Sebastian Croft’s chosen charity ‘deeply grateful’ after Celebrity Traitors win

Sebastian Croft’s chosen charity said they were “absolutely thrilled” and “deeply grateful” to receive his share of The Celebrity Traitors’ prize pot.

The actor, 24, and comedian Romesh Ranganathan, were crowned the winners of the BBC reality gameshow during its dramatic conclusion on Friday.

They secured a victory for the Faithfuls after traitors Maya Jama and King Kenny were banished, winning the £83,000 prize pot for their chosen charities.

Heartstopper star Croft, also known as Bash, is donating his £41,500 share to the charity Choose Love.

The global humanitarian organisation and movement, formerly known as Help Refugees, supports refugees and displaced people around the world through emergency aid and long-term support.

Emma Stevenson, acting chief executive officer of Choose Love, said: “We are absolutely thrilled and deeply grateful to Bash for choosing Choose Love as his designated charity following his incredible win on Celebrity Traitors.

“Bash has been a long-time friend and dedicated supporter of our work, and we could not be prouder of him.

“This vital funding will quite literally change and save lives.

“It allows us to extend critical support to refugees and displaced people, especially LGBTQ+ individuals who face displacement, violence and persecution simply for who they are.

“We can’t thank Bash enough, it means the world.”

Ranganathan is giving his share of the prize pot to the Refugee Council, which supports people who have fled war, violence and persecution to find safety and rebuild their lives in Britain.

Katie Ghose, chief executive of the Refugee Council, said:  “We have loved every minute of watching Romesh and cheering him along from the sidelines. To see him win is the icing on the cake.

“Romesh continues to be a brilliant champion for our cause. As we saw in the castle, he has a unique combination of huge public appeal, warmth and humanity, at the same time as being a gifted comedic legend.

“Romesh’s support will help us continue to provide vital frontline services to refugees and people in the asylum system who come to Britain in search of safety and the chance to rebuild their lives.”

The faithfuls victory came during a nail-biting episode which drew 11.2 million viewers, the highest average overnight audience of the second series of Celebrity Traitors.

The episode also recorded a peak audience of 11.6 million on BBC One, the highest of the series, and became the most-watched episode of the celebrity spin-off to date.

During the finale, traitor Jama narrowly missed out on the cash prize after fellow traitor Kenny voted against her at the final roundtable, leading to her banishment.

Despite failing to win the prize pot, the TV presenter said on Saturday that she had donated what she would have won to her chosen charity.

She donated £83,500 to Action for Children, which works to help vulnerable children with issues including poverty, abuse and finding a foster home.

The charity said it was “absolutely thrilled” after receiving the “generous donation”.