows its intricacies, is a wonderful bonus.”
Mohammed, known for playing Nate in “Ted Lasso” and Zafar Jaffrey in “Slow Horses,” was a finalist on the first season of “The Celebrity Traitors.” Winkleman hosts “The Traitors” and “The Celebrity Traitors” on BBC One and iPlayer, and filmed the oath video with Mohammed at Ardross Castle in the Scottish Highlands, the setting used for the BBC version of the show.
Mohammed said: “At first, I didn’t want to believe that a series of fictional plays based on ‘The Traitors’ could ever contain as many brilliant twists and turns as the real thing – or be quite as compelling. But John Finnemore has crafted an absolute masterpiece: a cycle of five plays that are each as funny as they are moving, and of course, deeply, deeply unpredictable. And under the direction of the brilliant Robert Hastie, I couldn’t be more delighted to be joining such an original and wildly ambitious show. To take on Claudia’s role, as it were, is not just a privilege but a real challenge as an actor – I simply don’t have enough hair. But I will do my utmost not to disappoint. Either way, this time round, I promise not to let down the whole nation right at the very end. Now let the game begin…”
“The Traitors” format was created and developed by IDTV in cooperation with RTL Creative Unit and is distributed by All3Media International, part of Banijay Entertainment, which also handles the show’s licensing program. More than 40 territories across six continents have commissioned local versions of the format, and rights for the stage production were negotiated through All3Media International.
Studio Lambert, an All3Media company, is also behind “Gogglebox,” “The Circle” and “Race Across the World.” Neal Street Productions, a Banijay Entertainment company, was founded in 2003; its founders are Sam Mendes, Pippa Harris and Caro Newling. The company’s credits include “Call the Midwife” and the film “1917.”
Watch the swearing in video here:
