Tracey from The Traitors in her own words

Tracey is one of three Scots to enter The Traitors castle.

The Traitors is back - and once again 22 strangers will be locked in a spooky castle, split into Traitors and Faithfuls, then encouraged to lie their way to a £120,000 top prize.

The second series of the BBC hit show starts on Wednesday, January 3, and there will undoubtedly be countless twists and turns before we find out who will win the cash.

One of those looking to enjoy a bumper payday is 58-year-old sonographer and clairvoyant Tracey from Inverness - one of three Scots on the show this year.

Here's what she had to say before entering the castle.

Why did you apply to be on The Traitors?

I just loved it. I thought it was the best game show I've seen in such a long time. I've never wanted to apply for a game show ever. Every day after I watched the series, I kept checking when I could apply for series two. I just knew I wanted to be on it and it just hit something with me, I thought “I want to be on this”. It was mainly the psychology of it and meeting people that you don't normally meet in your normal life.

What did you think of the first series?

I was absolutely addicted to season one. I loved it, I was so invested in it. I kind of didn't hear about it until after the whole thing had gone out, so I literally binge watched the whole thing in three days. Nobody could talk to me. Nobody could ring me. I just loved it. My Mum is a psychologist, so the whole time I was growing up I kind of got the way that she views people and looks at people and I think that’s what this show is all about.

Was there anyone’s game plan you admired?

I thought Amanda was really good because she was quite motherly, and I'm quite motherly as well. I really resonate with her. Wilfred, I thought he was hilarious. I think he's got such a fantastic extrovert personality and I think he was so funny to watch, I loved him. Although he did get a bit paranoid three quarters of the way through, I was watching saying “No! Pull it back Wilfred!”

I thought all of the Faithfuls had their own little quirks, I did feel for them. Maddy I absolutely loved. Maddy Marples!

What do you think you'll bring to the game?

I do have quite a strong extrovert personality and I am a little bit loud. I've always been told off for being too loud in life. So, I think I think I'll be quite eccentric, some of my views and the things that I've done in life are quite eccentric. I'm very spiritual as well as working for the health service. So, I'm a bit of a weird combination.

Do you have a game plan?

As far as a game plan goes, I am going in without one. I'm just going to live moment to moment and do what feels right, trust my gut instinct. I'm just going to enjoy it. I’m winging it because I live life like that. My brother, who's a doctor, says to me, “I don't know how you get through life; you literally have no logic whatsoever. You do everything by gut feelings.” And I think if I had a game plan, it would kind of take me away from that. So, I'm just going in blind.

Do you think you’ll be good at the missions and what strengths do you think you might bring to them?

I cannot wait, I actually love them. I used to be in the Air Force and that's the bit that I miss. Doing the mad exercises and jumping out of helicopters and being winched into the sea. I love doing crosswords and playing board games. I love doing treasure trails, I just love anything like that. I don't know if I'm a natural leader or I'm bossy, I’m not sure what the difference is. I think I'll be kind of gathering everybody up and getting us to work as a team, I hope.

If you are a Traitor, how do you think you'll feel?

I think I'll be terrified, just terrified. Although you've got to go with whatever opportunity life gives you. If I'm going to be a Traitor, then I will embrace it 100%. You’re going to get close to people really quickly. I used to go on detachment with people in the military, and they'd be like your best friend for two whole weeks, you couldn't possibly ever live without them and then when you get home, you never contact each other again.

Would you say you’ve got a good poker face?

This is not a good thing to confess but I'm actually really good at lying. I think because I have quite a happy-go-lucky personality and people just trust me. I am good at lying. I don't do it all the time, by the way, just when I have to. I’m good!

If you are a Traitor, how far are you prepared to go to win the game?

Winning is the game, isn't it? I am really competitive in real life. I hope that I will be in it to win it. The only thing that would be my downfall is that I do really like to be liked. I think if I came under suspicion or felt that people were talking about me, that would be the thing that would get me the most. Then I would be straight into the group going “Hi, is everyone okay?”

If you're a Faithful, what do you think your game plan would be?

I think it would be easier to be a Faithful because you could just genuinely be yourself and you would need less of a game plan. You wouldn't have to watch what you were saying constantly. Or thinking that you’ve told a lie and trying to remember it. As a Faithful you could just literally be yourself and enjoy it for what it is and make sure that people didn't suspect you for any reason.

How good are you at spotting a liar?

When I was a young spring chicken, I was so gullible. I would just take in what anyone said to me at face value. But now I'm older, I feel like I genuinely can spot people a lot more for what they are, and I use my gut instinct a lot as well. Sometimes I will just get a feeling that something isn't quite right, and I can tell by their eyes too. That’s how I'd be able to tell with the kids. So, I think I would be quite good a spotting a liar. I’ve got very good instincts.

If you are a Faithful, what qualities do you think you're going to need to make it through to the final?

You just have to be the perfect person, don't you? How hard is that going to be? You can’t be too loud, can't be too quiet, can't be too extroverted or weird. I think it's going to be quite a fine line to tread, but you just have to treat it as a big party... all day.

If you win the prize money, what do you think you'll spend it on?

I would really love to retire. When I got divorced, I bought the house because I wanted to keep me and the kids in the family home for stability. I had to re-mortgage and consequently still owe loads of mortgage. I sometimes think “Oh my god, I'm going to still be working in the NHS when I'm 70, they’ll be wheeling me in!” I've given the NHS nearly 40 years, so I feel like I would try and pay loads of mortgage off and then retire.

Tracey from The Traitors in her own words: What the clairvoyant from Inverness had to say about the programme