Celebrity Traitors Debuts with Highland Thrills!

Celebrity Traitors looks set to kick off in dramatic fashion, as this year's lineup tackled their first mission deep in the Scottish Highlands

Stars including Maya Jama, Leigh-Anne Pinnock and Michael Sheen sported life vests and wetsuits as they headed into the loch to explore a wrecked pirate ship

With Claudia Winkleman cheering them on, the stars began a search for gold that would add money to the prize fund

While they are no doubt already growing suspicious of each other, all of the players were tasked with working together on the first mission

Maya was reportedly the first star to be approached by Celebrity Traitors bosses in a bid to pull in a younger audience thanks to her Love Island hosting duties

With Claudia watching on, the stars rushed to make their way out of the Loch following their search for gold

Maya was joined by Julie Hesmondhalgh and Richard E Grant as they took on the mission

Details about the new series are being kept a closely-guarded secret, so it remains to be seen who Claudia will choose as her three Traitors

Ross Kemp and Joe Lycett headed deep into the water in a bid to explore the pirate ship

Bella Ramsey, Ross and Maya waded through the water with their wetsuits on

Leigh-Anne, Amol Rajan and Ross were among the 21 stars who have been signed up to take part in the new series

Ross, Bella and Maya braved the chilly water deep in the Scottish Highlands in a bid to tackle the mission

Richard's signing has brought a touch of Hollywood to the show, with the Oscar winner previously earning acclaim for his roles

Michael Sheen made his way into the water with James Blunt (seen right) during the mission

Jerry Hall has also joined the long list of big names that have been signed for the show

After her stint on Little Mix, Leigh-Anne is set to tackle a series of missions, though it remains to be seen whether she will be chosen as a Traitor

With this lineup proving to be the starriest yet, it was previously reported that bosses were forced to double their £1 million budget in a bid to cater to the A-List contestants' demands

The increased budget was already obvious as pictures emerged of the stars touching down in the highlands after travelling via planes and private jets

Last year many contestants were said to have travelled on the train

Julie was in high spirits as they searched for gold on the shipwreck

Meanwhile the likes of Alan Carr and Sir Stephen Fry were also said to have been ferried around during last year's series in a minibus, which has now been swapped for chauffeur cars

Money has also been spent on beefing up security to keep the stars safe and the castle's goings on under wraps ahead of transmission later this year

A source said: 'Although most of the stars are British, so many of them are used to working in America that their teams are used to the treatment'

They said: 'The production team have little choice, however, than to cater for their demands because they accept the number of A-listers taking part in this year's show makes it exceptional'

Maya Jama was pictured arriving at Inverness airport on Sunday afternoon, reportedly taking a huge pay cut to appear on series two of the BBC show

Miranda's signing has come as a delight to many fans, as she recently took a break from the spotlight after being diagnosed with Lyme disease

The Celebrity Traitors series two cast was officially announced when the BBC dropped the first teaser trailer on Saturday

Since then, all of its stars have been seen travelling to Scotland, where they will stay close to the famous castle

Shortly after the announcement, Jerry was spotted touching down in Inverness alongside Richard E Grant, Bella Ramsey and Amol Rajan

All of the stars waded their way through the loch

This year's Celebrity Traitors is proving to be the glitziest yet

Claudia will once again be at the helm as host, with her Highlands looks no doubt sparking envy, and lookalike purchases, from viewers

Maya has been high spirits as she joined the stars tackling the first mission

James Blunt and Joe Lycett offered a helping hand to Hannah Fry as they made their way out of the water

Miranda was atop the pirate shit as she searched for gold

The comedy star has sparked delight from longtime fans with her signing on the show

Richard mindled with stars including Julie and Rob Beckett during the mission

The new series is expected to air in October

Rob, Joe and Julie rushed into the water to search for the gold

Ahead of the mission, Claudia was seen briefing the celebrities on what they would be facing

After months of speculation over who could be following in the iconic footsteps of last year's winner Alan Carr, in a quirky new trailer the 21 names were finally revealed

After completing the mission, all of the stars cheered in delight at the money they'd raised

It all seems happy families now, but no doubt tensions will rise between stars when they head to the famous round table

The cast was announced last week, with filming underway just hours later

Last year's celebrity run broke ratings records for the BBC, with Alan Carr scooping the entire prize fund as the sole Traitor to reach the end of the game

Speculation will no doubt be rife about which names will be chosen as Traitors