Richard Osman Blasts “Pathetic Idiots” Over Celebrity Traitors Final

Richard Osman hit out at 'idiots' being 'pathetic' about the Celebrity Traitors final in an impassioned rant on Wednesday.

The BBC show ended last week with faithfuls Romesh Ranganathan and Sebastian 'Bash' Croft crowned winners.

Each won £41,500 for their chosen charities — Choose Love and the Refugee Council.

On the Rest Is Entertainment podcast, Osman’s co-host Marina Hyde said critics had accused the final of being a 'stitch-up' or an example of 'some form of BBC bias'.

The Refugee Council supports refugees who have fled their homes and are seeking safety in the UK.

Choose Love, which supports gay and trans refugees, recently accused Israel of 'genocide' in its war on Hamas in Gaza.

The winners' choice of charities prompted backlash online.

One X user posted: 'With so many overlooked and deserving charities desperately needing support, why does the BBC keep pushing the same agenda?'

Another wrote: 'Fixed from the beginning.'

Osman responded directly to those attacks on the podcast.

'It turns out a lot of those people are idiots,' he said.

'Or it's possible that they're very clever and they have an agenda, because they ain't right.'

He continued: 'To accuse the BBC of bias in this shows, first of all, a fundamental misunderstanding of how you make a television programme.'

'Even in a conspiracist culture, this is one too far.'

'It's pathetic,' he said.

'Do you know what?

I'm done with it.'

'It's genuinely so pathetic.'

The author pointed out that 15 million people watched the latest season.

He said only around 'a thousand people are being t***s about it'.

'That's like being in a championship football game with 15,000 people [where] 14,999 [are] cheering, and [there's] just one idiot who's not happy,' he claimed.

Osman argued that winners should be free to direct their prize money as they choose.

'Be incredibly popular and successful, then go on a hugely successful game show and then be the smartest player on that entire show, and show empathy and gameplay and intelligence,' he said.

'Then you can give money to whoever it is that you want to.'

'And you don't have to be telling other people who to give money to.'

'You don't know who Romesh and [Sebastian] give money to all year round.'

He pointed to Romesh’s long history of benefit appearances as evidence of good intentions.

Osman also pushed back on complaints about licence fee money being used.

'Stop wetting your pants about everything,' he said.

'Stop saying, “it all comes out of licence fee money” — you cannot be that stupid.'

'You cannot be that stupid to not know that The Traitors makes a fortune for the BBC.'

The show is a ratings juggernaut for the broadcaster.

Its format has been exported globally, with versions in the US, Australia and other countries.

The BBC has not commented on the backlash or Osman’s remarks.

The controversy also touched on comedian James Acaster, who was a contestant on the show.

Acaster started as a Faithful but was recruited as a Traitor, despite making it clear he was unhappy about it.

During the roundtable, he dramatically revealed to his co-stars that he was a Traitor.

He was subsequently banished from the castle.

On the same podcast, Osman said Acaster is 'feeling destabilised' by the reaction.

'If you're in it, like if you're James [Acaster] at the moment, I bet you think, “Oh, I wish I hadn't done that because everyone can have one opinion about this today,”' Osman said.

'James then has to listen to 56 million opinions, you know, and like nobody needs that.'

'And the thing with him, he's so brilliant and so talented that whatever he does next will, you know, supersede this in a heartbeat.'

'But you know, it's just annoying to have to spend a couple of weeks sort of in a position where you feel slightly destabilised.'

'James, if you're listening, or people who know and love James are listening, James, we love you.'

Singer James Blunt, who also appeared on the show, claimed that much of the roundtable discussion was edited out.

Speaking to the BBC, Blunt said: 'He didn't fall on his sword.'

'That's what you saw, that's what you feel, but he didn't.'

'You didn't see the full extent of the interrogation.'

'It was heavy in there, and it was clear-cut.'

The backlash against the final has not subsided since the episode aired.

Online forums and social media platforms remain divided between those who defend the winners and those who question the outcome.

Osman’s remarks have drawn both support and criticism.

Some fans praised him for standing up for the contestants and the show.

Others accused him of dismissing legitimate concerns about the BBC’s programming choices.

The author is known for his work on BBC shows including Pointless and House of Games.

He is also a bestselling novelist.

His podcast, Rest Is Entertainment, co-hosted with Guardian columnist Marina Hyde, regularly discusses television and pop culture.

The Celebrity Traitors is a spin-off of the popular BBC series The Traitors.

The original show, hosted by Claudia Winkleman, has been a ratings success since its debut.

In the game, players are divided into Faithfuls and Traitors.