"Traitors" winner was aboard cruise ship during fatal stag party brawl

A winner from the television show the Traitors was on board a luxury cruise ship when a man died after a ‘clash’ during a stag celebration.

Passengers onboard the ship described meeting Harry Clark, the winner of the BBC show 2024, hours before the scenes of ‘carnage’ on the MSC Virtuosa on Saturday., reported by METRO.

The 60-year-old man who died, who has not been named, was onboard the two-night cruise to Bruges, Belgium, from Southampton, when a fight broke out onboard two hours into the voyage.

A murder investigation has since been launched. 

It is thought that the man was on a stag do when the violence broke out.

There is no suggestion Harry was involved in the violence.

Lynda Hardiman-Pearce, who runs catering business the Spud Shack, described meeting the celebrity before witnessing the violence.

She told Metro: ‘It was carnage on the ship there were a lot of people drinking a lot. I thought I was a party animal until I saw this lot. People were jolly but it was a bit like a modern Wild West with stag and hen dos everywhere. 

Lynda is seen with her with partner Michael Lockwood on board the ship hours before the brawl (Picture: Lynda Hardiman-Pearce/Metro.co.uk)

‘Harry from Traitors was on board with a big group of family but they were low key and just have long a nice time together. 

‘Harry was lovely, a very nice guy.’

She said the first time she was made aware of a problem when a man tried to push in front of her at the bar. 

She told Metro: ‘The bloke said ‘I’m sorry but I need to get my son a drink. He’s an army medic and he just gave CPR to a man but he didn’t make it’. 

‘It was a shock but I just assumed it was natural causes staff didn’t say anything to us or anything. 

‘Later on the cruise a woman said a bloke who she had been dancing with in a group had died. She was very shocked I think the guy who died was on a stag do. 

‘The whole experience was like a nightmare, just really surreal. 

‘The atmosphere on board was happy but it was chaos with half drunk drinks everywhere. It was not exactly the luxury experience promised!’. 

She added: ‘It’s so strange to think that the poor man had been on the boat until it docked on Monday. When the police met the boat there were only five of them and they seemed quite casual. It was very odd. It’s a real mystery like something out of a film.’

Harry won the BBC show in 2024 and scooped the £95,000. He is pictured onboard the ship with Lynda (Picture: Lynda Hardiman-Pearce/Metro.co.uk)

Ms Hardiman-Pearce said the father of an army medic ‘tried to help by doing CPR on a man that had collapsed.’ It is understood that the man was pronounced dead at around 8.30pm. 

His body is believed to have been kept aboard the ship until it docked back in the Horizon terminal in Hampshire on Monday. 

The victim, whose name has not yet been released, was from Sussex.

A 57-year-old man from Exeter, has been arrested on suspicion of murder and remains in custody.

It is understood three family members of the dead man, two women and a man met the vessel on the quayside to try and gain entry on the ship. 

The men involved in the incident were said to be among a party of 20. It is believed the men involved in the violence were known to each other.

The ship left Southampton at 6pm on Saturday with the reports being made at around 8.30pm there had been a death on board.

Under maritime convention most large cruise ships have a morgue aboard in case of deaths on a voyage.

MSC Virtuosa also offers cruises to the Caribbean, the Mediterranean an Norway for up to £2,000 per person.

The ship was used as a filming location for 2023 Channel 5 TV drama series, The Good Ship Murder, starring X Factor singer, Shayne Ward.

The victim’s next of kin have been informed and are being supported by specialist officers.

A statement from cruise company MSC said: ‘Following an incident on board our ship, the relevant authorities were contacted, and we are cooperating fully with their investigations. We are providing full support to those impacted and thoughts are with the family and friends at this difficult time.’

Emily Hughes