The Traitors Final: Who was banished last night, who is left in, what was the twist and when is the final?

It’s been one of the most talked about television series of the year – and the BBC’s The Traitors is nearing its twisty conclusion.

Set in a picturesque castle in the Scottish Highlands, The Traitors sees 22 contestants battling to win up to £120,000.

Separated into The Faithful and The Traitors, each week sees a vote to ‘banish’ a participant suspected of being a Traitor, while The Traitors themselves pick a Faithful to ‘murder’.

It’s all overseen by Strictly Come Dancing presenter Claudia Winkleman, with television insiders saying that it’s been such a success that a second season has already been commissioned.

Here’s what you need to know about the final.

When is the final of The Traitors?

The last episode of the series will be broadcast on BBC1 on Thursday, December 22.

It starts at 9pm but if you miss it you can stream the programme later using the BBC iPlayer – where you can also watch all previous episodes.

Smash hit television series The Traitors will come to a conclusion this evening.

What happened last night?

Wilfred successfully recruited Kieran as a Traitor, meaning there were six Faithfuls and two Traitors left in the game.

The pair then decided to ‘kill’ Andrea at the start of the penultimate episode

In tense scenes at the round table the vote to banish came down to two contestants – Meryl and Maddy.

Maddy left after getting four votes – from Aaron, Hannah, Wilf, and Meryl – compared to Meryl’s two.

Who is left in?

There are now just three Faithfuls and two Traitors left in the game as follows:

Faithful

Aaron

Hannah

Meryl

Traitors

Wilfred

Kieran

What was the twist?

There were two twists at the end of Wednesday’s episodes.

Firstly Claudia revealed that nobody would be getting ‘murdered’ – meaning that all five remaining contestants progress to the final.

The presenter then revealed that the format of the last banishment meeting would be different, explaining: “Tomorrow you are going to face the mission to end all missions. Not only that, you’re evening has the highest stakes yet. There will be a round table tomorrow and after that, you will decide when the game ends. When you are confident that there are no remaining Traitors, you just tell me and the game ends.”

So, they might only get rid of one of the remaining contenders, or several. It’s not clear what happens if it comes down to a final two who don’t trust each other.

What is the prize money?

One or more of the remaining contestants will win a £81,050 cash prize – or a share of it.

How do you win The Traitors?

Throughout the series the contestants complete tasks to add money to the prize pot – up to a total of £120,000.

Each night The Traitors meet in secret to pick one of The Faithful to ‘murder’, with that contestant leaving the game immediately. The following day all the players meet around a round table to banish somebody they think is one of The Traitors – who then reveals which side they actually belong to.

At the end of the game, if only The Faithful remain they will share the money in the prize money. If one or more of The Traitors remains, that person – or people – will claim all the cash.