Who won The Traitors 2026 and how the BBC finale was decided

The latest UK series of The Traitors concluded on Friday, 23 January 2026, bringing to an end three weeks of eliminations, secret murders and shifting alliances with a decisive and fully resolved outcome. The finale confirmed that two original Traitors, Rachel Duffy and Stephen Libby, reached the end of the game without being exposed, eliminating the final remaining Faithful player during the endgame vote and triggering an automatic Traitor victory under the programme’s rules. As a result, the pair secured the full £95,750 prize fund, which was split evenly between them.

The outcome was decided in the final minutes of the BBC broadcast, after a series of late-stage roundtable and endgame votes eliminated the last remaining Faithful and automatically confirmed a Traitor victory under the rules of the competition. The decision left no further votes to be cast and no Faithful players in contention, sealing the result moments before the programme ended. This is reported by The WP Times, citing broadcast material, official programme information and UK media coverage of the finale.

Who won The Traitors UK 2026

The winners of The Traitors UK 2026 were Rachel Duffy, a communications professional from Northern Ireland, and Stephen Libby, a cyber security consultant originally from the Isle of Lewis. Both were selected as Traitors at the outset of the series, but it was Rachel Duffy’s sustained strategic influence that came to define the trajectory of the game.

Throughout the season, Duffy adopted a low-visibility but highly effective approach, avoiding overt leadership while consistently shaping voting outcomes through private conversations and selective persuasion. Unlike several contestants who attracted early attention through confrontational behaviour or outspoken accusations, she maintained a controlled public profile, rarely becoming the focal point of roundtable debates until the final stages of the competition.

Her background in communications was reflected in her gameplay: she relied on measured language, emotional restraint and timing, intervening only when alliances began to fracture or when suspicion threatened to coalesce around her position. This allowed her to outlast more vocal players, many of whom were eliminated shortly after drawing attention to themselves.

In the closing episodes, Duffy came under increased scrutiny as the pool of players narrowed and voting margins tightened. However, she successfully redirected suspicion towards other Faithful contestants, most notably during the final roundtable, where subtle shifts in tone and emphasis influenced the outcome without triggering a coordinated backlash against her.

Rachel Duffy ultimately shared the £95,750 prize, receiving £47,875, after Stephen Libby chose not to eliminate her during the final vote. Under the rules of the game, that decision immediately ended the competition, confirming a joint Traitor victory and marking Duffy as the first female Traitor to win the UK series, a milestone that has since been widely noted in media coverage of the programme.

Finalists and outcomes

How the finale unfolded

The final episode resolved a cliffhanger from the previous night, when a tied roundtable vote between Rachel Duffy and James Baker triggered the show’s “chest of chance” mechanism. Rachel drew a shield, granting her immunity, while James was eliminated before the endgame began.Following that decision, the remaining players — Rachel, Stephen, Jack Butler, Faraaz Noor and Jade Scott — entered the final sequence of votes. Jade was banished at the last roundtable, leaving four contestants to face the firepit vote, where Faithful players attempt to remove remaining Traitors.

Faraaz Noor was eliminated first during this stage, after failing to secure sufficient trust from the group. That result reduced the game to two Traitors and one Faithful, making the final decision Stephen’s alone.

The decisive moment

At the final vote, Stephen Libby was required to choose whether to eliminate Rachel or Jack. Eliminating Rachel would have allowed Stephen to claim the entire prize as a sole Traitor winner. Eliminating Jack, however, would immediately end the game with both Traitors victorious. Stephen voted to banish Jack Butler, confirming that no Faithful players remained and automatically awarding the prize to the Traitors. The decision was final and irreversible under the rules of the game.

Rachel Duffy’s strategy

Rachel’s gameplay was characterised by low-profile influence rather than confrontation. Throughout the series, she avoided leading accusations publicly, instead reinforcing doubt selectively in private conversations. This approach became particularly effective in the final episodes, when players were increasingly wary of overt strategists.

Her role in shaping suspicion around Jade Scott and maintaining uncertainty about Jack Butler proved decisive. Although she came under greater scrutiny in the closing stages, no coordinated vote against her materialised before the endgame.

Stephen Libby’s role

Stephen’s gameplay contrasted with Rachel’s. While less visibly directive, he benefited from appearing conflicted and emotionally exposed, particularly in the final episode. His hesitation during key moments helped deflect attention and reinforced his credibility as a Faithful in the eyes of others.

His final decision not to betray Rachel reflected both personal loyalty and strategic calculation, ending the game without reopening the vote cycle.

Reaction and context

The finale was presented by Claudia Winkleman, who noted the unusual outcome of two Traitors remaining loyal to one another until the end. Viewer reaction was divided, with some praising the consistency of the strategy and others criticising the perceived imbalance between entertainment value and reward structure.

Despite those debates, the series achieved strong audience figures, with the BBC confirming that the fourth regular UK season attracted more than 12 million viewers, reinforcing the programme’s position as one of the broadcaster’s most successful reality formats.

What the 2026 finale shows about the format

The 2026 finale of The Traitors exposed both the durability and the structural limits of the programme’s format. On one hand, the endgame delivered prolonged tension, with the outcome unresolved until the final vote and the last Faithful eliminated only minutes before the broadcast ended. On the other, the result illustrated how low-profile, risk-averse gameplay can consistently outperform louder, more confrontational strategies under the current rules.

Across the final stages of the series, contestants who avoided overt leadership, limited their public interventions and refrained from driving accusations were statistically more likely to survive roundtable votes. By contrast, players who attempted to control discussions, challenge alliances or introduce uncertainty earlier in the game were disproportionately eliminated once suspicion hardened. The 2026 series reinforced that visibility, rather than deception alone, remains one of the primary risk factors within the format.

The decision by Stephen Libby not to remove Rachel Duffy at the final vote — triggering an automatic Traitor victory — also underlined how the rules reward alliance stability over late-game betrayal. With two Traitors sharing the £95,750 prize and no Faithful reaching the end, the finale confirmed that cooperation between Traitors can be more effective than individual maximisation, even when incentives to defect exist.

As a result, the 2026 outcome has renewed discussion among viewers and commentators about whether future series may require structural adjustments. Suggestions raised in media analysis include altered endgame incentives, revised voting thresholds or mechanisms that increase late-stage exposure for players who remain strategically passive. For now, the finale confirmed that under the existing format, silence, patience and timing remain more valuable than spectacle, even at the cost of leaving all Faithful players eliminated before the final reveal.

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