The Traitors had BBC viewers on the edge of their seats last night as the newest season of the hit show began and introduced us to all of the new contestants, one of whom lives in Derby.
Out of this year’s 22 contestants, there is an ex-British diplomat, an ex-soldier, a scientist and a doctor, but which one of the new participants is a Derby local?
Leon Jackman, 40, store manager of the Three phone shop in Derbion, represents Derby in the show’s newest season. Leon has previously worked as a customer service sales specialist at Capita, a branch manager at Carphone Warehouse and a store manager at Game in Derby.
The local is one of the only contestants from the East Midlands, and he announced his appearance on the show to his Facebook friends in a post that read: “THE SECRET IS OUT!!! I’m excited to confirm that I am on The Traitors. Tune in to find out if I’m a Faithful or a Traitor when the new series starts tonight.”
Leon had previously told his family and friends that he had gone off to Barbados while filming for the new series, and only told people he knew once the show was aired on January 1, 2025.
The store manager lives with his wife, 12-year-old son, and stepson and has boasted about his competitive ability in his favourite pastimes: Mario Kart and football.
In an interview before the show started, Leon told fans about his competitive nature. He said: “Well, for example, when I play Mario Kart with my son, he’s 12 and he’s autistic, I rarely let him win! He’s gotten better over time so he does beat me, it’s a good father-son rivalry. Don’t get me wrong, I am one of those people that can hold their hands up if a better person has beat me on the day – I’m not a sore loser. But I am competitive – I want to win.”
So how will Leon spend the prize money if he manages to win this year’s season of The Traitors? Well Leon has said that he wants to sort his garden shed out alongside some “little things around the house”, but he also said that he would like to give his mum some of the money for “all the sacrifices she made when I was growing up”.
The new contestant mused about his chances of spotting a liar in the midst. He said: “Sometimes I let people fester in their lies, I let it build up so sometimes I’ll spot a lie and I’ll just keep it to myself, make a mental note and just let them carry on.
“I’ll try to trip them up, and maybe even feed them other things to dig themselves deeper into the hole. That’s something that I like doing because it’s interesting, like let’s see how far you’re willing to go with this lie of yours…”
So why did Leon choose to come on the show? Leon said that The Traitors grabbed his attention because it is a battle between good and evil, and he fell in love with the concept after originally watching the series with his wife. Leon has said that his smiley and talkative attitude will stay with him no matter the role he finds himself in on the show.