Who is David Olusoga? Meet Celebrity Traitors contestant and BAFTA winning historian

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The highly anticipated first season of The Celebrity Traitors UK is almost here – it premieres tomorrow with a fantastic cast!

As a huge fan of game shows, I’m really excited about this new one! Starting October 8th, Claudia Winkleman is hosting a group of celebrities who will be testing their detective skills, and a whole lot of trust, all to try and win a big prize – up to £100,000 – for charity. It sounds like it’s going to be full of twists and turns, and I can’t wait to see how it plays out!

As always, Claudia Winkleman has chosen a group of celebrities to be the Traitors. Their mission is to secretly eliminate other players without being discovered.

I recently came across historian David Olusoga, and I’m really intrigued to see what he does next. Here’s a little about him – everything you need to know about this fascinating figure.

Who is David Olusoga?

Age: 55

Job: Historian and author

Instagram: @olusoga

David Olusoga is a historian, author, and filmmaker. He started his career as a researcher for the 1999 BBC series, Western Front.

Born in Lagos, Nigeria, he moved to the UK with his mother when he was five. At fourteen, his family was forced to leave their home and live under police protection due to racist attacks, an experience that profoundly impacted him. He later studied the history of slavery at the University of Liverpool, earning a History degree in 1994, and then completed a postgraduate course in broadcast journalism at Leeds Trinity University.

Throughout his career, Olusoga has hosted several popular historical programs, including *Black and British: A Forgotten History*, *A House Through Time*, and *Britain’s Forgotten Slave Owners*. He won a BAFTA award for his work in the Specialist Factual category in 2016.

In the 2019 New Year Honours, he was awarded an OBE for his contributions to both history and bringing communities together. He received the medal from King Charles III in February 2023.

Why did David sign up for The Celebrity Traitors?

David Olusoga stated that *The Celebrity Traitors* is the only reality competition he’d ever be interested in joining, calling it a uniquely captivating show.

This show is completely different from anything I’ve done before. A lot of people I know enjoy it, even those who usually watch different kinds of programs. When I thought about taking part, I realized it could be a fascinating opportunity, he explained to the BBC.

Does David want to be a Faithful or Traitor?

Olusoga admitted he’d be a terrible Traitor on the show, because he’s afraid he wouldn’t be able to convincingly lie.

I’m worried I’d lose track of my assumed identity and forget I was pretending to be someone else. That’s why I know I couldn’t be a spy – it would be incredibly difficult to constantly remember who you really are when you’re living a false life.

Olusoga admitted he wasn’t following a particular plan. He explained that it’s rare for anyone to have a solid, long-term strategy right from the beginning, and even rarer for them to be able to maintain it. He described much of the process as simply making educated guesses.

You can watch the new series, Celebrity Traitors, starting Wednesday, October 8th at 9pm on BBC One and BBC iPlayer. All previous seasons (1-3) of The Traitors are also available to stream now on BBC iPlayer.

Don’t miss *The Traitor*! Add it to your watchlist on the TopMob app – download it now for daily TV recommendations and exclusive content.

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2025-10-08 11:34