“I think I was relatively good at Traitors!” Nick Muhammad talks about magic, TV chaos, and why he turned against Joe Marler | television

WWhen I met Nick Muhammad, he was on the set of War, a new series on HBO. Full of legal vultures, tech bro situations, and ugly divorces, it’s a powerful, fascinating project, nothing like The Celebrity Traitors at all – except for the high drama, unbearable tension, and the fact that Mohammed has reunited with Celia Imrie. The traitors were filmed in April and May, and this one started in September, so they both knew exactly what happened in the castle, but they were still in their deadly secret room. Mainly, Mohamed was happy just playing with Emre again. “It’s amazing,” he says. “Everything you think it might be, it definitely is. It’s amazing.”

Which brings us to the root of the problem, which is the answer to the question: “What the hell happened, Nick?” SPOILER ALERT: We intend to talk about exactly what happened in the most infuriating Traitors final since the last Unknown Traitors. If Joe Marler had had his way, he and Nick would have achieved victory, and Alan Carr’s majestic deception would have been finally unmasked. Instead, Nick’s nagging doubts brought the ship down.

Muhammad defends himself vigorously, saying: “I think I was relatively smart during that period.” “But when it came to Joe, over the last two or three days, I became convinced that I was going to be manipulated. All he would say was: ‘I want it to be just you and me in the final’ – maybe he was the one trying to frame me because he was a traitor and wanted to win. And then everything becomes a confirmation.” Whatever the reason, he’s such a nice guy that I’m surprised he didn’t try to vote him out instead of annoying everyone else.

Muhammad and Marler have just met after cheating on the Gogglebox Stand Up to Cancer episode, which was definitely a bit awkward, with the betrayal of the year hanging in the air. “No, he definitely wasn’t upset. You know what he’s like…” (Strangely enough, we actually… He does (Few believers could have felt themselves more authentically than Joe Marler.) “It’s just a game,” he said, “isn’t it?” “He was obviously in shock at the time, but within minutes, once I came out of the castle and we had a drink together, everything was fine.

Before this year, Nick Muhammad had never appeared on television like him before. “I did Taskmaster, but even that one was dressed as Dracula. I always have to hide behind something.” Partly because he wants to act, he has to think about maintaining the mystery, “without seeming too pretentious.”

But he loved the common traitors so much that when the call came, he said a hearty yes. Stephen Fry had already agreed, “And if he does it, who am I to say no?” Plus: “When are you going to get this chance to wander the Highlands of Scotland with all these people?” Hah. Guidance. Interesting reason – though not as unusual as I thought. Tom Daley also thought he was going to smash the outside stuff, but he was killed too soon to prove it. “I love a good puzzle and a good outdoor activity. Who doesn’t?” Nick says with unfathomable health.

His career began nearly 30 years ago when he was 16 (he is now 45). “Once I started working, I was working in hotels and weddings as a magician. I did that until I was 30, to pay for my university, but as I started getting more and more TV work, it became a bit strange. People would look at me and say: ‘Why are you here?’ What’s going on?” So now I would say I’m an amateur. I love magic – and I still do it every day, and I read about it every day. I love going to conventions and talking to other magicians. But unless Mr. Swallow does it, it’s not something I can do easily.”

Ah, Mr. Swallow, the character who built his profile: “It’s camp, it’s northern, it’s quite mainstream, it’s physical, it’s quite buffoonish. Although it’s definitely not For childrenThere’s nothing really offensive there.” The character of the power-hungry magician is based on the English teacher he had at school in Leeds, and is portrayed with surreal emotion. “Don’t get me wrong: I can be sarcastic and sarcastic. “I enjoy comedians who consider it their style of humor – but it’s not mine.”

So it was a completely accidental and inspired casting that put him in the role of Ted Lasso as Nate Shelley, who goes from sidekick to villain (another spoiler, Soz), and gave Muhammad the desire to act. “It was the first time I’d been trusted with a role that took a darker turn. I was suddenly moved by this, that I had this license to stretch myself.”

This path led Mohammed to Season 5 of Slow Horses, in which he played the Mayor of London. “The mayor was a person of color, and that’s normal. But I wanted to be really clear: This is not me impersonating Sadiq Khan.” This season was based on Mick Herron’s 2017 tome: “It’s not quite as tumultuous as you might think. And that’s unfortunately a reflection of the fact that there’s a lot of racial tensions, in the UK and America, and they’re not going anywhere.”

April 2026 is the next stop on Show Pony, Mr. Swallow’s tenth show. Did his role in Traitors bring him a whole new audience?

“I remember I first noticed it when Ted Lasso got really big, singing in much bigger rooms than I was used to. 40% of the audience would never see Mr Swallow, and you could almost see them going: ‘Oh my God, what is this?’ But I love it, I love winning over people.”

It is as if the most important question is: Can he make us forgive him? Because we still, bitterly, hold him responsible for the fact that he and Joe Marler didn’t win. All that said, by losing the game, he won our hearts.