BBC Destination X contestant Claire Tidy has spoken out on the ‘feud’ between the players, as she was the latest to be eliminated from the Rob Brydon-hosted gameshow
Destination X participant Claire Tidy has spoken out about rumours of a “feud” amongst the competitors.
The former detective sergeant, aged 51, became the most recent casualty of Rob Brydon’s BBC gameshow after she failed to correctly identify the destination.
Combining elements of The Traitors with Race Across The World, Destination X sees 13 strangers competing for a £100,000 prize as the entirety of Europe becomes a massive board game.
Journeying on a coach without knowing their location, participants receive clues alongside misleading information and must attempt to decipher the hints to determine where they are, with the contestant furthest from the correct answer facing elimination.
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Following her return to the competition after a surprising development in the opening episode, Claire’s participation in Destination X concluded in tonight’s (Thursday 21 August) instalment, reports the Manchester Evening News.
Reflecting on her overall time on the programme, Claire said: “I thoroughly enjoyed it, it was absolutely fantastic. I can’t think of a bad thing about it, I had the best four weeks of my life.”
She mentioned that encountering the fellow participants was a standout aspect of the journey, despite appearances that several remaining contestants grew distant from one another.
As the competition developed, splits and partnerships emerged with Saskia and Josh forming one group, Nick and Daren creating another, and Claire aligning with Judith, with hostility developing aboard the coach as participants faced accusations of strategic play, resulting in disputes and emotional outbursts following deception and manipulation between them.
Presenter Rob had previously acknowledged: “The great thing is watching how the relationships alter and shift and how trust is sometimes misplaced between contestants.”
Nevertheless, Claire has now disclosed there was actually no animosity between them.
She clarified: “We come across on the show that we don’t like each other, and it’s all gameplay and stuff, but we did sit and chill out for a bit and talk and laugh and have a lot of fun.
“There was no bad blood at all, no bad blood between anybody. What you see on the television is obviously gameplay but between takes we all got on pretty well.”
She went on: “The only thing that doesn’t come across and it is a bit sad that it doesn’t come across, is the fact that we all do have a laugh. We do laugh and giggle and mess around with each other a lot.
“Obviously, the show is about the game, which is absolutely what it’s supposed to be about, but it’s edited a lot where it looks like we’re not having fun and getting along.
“We all laughed together all the time between takes, so it’s just a shame that doesn’t come across a little bit more, that we all actually have a laugh and that we’re great friends.”
Together with two fellow contestants, Ashvin and Chloe-Anne, Claire was eliminated from the programme in the opening episode after failing the initial challenge, before returning in a Traitors-style twist.
Claire confessed that missing the initial stages of the competition threw her game plan “out the window” and she found it “difficult” to reintegrate into the game when alliances had already been established.
“When I went back on the bus, they had already formed their massive alliance with each other and clearly didn’t want us around, they didn’t talk to us very much, it was really difficult going on.
“I had to work out who I could trust, who had been devious, who had been working against me when actually all of them were apart from Judith which I later found out.”
Upon returning home from the show, Claire confessed she “missed everybody dreadfully” and was “gutted” to have been eliminated.
The retired detective sergeant from West Sussex decided to participate in the show (having previously considered applying for Race Across The World) following a life-altering near-fatal car accident that required four ambulances and five fire engines to rescue her.
She wanted to demonstrate her bravery and courage by participating in the gameshow and its challenges despite battling mental health issues, having previously stated: “I have got PTSD and the reason I’m doing this show is to say to the world that even though you might have mental health issues, you can still do it.”
Claire Tidy, reflecting on the life-altering accident, shared her new perspective on life: “Life is for living, and I just thought, ‘yes I’ve got this illness and I have been through awful things in my life’ but life is for living, let’s get out there and show the world Claire Tidy and that’s exactly what I think I did.”
Destination X continues on Wednesday at 9pm and is available to watch on BBC iPlayer.
