The first two contestants eliminated from The Traitors 2023 have been announced after a murder and exile in quick succession left the remaining contestants reeling.
Aubrey Emerson was the first victim claimed by the four traitors after they discovered that he already “had a suspicion” of who might be hiding in one of the dark cloaks.
The second episode, which aired on Thursday night, also revealed that Miles Asteri was chosen as the fourth traitor and teamed up with the group to decide which candidate they wanted to assassinate.
While the group debated the choice of Diane Carson or Sonja, they ultimately chose Aubre.
Miles noted, “Aubrey is watching from afar, he's been in the game plan since day one,” and Harry agreed, “The thing we don't want is the separate groups.”
Aubrey Emerson was the first victim to be murdered in The Traitors 2024, after they discovered he already “had a suspicion” about who might be hiding in one of the sinister cloaks
“The message we're trying to send is not safe for anyone. “I don't think anyone would suspect us if we said Aubrey is throwing them off our trail.”
When Aubrey received the letter telling him he had been murdered, he said, “I think I was murdered because I was too attentive. I was a threat to the traitors, and they could see it. “I say what I see: They made a big mistake.”
Some spectators admitted they were disappointed to see Aubrey exit the game so early, despite quick predictions that he could make a sensational return.
One tweeted: “I'm completely upset with Aubrey who keeps telling everyone how observant he is and the traitors send him home straight away #TheTraitors.”
Another added: “Aubrey's final words: 'You've made a big mistake' makes me think he'll come back in some way, just like the first two shock evictions right at the start of the first series.” You heard it here first !'
While the group agreed that the murder made things feel a lot more “real,” it was the first roundtable of the series that really shocked the group.
From the start, several believers expressed their suspicions that Sonja was a traitor, with Ross accusing her of being “upset” while Miles admitted her recent comments seemed like a “distraction.”
Traitor Ash recalled an exchange at breakfast when Sonja suddenly asked if she was a traitor.
When he received the letter he said: “I think I was murdered because I was too attentive. I was a threat to the traitors and they could see it.” I say what I see, they made a big mistake.
Some viewers admitted they were disappointed to see Aubrey go out so early, although people were quick to predict he could make a sensational return
After Sonja aroused suspicion with her confrontational behavior, she was the first to be banned from the field after a tense discussion
While Diane and Anthony drew the group's attention through their own tactical behavior, Sonja received an overwhelming majority of 15 votes, meaning she was eliminated from the game.
As she walked out, a gasp filled the room as Sonja confirmed that she was a believer by saying, “Well guys, facts are just as important to me as they are to you, so here's a fact I'd like to confirm to you 'that I am a believer.'
This comes after the opening episode attracted an impressive 3.1 million viewers when it returned to the BBC on Wednesday night.
According to nights.tv, the show, which aired from 9 p.m. to 10 p.m., peaked with around 3.1 million viewers.
The numbers are likely to skyrocket further on iPlayer in the coming days as many who would have been watching live could instead watch the PDC World Darts Championship with phenom Luke Littler.
That's a significant increase from the viewership of last year's opening episode, which reached 2.9 million viewers.
The opening episode of season two also achieved the second-highest overnight rating of all time – only slightly worse than the final episode of season one.
This finale was watched by 3.3 million viewers as the show came to its dramatic conclusion.
The highly anticipated series returned to screens on Wednesday night with Claudia Winkleman hosting a second season.
Fans were already in an uproar after having to choose what to watch between The Traitors and the World Darts Championship final.
The Traitors continues on Friday at 9pm on BBC One. The third episode is already available on BBC iPlayer.