The Celebrity Traitors: How did a shipwreck inspire the hit TV show?

Murders in plain sight, burials and betrayals. The Traitors is the ultimate non-bloody bloodbath. Host Claudia Winkleman’s iconic fingerless gloves remain on - but the gloves are firmly off for the contestants, as they attempt to hunt down the traitors. It’s a tough old game of cloak and dagger. A wrong look, or slip of the tongue, can see even the most innocent accused and banished.

The events that take place at The Traitors Castle, located in the Highlands of Scotland, consistently entertain audiences. But this ultimate game of deceit and lies is rooted in one of the most gruesome maritime mutinies in history. TV producer Marc Pos developed the original format. In an interview with GQ magazine in 2024 he explained that he’d bought a book about a vessel that crashed near Australia centuries ago. He said “I thought that, instead of doing a documentary, maybe I could make a psychological reality show”.

BBC Bitesize opened the history books to explore further…

The 'games' begin when the Batavia sets sail...

On October 29 1628 the Dutch vessel, Batavia, departed from Texel in Northern Holland, it was the flagship of a small fleet. The collective was bound for the Dutch East Indies over 7,000 miles away. Its destination - the capital of Indonesia, Jakarta, which at the time shared the name of the giant ship - Batavia.

Like the cast of the BBC series, whether celebrity or not, the boat was filled with a range of personalities including sailors, soldiers, officers and some rich citizens. Also on board was commander Fransisco Pelsaert, his deputy Jeronimus Cornelisz, and skipper Ariaen Jacobsz. The commander and the skipper already knew each other and had some bad blood.

As well as people, the ship was also carrying chests full silver, jewels and other items of high value.

Faithful or Traitor - What was Corenelisz's plan?

Almost as soon as the boat had set sail the skipper was already planning a mutinyagainst commander Pelsaert. It is believed Jacobsz and Cornelisz became friends and started to convince others to join them in an attempt to see off the commander and take the riches for themselves - all while at sea.

Unlike the TV series, time was on the mutineers’ side, the journey would take over half a year. As the ship continued its voyage the pair made many recruitments. Compared to the show, there was no cloaked and spray tanned host to hand deliver letters of recruitment though. Nevertheless, the number of mutineers steadily increased. But before they could enact their plan, take over the ship and steal the silver, disaster struck.

In early June 1629, the ship ran aground on a coral reef close to the Houtman Abrolhos Islands, located off the coast of Western Australia.

You’d be forgiven for thinking that this meant the game was over for Cornelisz and Jacobsz, but in true The Traitors’ style here comes the plot twist…

Cornelisz: The man with ‘serious heat’ on him

The ship was a wreck, some of those who had been on on board drowned. However, a good number made it ashore. Though that’s where the real drama began!

Conditions on land were far from ideal. The survivors had limited supplies and fresh water was scarce. As a result, Commander Pelsaert led a voyage by longboat to seek help with skipper Jacobsz also on the mission. Though they were doing this for the good of others, not to collect a protective shield and increase the prize pot as in the TV show.

Nine days after the initial shipwreck, and with the commander away, Cornelisz eventually left the ship as it finally sank. He swam and staggered to land to find a group of desperate and dispirited survivors. For him it was a case of game on.

In events far more gruesome than we will ever witness under Claudia’s watchful eye, Cornelisz began to trick some survivors into attempting to leave the island. His ultimate goal was to hijack a ship, and then to start his own kingdom using the treasure that still lay in the wreck of the Batavia. He turned people against each other and forced others to murder on his behalf. Some in plain sight, some under the cover of darkness.

Many people, especially those who opposed Cornelisz, faced death. We’re not talking about coming into contact with a poison lily or having their name written onto a scroll though. The levels of violence were high, and things got very bloody. It’s estimated that close to 125 of those that had survived the initial disaster were murdered. That’s at least 100 more than the number of players in a regular series of the award winning show.

Faithful soldiers, a rescue mission, and Cornelisz faces trial

The bloodshed didn’t last. Some soldiers, who Cornelisz had tricked into leaving the island, had actually survived on another island nearby.

Cornelisz realised this group could be a threat and might let any possible rescuers know of his callous ways. He attempted to have them killed. However, on one attempt Cornelisz found himself captured. Game over.

Commander Pelsaert returned, three months after leaving the island, bringing with him a rescue ship. In this ultimate end game everything was revealed. There was no need for any roundtable here though. In a fate far worse than banishment from the castle, Cornelisz and many of his co-conspirators were eventually tried and executed.

The shipwreck of the Batavia was found in 1963 and parts of it are displayed in the Western Australian Maritime Museum. All three regular series of The Traitors are currently available on BBC iPlayer along with the ongoing celebrity version.

But don’t worry, events in the series may be dramatic but they’re nothing compared to this violent moment of maritime history. The sharpest object might just be the player’s tongues, and of course the scissors that keep Claudia’s immaculate fringe in check.

This article was published in October 2025