YouTuber King Kenny was spotted leaving television presenter Maya Jama's £1.5 million north London flat on Saturday morning after watching the BBC Celebrity Traitors finale with her.
The 29-year-old content creator, whose real name is Kenny Oghenovo Ojuederie, stayed at the Love Island host's home for a couple of nights over the weekend, though sources said he slept on the sofa. His visit came even though Friday night's final episode showed him turn on Jama, his fellow Traitor, and banish her to protect himself in front of 11.9 million viewers.
Filmed five months before it aired on the BBC, the series ended with Kenny losing out on victory. Both stars inadvertently revealed on social media that they were watching Friday's finale from the same room: Kenny posted a selfie reacting to his Traitors defeat with the white curtains of Jama's London flat visible behind him, while Jama shared a video of herself watching the show end with the same white drapery in the background.
Jama's representatives have yet to put any denial on the record regarding a romance, though sources close to the presenter insist the pair are not dating and have been friends for years.
Turret meetings at Ardross Castle
According to show insiders, the pair grew close while filming the reality competition at Ardross Castle in Scotland. In the BBC series, a small group of contestants are secretly appointed as Traitors and meet nightly in the castle turret to plot which Faithful contestants to eliminate from the game.
Jama and stand-up comedian James Acaster, 41, were originally chosen as Traitors before a cloaked Jama requested that Kenny be recruited as the third Traitor to stand alongside them. When Kenny first learned inside the turret that Jama and Acaster were the Traitors, he grabbed hold of Jama's arm and pulled her into a long, awkwardly over-affectionate embrace, while greeting Acaster with a restrained tap on the hand.
"We'd all recruit the eye candy," a source close to the show said. "And it worked. They were spending a lot of alone time together night after night up in the turret, on and off camera, particularly after James [Acaster] left. It's no surprise their feelings grew for one another, particularly in such an intense environment as Traitors."
Producers and the on-screen romance edit
Insiders said the show's producers were "rubbing their hands in glee" when the newly single presenter picked the former boxer and internet star to join her as a Traitor. Rather than cutting the pair's lingering looks and chemistry, bosses made sure their interactions remained in the broadcast episodes, where viewers quickly picked up on them.
A BBC source said that "The Traitors has never had an on-screen romance before and so there was no way their flirty moments were going to be cut out of the edit." The insider added that with Jama and Kenny "the series got the whole package," describing their dynamic as "funny, tense, upsetting, moving and romantic" and noting that "from the very first moments they were delivering."
Jama, one of Britain's best-known broadcasters who hosts ITV2's flagship reality dating series Love Island, has known Kenny since at least 2022, when she first appeared in a YouTube video with his content creator collective, the Beta Squad. Founded by Kenny alongside fellow British YouTubers, the Beta Squad produces challenge videos for millions of subscribers, while Kenny has also fought in influencer boxing bouts.
Shoreditch Halloween party sightings
After spending Friday night watching the finale together, Jama and Kenny were seen at the same venue again on Saturday night in east London. Jama threw a Halloween party at 83 Rivington Street in Shoreditch, with Kenny among the guests in attendance.
For the party, Jama transformed herself into four-time Olympic gold medallist distance runner Sir Mo Farah, wearing a bald cap, a goatee, a running vest and shorts.
Kenny arrived at the Shoreditch party in a more toned-down costume, wearing a plain orange jumpsuit for the evening.
Castmates Romesh Ranganathan and Sebastian Croft react
During filming, the pair's attempts to conceal both their identities as Traitors and the depth of their attachment to one another also caught the attention of their fellow celebrity castmates. Among them were comedian Romesh Ranganathan, 48, and actor Sebastian "Bash" Croft, 24, who went on to win the series.
While driving to a mission with Ranganathan and Croft, Kenny posed as a Faithful contestant and raised the prospect of Jama deceiving him. "If Maya is a Traitor, I will never look at her the same way," Kenny said.
Ranganathan immediately replied, "Well, first of all, I don't believe that for a second," which sent all three men into fits of laughter.
Later in the same episode, contestants were asked to work in pairs during the "field of screams" mission. After Jama chose Kenny as her partner, he replied: "My lovely darling."
Ruben Dias split and filming phone ban
Behind the scenes during filming, Jama was dealing with the end of an 18-month relationship with Manchester City footballer Ruben Dias, 29, who ended their relationship in April. Jama had previously been in an on-again, off-again relationship with British rapper Stormzy until two years ago.
Sources close to the presenter said the split from Dias left her "devastated" because she had been "planning a future" with the footballer. However, friends said the show's strict phone ban gave Jama a social media detox that helped her come to terms with the breakup.
Because she was not allowed to "wallow" by constantly checking Dias's social media accounts, friends said the experience "put a smile back on her face," while insiders noted that Kenny's presence in the line-up also helped mend her heartbreak. A friend added: "Going on the Traitors was perfect timing for Maya... for several reasons."
