Fiona Hughes has admitted her dramatic decision to turn on fellow Traitor Rachel was “spectacularly wrong”, despite believing her co-conspirator was telling the truth all along.
The 62-year-old from Swansea made the confession during an appearance on This Morning, revealing she was “90 per cent sure” Rachel was being honest when she exposed banished contestant Amanda’s background as a retired police detective.
Despite this, Ms Hughes chose to publicly accuse Rachel of lying in front of the group, a move that ultimately led to her own banishment from the BBC reality show.
Ms Hughes said: “When I look back, I had my reasons. Obviously, it was spectacularly the wrong decision."
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Fiona Hughes appeared on ITV This Morning on Monday
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She explained that her suspicions about Rachel had been quietly building, leaving her convinced she would eventually be betrayed by her fellow Traitor.
“I had the suspicions that I was going to be thrown under the bus at some point,” she said.
The Welsh local government adviser described Rachel’s revelation about Amanda as a rare opportunity to cast doubt on someone she viewed as a serious threat.
Ms Hughes explained: “I thought this is the only opportunity I’m going to get to raise suspicions on Rachel."
Ms Hughes publicly accused Rachel of lying in front of the group
|BBC
She went on to praise Rachel’s gameplay, admitting she had been so convincing that no one was seriously questioning her role.
She said: “Rachel was a wonderful player, so strategic and an absolute delight to have been with. There was no way anybody would question Rachel as a Traitor.”
The confrontation unfolded during Thursday’s episode when Rachel revealed to the group that Amanda had privately shared her former career as a police detective.
Instead of backing her ally, Ms Hughes immediately challenged the claim, accusing Rachel of fabricating the information and using it as proof she was a Traitor.
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The explosive exchange quickly became a major talking point among viewers, with fans branding it one of the strongest moments of the series.
However, the gamble backfired, with suspicion turning on Ms Hughes rather than Rachel.
By Friday’s episode, Ms Hughes was banished at the round table, forced to reveal her true identity as she left the castle.
Speaking later on The Traitors: Uncloaked podcast with Ed Gamble, she compared her decision to folding a weak hand in poker.
“If you play poker and you have a rubbish hand, you’re not going to keep putting money in the kitty, you throw the hand down,” she said.
“I thought that’s what I’m going to do here. I’m going to throw a grenade in the room and see who comes out of it unscathed.”
Despite the fallout, Ms Hughes insisted she had complete faith in Rachel before making the move.
She said: “I absolutely knew she was telling the truth and I trusted her explicitly."
Ms Hughes said she loves Rachel
She has since praised her former ally, calling her “an amazing player” and predicting she will be the “queen of Ireland”.
“I love Rachel to bits,” Ms Hughes added, insisting there are no hard feelings between them.
Viewers watching This Morning were less convinced, with many taking to social media to criticise her explanation.
“Rubbish. I do not believe for one minute she thought Rachel was telling the truth. She’s saying that now to not look as stupid,” one viewer wrote.
Another commented: “More nonsense from Fiona — she was convinced Rachel was lying.”
Others were critical of how her actions reflected on her stated aim to represent older women on the show, while some accused her of enjoying her time in the spotlight.