Fans of The Traitors have theorised that Rachel, one of two secret Traitors currently pulling the strings on the series, may have made a huge slip-up.

On Friday’s episode (16 January), the show’s players were tasked with getting into giant boxes, where they would each scribble down their answers to several Traitor-related questions. However, the Traitors themselves – in this case Rachel and Stephen – would only be able to answer those questions after secretly slipping out of their respective boxes and conspiring together first.

One moment has raised eyebrows among viewers, with Rachel and Stephen asked to answer who they believe is the player most “valuable” to the Traitors. Rachel, in her guise as a faithful, “guessed” that the Traitors would pick Matthew – earlier this week he attempted to strike a deal with the Traitors during a challenge involving a confessional box. He pledged to join the Traitors as a recruit if they murdered his fellow faithful Jessie.

Asked by host Claudia Winkleman why she picked Matthew as the “most valuable” to the Traitors, Rachel replied: “I think it’s the confessional box, and I kind of think that might have helped them more than it helped us.”

Some viewers questioned whether Rachel had made a dangerous mistake.

“Surely Matthew, Rachel [picking] you and talking about your confessional,” wrote one person on X. “Surely you would realise that you asked in your confessional to be a Traitor…”

Another person wrote: “This felt like such a big slip up.”

A third added: “That felt like a HUGE mistake for Rachel to mention Matthew’s confessional box.”

Rachel’s possible mistake was casting a spotlight on an interaction between Matthew and the Traitors that, so far, had received little traction in the castle itself. It had, however, secretly spooked Rachel and Stephen.

The only other person to engage with the Traitors at the confessional box was Harriet, who proceeded to use the information she gained from the interaction during a breakfast table meltdown – for which Harriet, who was banished from the show later that day, has since apologised. Until now, Matthew’s own interaction with the Traitors seemed to have fallen to the side.

The Traitors, which last night saw one faithful murdered and another banished, will return next Wednesday at 8pm on BBC One.