The Traitors: Dramatic funeral scene 'better than an envelope'

For days, the nation held its breath after seeing a retired teacher bring a glass of sparkling rosé to her lips.

That cliffhanger finale of last Friday's The Traitors left viewers guessing as to the fate of Diane Carson, 63.

But what those who were watching did know, and Diane didn't, was that the glass of fizz was toxic.

And the most recent edition confirmed the question we'd all been asking: "Did she actually drink it?"

Diane, whose ginger bob and suspicious expressions caused an online sensation, caught up with BBC Newsbeat after her murder and funeral was aired on Wednesday.

"I never learned my lesson about fizzy rosé," she says.

"I continue to get hangovers but this has got to be the worst hangover in history."

The Traitors, hosted by Claudia Winkleman, sees 22 strangers gather in a Scottish castle for the chance to win up to £120,000.

A handful of contestants must pick off their fellow players, the faithful, with nightly "murders" while remaining undetected if they want to snatch the prize fund.

Since the first episode, Diane, from Northern Ireland, has been a firm fan favourite with her no-nonsense vibes and says she's been blown away by the online reaction and countless memes about her.

"I'm just completely bemused," she says.

"My family filled me in and my daughter's helping with this Instagram account. Before we set it up I think I had 10 followers, apparently now I have over 7,000.

"All the memes are probably horrendous, but very, very funny and very flattering."

In episode six, traitors Paul, Harry and Miles were tasked with murdering in plain sight by giving a poisoned chalice - the rosé - to their chosen victim.

They settled on Diane, who lives in Lancashire, but to their surprise she was still there at breakfast the following day after gladly accepting the fateful glass of fizz from Miles.

It wasn't until a morbid funeral procession later in the show where potential victims Diane, Paul and Evie had to get into coffins that her fate was confirmed.

"I loved the drama, I loved the ceremony, the pomp - I thought it was fabulous," says Diane.

"I definitely thought it was better than receiving an envelope on a chair.

"I still wasn't absolutely sure it was the rosé that did it for me but I thought it was fabulous way to go."

Luckily Diane says she's not claustrophobic, "so laying in the coffin was actually OK".

The most difficult part of Diane's exit was saying goodbye to her "secret" son, fellow player Ross.

Diane revealed their relationship to viewers in the third episode but they managed to keep it from the rest of the contestants.

"Within five minutes I was getting on to the train [to the castle] I thought we were blown because Ross got the story wrong," Diane reveals.

"I was like, oh my god, we're never going to survive this.

"But once Zack thought Paul was my son, it deflected everything and I knew we were safe."

With the final due to air next week, Diane says she's hoping for chaos.

"I definitely hope it's going to come crashing down on the traitors and I hope Ross is going to lead that campaign," she says.

Watch new episodes of The Traitors on BBC One and BBC iPlayer from 9pm on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday nights.

Listen to Newsbeat live at 12:45 and 17:45 weekdays - or listen back here.