Traitors 3, the perfect gothic thriller

Traitors 3 has just kicked off with a glorious bang, a wondrous start to 2025. All the gothic memes and themes are present; the perilous journey that three competitors fail to survive, sibling rivalry (a fabulous addendum by the producers) and the castle, in this case a hokum, nineteenth-century, mock-baronial pile nestling in the sumptuous Scottish Highlands. Ah yes, Ardross Castle is all turrets and battlements on the outside, and the inside a trove of deer antlers, suits of armour, button-leather Ottomans, memento mori both sculpted and painted and framed in gilt: what’s not to love? And the high priestess? With her midnight-black hair and death-pale face, Claudia Winkleman adds a glittering dash of medieval nous. Add moonlight – sorry, floodlight, cloaked and hooded figures, a round table and numerous references to murder and banishment, and you’ve got the perfect mix for weeks of intrigue, treachery and the most shocking of revelations.
In fact, the only missing gothic trope is the presence of a cat – more about that in a further post.