_{"Ultimately, I was all teddy bear, having regrets about despatching the rest of the cast," Hugo told ROF.}

Warning: Contains spoilers.

Barrister Hugo Lodge has told RollOnFriday he has "no regrets" after he was banished from hit BBC show The Traitors last week when he was undone by another, former, barrister who led the case against him.

The show's host, Claudia Winkleman, had selected Hugo as a traitor, tasking him with undermining his fellow players' attempts to flush him out. 

While some players have hidden their professions in case they're used against them - another contestant has kept schtum about being a retired police detective - Hugo decided to tell everyone that he was a barrister.

_{Taking a cold-blooded approach should be a busman's holiday for some barristers.}

A 'faithful' contestant, Harriet Tyce, chose not to reveal the fact that she was an ex-barrister turned crime writer, saying it would make her a "huge target". Instead, she put one on Hugo's back.

_{Ex-barrister Harriet (left) demonstrates the professional courtesy between briefs.}

At the round table, Harriet highlighted Hugo's job to put the heat on him. "It has occurred to me from the moment I found out that you were a barrister, that you would be a prime target for the traitors to take out. You have experience of cross-examination, you are good at presenting your case, and you're highly articulate. So I had in my mind, as I came into breakfast this morning, if you had survived [the first night's murder], that really raised big questions in my mind", she said.

Still managing to keep a straight face, the former barrister added: "A number of people also said they were intimidated by your professional position, to take you on. These are hard facts as far as I'm concerned."

Harriet also accused Hugo of "overacting" in a "hammy" speech at breakfast, when he exclaimed to the whole table that it was "beyond mean" that the traitors had murdered a player. 

Following a vote by the players at the round table, Hugo was duly banished from the game and revealed he was a traitor, prompting legal commentators online to praise Harriet's tactics:

Hugo spoke to RollOnFriday about his experience on the show and #Barristergate.

RoF: What made you want to apply for the show?

Hugo: I love the Traitors and have seen every series in the English language to date. As a kid I was into amateur dramatics and musical theatre. The Traitors is a wonderful mix of this, set in a beautiful Scottish castle, so I thought why not?

You came across as a good sport about leaving, but did you feel a bit aggrieved that you were banished so early on?

You of course play to win, but I was relieved to be banished. It was fun to take a hugely high-risk approach, channelling Guy Fawkes and Phantom of the Opera, and I loved skulking around the castle in a cloak, but I did not enjoy despatching my new friends. I have made some great friends;  you can see from my Uncloaked interview* that Ben and I are now really good mates.

Did you realise Harriet was a barrister and how did you feel when she went for you at the Round Table?

I take my wig off to Harriet. She made an unanswerable point, ‘you’re a senior professional so you would make a good Traitor. If you’re not a Traitor, why haven’t they murdered you?’. As soon as I told Claudia that I was willing to be upfront about my profession, I knew there would be a ‘target on my back’. The strategy was to be chaotic not slick, and to catch the Secret Traitor. I achieved one of those!

I felt in that moment that my best hope was to appeal to the hearts of the cast rather than deploy logic as attacking her would have underlined Harriet's point. I had aimed to be kind and supportive in the castle, and the fact that Jessie and Jade did vote as I suggested (against Amanda) showed that I had some traction. My only other thought was as this attack came right at the start of the Round Table, then it may be forgotten if I didn’t overdo the response. Ross then started to dig himself into a hole so there was a glimmer of hope.

But Fiona and then Stephen opened new lines of attack against me, so it was time to call a taxi and prepare for a dramatic exit, which I loved. The roof came off, I was happy for the cast, they had got one!

You said that you tried to treat the game like a "stage" rather than "a court". However, do you think that was an error, as other players, including Harriet, thought your breakfast speech about Ben was too "hammy"?

You most definitely can have too much ham at breakfast! That response to Ben leaving the show was too big for breakfast, or indeed TV. It’s an honour to join the ranks of Kas and Linda who have laid on too much cheese with a trowel at that table.

As for treating the castle like a stage - I have no regrets about going for chaos over slickness though - I challenge anyone to find me mentioning to any other cast member that I was a barrister. I once tried to laugh it off by saying I was a barista… I was rowing away from professional status to be a friendly / Dickens character as Ed Gamble* put it.

This bought me a couple of days. Had I found the red cloak that would have given me a couple more. I didn’t really assess my chances of winning as high, so wanted to enjoy every moment.

If you had your time again, what are the main things you would have done differently?

I would do the same again, minus excess ham at breakfast! I was keen to be a Traitor to get the whole turret experience. To secure that I felt I had to offer Claudia to go big and/or go home early. You owe it to the many people who applied to try to win. The other Traitors playing a more optimal strategy found my presence unsettling, understandably!

I knew I wanted to be a Traitor and felt that would be enough to remember to conceal. To lie about my profession would have been a trap. Also, I wanted to be every aspect of my personality on a daily basis, including the inner diva.

What did you think of the experience in the house? What was the atmosphere like with your fellow contestants? 

The whole experience was really positive, and the castle is just stunning. All the cast are in touch on a Whatsapp group and there are no hard feelings. It’s been a pleasure to be able to do follow up media with the BBC, and ‘Uncloaked’ was a blast.

What advice would you give any lawyers who are thinking about applying to a future series of The Traitors?

I’d encourage any lawyer to do anything they have a passion for or find interesting / funny. We work long hours and years. My tutor, the late John Hopkins, said ‘What’s the point of doing anything unless it is fun?’

Would you do any other TV shows again, given the chance?

I’m going to let the dust settle on the Traitors for now. I very much enjoyed my fifteen minutes in the spotlight and my practice has become a lot more advisory so I may welcome the occasional chance to be a commentator on future Traitors episodes for example (if they’d have me). 

Any other comment you wish to make?

I do NOT require middle management. Stay treacherous.

_{* 'Uncloaked' is hosted by Ed Gamble, whose father was the London Managing Partner of Hogan Lovells - the comedian therefore has an excellent insight into the character traits of lawyers.}