The Celebrity Traitors: How to get Claudia Winkleman's 'genius' dandy-punk country looks

This series sees the dandy-punk dial set to max, which comes right on time for a much-needed dose of autumn/winter wardrobe inspiration. Claudia is not one for playing it safe sartorially, praise be. Forget about quiet luxury and restrained elegance; instead think playful decadence and cosplay drama. Every day is dress-up day in Traitors-land.

At its core is traditional British country style - tweed jackets and coats, fairisle and chunky knits, kilts, Hunter wellies, sturdy boots and scarves - blended with a sleek, dark and polished gothic glamour.

The result is a series of outifts that many of us can only swoon over, hoping to achieve a Claudia aesthetic that is striking yet recognisable, bold yet wearable, elevated and street-wise, all at the same.

On paper it all sounds rather unachievable, and unfathomable. Claudia has described her Traitors style as “Cruella de Vil with a touch of Miss Trunchbull”. She and her stylist (of which more later) have also referenced as muses, variously, Anita Dobson, Ronnie Corbett, Madonna (the Guy Ritchie days), Patti Smith, Siouxsie Sioux, Princess Anne and Lady Amanda Harlech, veteran blender of country elegance with punk rebellion. It shouldn’t work, but it does.

If it sounds slightly bonkers, that’s because it is. “Unhinged in taffeta”, says Claudia, is the thinking behind the looks for The Celebrity Traitors, the nine-part series that launched on BBC One on Wednesday night.

In it we see her stalk stylishly in and around a grand Highland castle (Ardross Castle on the Black Isle near Inverness) as she presides over a bunch of celebrities playing a game of deceit, trust and detection - with a prize of up to £100,000 for their chosen charities.

Hidden in the group are the Traitors, usually two or three, initially picked out by Claudia after dinner at the round table. It is their job to hoodwink, confuse and murder their fellow players without getting caught.

It is up to the others, the Faithful, to identify and banish the Traitors before they become their next victim. It is an addictive watch.

The celebrities joining Claudia are: Alan Carr; Cat Burns; Celia Imrie; Charlotte Church; Clare Balding; David Olusoga; Joe Marler; Joe Wilkinson; Jonathan Ross; Kate Garraway; Lucy Beaumont; Mark Bonnar; Nick Mohammed; Niko Omilana; Paloma Faith; Ruth Codd; Stephen Fry; Tameka Empson, and Tom Daley.

Some stellar names but, for fashion-lovers, Claudia’s wardrobe is the star attraction. Her outfits light up social media channels as soon as she appears in the breakfast room or heads outdoors into the splendour of the Highlands to lead a group challenge, or looms in after dinner at the round table in the castle, dressed to kill, or die for.

A first-look photo showed her in a Ralph Lauren tailored tartan tweed suit, exactly the sort of outfit one ought to be wearing in a far-flung Scottish castle.

Capes are a massive trend for AW25 and Claudia, surely, must be credited for popularising them. Her signature black wool cape is the Cotswold Boiled Black Wool Poncho by Luxury Family Affair, but look out for High Street capes available now at COS, Zara and Monsoon. Spanx leggings are another Claudia wardrobe staple.

Favourite knitwear brands have included Brora (which has a shop in Harrogate) for fairisle and other knits - and its AW25 collection features tweed suiting using fabric made in Yorkshire exclusively for Brora. Kilts are also a strong autumn/winter trend, with plenty styles of all lengths and fabrics.

Other favoured labels include Purdey; Johnstons of Elgin (Elgin is not far from the filming location and there is a brilliant Johnstons shop and cafe in the town, showcasing cashmere and clothing, interiors and more); Barrie; Jigsaw; Dr Martens; Holland Cooper and The Vampire’s Wife (sadly no more although its genius lives on in many wardrobes, including Claudia’s).

The Traitors looks are created with Claudia’s genius stylist Sinead McKeefry (she also styles her outfits for Strictly Come Dancing) who, on her Instagram account, receives hundreds of messages after the first airing of each programme, from women of all ages, wanting to know where to buy pieces worn.

Sinead has said that for The Celebrity Traitors, Claudia's fashion fans can expect even more of a punk vibe, which is handy because punk is a key AW25 trend, from the runways to the High Street. She cites as inspiration designers such as Simone Rocha and Comme des Garçons.

Sensibly, she likes to use High Street pieces, for example, COS (she layers its fine polo-neck knits under many looks, including shirt sleeve tops - a great tip), and Zara, and says that Reiss, Whistles and Jigsaw are great for tailoring, while The Kooples offers suiting with an edge. There’s ME+EM too (which has a new store opening soon in Harrogate).

The devil is often in the detail - red fingernails, peeping white cuffs, unexpected pops of colour with those famous fingerless gloves.

Of course, we can expect the unexpected, especially those fashion moments of high drama that go viral on social media - remember the extravagantly shaggy, floor-sweeping black Saint Laurent coat from last year’s series, later auctioned for Comic Relief.

Sometimes more really is more. After The Celebrity Traitors, there will be a fourth and fifth season of The Traitors non-celebrity version in 2026, with rumours that the show has booked out Ardross Castle until 2030.

The Celebrity Traitors airs on BBC One on Wednesday and Thursday evenings at 9pm, with the finale to be confirmed.