After weeks of suspense, plots and backstabbing, The Celebrity Traitors has reached a nail-biting end

Spoiler alert - This article discloses details from Celebrity Traitors finale

Over the course of the show, audiences saw murders, betrayals, serious side-eye, and a memorable moment that pierced the overwhelming tension.

Yet on Thursday night, the final winner of the first Celebrity Traitors emerged triumphant.

From nineteen participants, only five remained: Deceivers and loyal players competing for the prize.

Before long, the field narrowed to just three: the final players.

In the end, comedian Alan Carr was crowned the winner, in a surprising result that broke the internet and made him tearful.

"This has been destroying me, my apologies," he exclaimed, admitting to the remaining faithfuls that he'd always been one of the deceivers. "I feel terrible about this."

"You played amazingly," they consoled him. "It's all right."

Social media quickly erupted with this development. "Most awful traitor ever being the most effective player," commented a viewer.

"There could not have been a more iconic ending," wrote a different person, while someone else called it "the TV moment of the year."

His chosen charity, a cancer charity, gets to keep the entire winnings, with the final pot amounting to eighty-seven thousand five hundred pounds.

Alan Carr's transformation from comic relief to strategic player was among the most memorable aspects of the season.

However, his victory still left the nation in shock, according to entertainment reporters.

"The thought of him, among everyone, pulling off an expert performance in deception felt just as probable as him maintaining composure through his comedy routines."

During follow-up conversations, the other contestants summed up the reasons nobody had truly doubted him.

"Alan could have come down to the morning meal in traitor attire and I still wouldn't have thought he was deceiving us. I was too busy laughing," one participant said.

"The majority didn't target him because how does one vote for someone who is so charming?" asked a different contestant.

Carr said he had "thoroughly enjoyed" his experience with the show.

"I want to participate once more... I don't think it would be successful again!"

The final installment was lengthened to over an hour on the network. It had a different start than typical episodes, as all the celebs knew who would appear at the breakfast table.

There was particularly inspiring, and atypical for the show soundtrack, as the episode revisited key scenes from each of the finalists' experience in the game.

True to form, Alan Carr gave us unforgettable quotes.

"To be honest, I started this game a bit of a nervous wreck. I've thrown close allies under the bus, I've eliminated beloved figures in plain sight. I'm clearly a better liar and traitor than I thought."

At the same time, another contestant commented that being in the final was "significantly more pressure than competing with England", while another said he was "totally surprised" to have lasted this long.

Early on in the episode, various contestants appeared to be making a bid to become the new style icon of the castle, replacing an earlier departed style leader.

The winner appeared at the morning meal looking like a vintage television personality in a checked maroon suit, before changing into an embellished light-colored outfit.

However, he got out-jacketted by another contestant's maroon velvet tuxedo. What a look.

Next up was the competition, with the remaining contestants boarding a train named - naturally - The Traitors Express.

The challenge saw them ripping up images of former contestants. Spare a thought for a player who managed to get hit in the head THREE times by the cover of a heavy wooden box.

Soon after, the moment arrived for the elimination discussion.

Two traitors did a pinky promise in advance, vowing to support each other. "We've progressed significantly, I won't throw him under a bus," stated one, while their partner simply laughed.

And one adhered to their agreement. But, having slipped unnoticed for most of the game, the other still got the most votes.

The remaining traitor appeared to be experiencing a world of pain to be the final deceiver remaining. "Being alone, I feel terrified," he said. "I'm a loose cannon, without direction."

Social media and viewers were similarly upset.

"I did NOT want this contestant to be eliminated. A truly loveable traitor," said an observer.

"You will forever be remembered in the show's legacy," wrote a different viewer.

But there was no time to focus on their elimination. Soon, they were at the final stage - which was the moment everyone anticipated.

The last players gathered around the ceremonial fire. And the alliance collapsed, precisely when it was most crucial, in a truly WTF moment.

One contestant was eliminated in dramatic fashion - following a surprising decision from their ally, who turned against them.

"This pains me to be stabbed in the back at the final moment in that manner," said the ousted contestant. Later, we learned that when they message, the eliminated contestant refers to the other as a traitor.

Finally, only three contestants remained in the game: the last participants.

One player, appearing quite pleased, voted to end the competition. The same decision was made by a different player, and everything depended on the third, who did the same - which meant that the deceiver was the winner.

According to commentators, the scene where remaining contestants comforted the winner was "compelling television". "I predict it could be a contender for memorable moment at television honors," they said.

Fortunately, the winner soon recovered from his emotional outburst, and was able to enjoy his victory.

"What a rollercoaster. I thought I was terrible at deception, I had no poker face and here I am a winner," he said.

He also joked about the memorable elimination - his close ally in an early episode - by reaching over the presenter in the concluding moments and making contact.

"There's something on your face," he said, with his characteristic laugh.

The recent episodes of famous people scheming, scheming and the occasional surprising incidents may seem like one big crazy jumbled dream. Yet it actually all happen. And we will miss it.