He’s been the only person to guess that Jonathan Ross is a Traitor on The Celebrity Traitors, and is the genius who came up with the ‘Big Dogs’ theory to describe a potential Traitor/Faithful clash between Jonathan and Stephen Fry. Joe Marler may not have been on anybody’s radar as the series began, but he is shaping up to be the player who could change the game and be the biggest threat to Traitors Jonathan Ross, Alan Carr, and Cat Burns.
Unless you are a rugby fan, former Harlequins prop Joe was one of the least known celebrities to turn up at Ardross Castle in Scotland. Alan Carr, Kate Garraway, Tom Daley, Paloma Faith, Ross and Fry were among the big personas who were instantly recognisable, while Cat Burns, Ruth Codd and Nick Mohammed’s strong personalities brought them to the fore early on, as did movie star Celia Imrie’s double-whammy of a mission-stopping fart and her memorable ‘pussy in the well’ comment.
Joe, meanwhile, was relatively quiet to begin with. Although the 35-year-old strong man gamely took most of the weight pushing a two and a half ton Trojan Horse up a hill in the first episode, and became one of the few players who remained calm as water rained down on him while he and his fellow celebrities were chained up in Claudia Winkleman’s rickety old cabin in episode three.
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On the rugby union circuit, Joe had a reputation for being a prankster, sneaking up behind his teammates and sounding off an air-horn, so it’s likely that his calm, quiet demeanour at the castle is all part of his plan to win the game.
“I’m a massive fanboy of The Traitors,” he said when he was announced as a contestant. “Ever since getting the call I’ve been giddy because I want to play the game that I love the most. I want to be part of it, and I want to know how it all works.”
“I’m here to win it. As much as I love the show, I’m not here to just be like, what a great experience. I might think that after, grateful to have played whatever part I had in it. But as soon as that game begins, my game face is on.”
BBC
That game face has led to Joe taking things very seriously, watching everyone and coming up with the theory that Claudia and the producers would have pitted two ‘Big Dogs’ – TV legends Jonathan Ross and Stephen Fry — against each other, choosing one as a Traitor while keeping the other as a Faithful and worthy adversary.
He first shared his idea in a chat with Joe Wilkinson, and then brought it to the group at the round table in the third episode. “Claudia’s chosen to wage a war between two big dogs. And one’s leading the Faithfuls and one’s leading the Traitors,” he told the group. “If I was Claudia, I’d go, ‘Let’s go with big dog JR and big dog SF.’ But I can’t work out which you are.’”
Stephen Fry commented that he’d thought the same thing (while promising he was a Faithful) while Jonathan looked a little squirmy. The chat show host also came under fire from Ruth, but managed to escape being uncovered as the Traitor we all know he is. Tameka got voted out instead, and master manipulator Jonathan’s own suggestion of Clare Balding followed the next night.
BBC
Joe’s theory hasn’t led to Jonathan’s eviction — nor has he caught on to Cat or Alan just yet — but he remains a big threat to the three of them. While some players, due to their emotion (Mark Bonnar) or hesitancy (Kate Garraway), have come under suspicion, and others (Nick and Lucy) don’t seem to be on anyone’s radar, Joe has the respect of his fellow Faithfuls and could sway many of them to follow his lead if he puts his mind to it. He has also so far escaped being too much on the Traitors’ murderous radar.
Because most people like and trust him, Joe would also be a pretty good Traitor should Cat, Alan and/or Jonathan be looking to recruit. Either way, Joe’s hope to steal the series – and the charity prize pot – from bigger personalities is looking more likely than ever…
The Celebrity Traitors airs Wednesday and Thursday nights at 9pm, and streams on BBC iPlayer. Companion show The Traitors Uncloaked follows straight afterwards on BBC Two.
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Freelance film & TV writer, Digital Spy
Critic and writer Jo Berry has been writing about TV and movies since she began her career at Time Out aged 18. A regular on BBC Radio, Jo has written for titles including Empire, Maxim, Radio Times, OK!, The Guardian and Grazia, is the author of books including Chick Flicks and The Parents’ Guide to Kids’ Movies.
She is also the editor of website Movies4Kids. In her career, Jo has interviewed well-known names including Beyonce, Steven Spielberg, Tom Hanks, Kiefer Sutherland, Tom Cruise and all the Avengers, spent many an hour crushed in the press areas of award show red carpets. Jo is also a self-proclaimed expert on Outlander and Brassic, and completely agrees that Die Hard is a Christmas movie.
