The Traitors star Fiona helped save a woman who was trapped in sex work and the victim of domestic abuse as part of her role as a counsellor

The Traitors star Fiona Hughes helped save a woman who was trapped in sex work and the victim of domestic abuse as part of her work as a counsellor.

The Welsh TV star, 62, made waves on the show as the illusive Secret Traitor and earlier this week became embroiled in a bitter and unexpected row with fellow Traitor Rachel before being banished at the round table.

But away from the show Fiona works as a support counsellor for Swansea Council where she helps vulnerable people.

On the council’s website features a case study with a woman, only known as Alice, who felt suicidal before getting help from the organisation and Fiona.

She says on the site: ‘Fiona came into my life when I thought nobody could help me. I felt so ashamed and just didn’t want to go on.

‘I’ll always be grateful for the time she spent with me and thank her from the bottom of my heart.’

Alice endured a violent relationship and was forced into prostitution before Fiona encouraging her to get help from a domestic abuse support specialist and return to education.

Alice then left her abusive partner and went back to college in 2018 and is still in touch with Fiona.

Fiona told The Sun of the happy ending: ‘The lady is very settled now. She has children and is an amazing woman. 

‘It’s not my story to tell, but it’s important to remember so many people feel very vulnerable and isolated, but you can change somebody’s life by reaching out.’ 

It comes after on Saturday Fiona broke her silence following her shocking banishment from the castle on Friday’s episode.

The Swansea native was sent home by the Faithfuls who broke into cheers when she revealed herself as a Traitor. 

Her elimination came after an intense confrontation with her fellow traitor Rachel Duffy, when Fiona accused her of being a Traitor in front of the rest of the group. 

Speaking to The Sun, Fiona admitted: ‘It was incredibly tense. I was really the master of my own downfall.

‘But I suspected that when there was the end game I would be thrown under the bus.’

Fiona began the game as a ‘secret Traitor’, working alone to pick a shortlist of murder victims who the regular Traitors had to then murder from.

When she joined Rachel and Stephen Libby in the turret however, she quickly became suspicious that Rachel was playing only for herself and not as a team. 

After Amanda Collier’s banishment from the castle, Rachel revealed she had confided in her that she was secretly a former detective for the metropolitan police.

Fiona was immediately convinced Rachel was lying and felt that Amanda would have told her that because she has several police officers in her family. 

Fiona told Rachel: ‘I just want you to know that I’m suspicious. I think you’re going to get rid of Stephen and I,’ and then accused her of being a Traitor in front of the group.

Explaining her decision, she said: ‘I needed to confront Rachel to be sure in my own mind that she was a team player and not playing singularly.’

Fiona described Rachel as a ‘formidable player’ and felt she was a ‘lone wolf’ who would eventually come after her. 

After Fiona’s banishment, Stephen broke down in tears from guilt of voting for her and told the camera, ‘Having to use her like that is just part of the game, isn’t it.’

A triumphant Rachel added, ‘I won the battle, but I need to win the war.’

Then, in a huge twist, Matthew Hyndman, Harriet Tyce and Rachel won the opportunity to ask the Traitors questions, but, of course, Rachel would be answering the questions rather than asking them.

Matthew entered Ardross Castle Church, with the Traitors hidden in a wooden confession box.

He first asked who they plan to kill next and why, to which they wrote down Jessie Roux’s name and passed the paper through a letterbox to keep their identities a secret.

After reading the response, he boldly said: ‘Here’s what I want to happen. I’m taking a massive risk here, and I want to know that there is some trust.

‘I suspect Claudia will offer you the opportunity to seduce the next time you meet. I want you to turn that down and murder Jessie. And then the next time you seduce, you can seduce me. So my question is, do we have a deal?’

After turning on his fellow Faithful, Matthew told the camera: ‘I’m not a monster; I don’t want Jessie to die. But I came here to play the game, and that is what I’m going to do.’

The episode ends with the Traitors writing down their answer, but viewers will have to wait until Wednesday, January 14, to discover what happens and to watch Harriet ask her questions.

She believes that Fiona and Rachel’s head-to-head was a classic Traitor-on-Traitor battle and immediately became suspicious of both of them.

Elsewhere during the episode, Reece Ward was brutally murdered following an emotional few days, with the Traitors branding it a ‘mercy killing’.

Reece didn’t have an easy ride in the castle, and the night before his murder, he had come close to banishment, with the vote being split between him and Amanda, and fate deciding that he was safe.

Both players had to pick a chest, and whoever had the shield inside was safe. Reece broke down in tears as he picked up the shield, meaning Faithful Amanda was next to leave Ardross Castle.

Rachel also became emotional and said: ‘I know I’m a Traitor, but that broke my heart. She was my favourite person.’

The Traitors pulled in an impressive audience for its fifth episode on Thursday, with an average of 7.35million people tuning in to watch the instalment, according to overnight ratings.

The Traitors continues on January 14 at 8pm on BBC One and iPlayer.