Purses don’t often leave me starstruck. But when The Traitors star Maura Higgins pulled out her burgundy Hermès Birkin bag ahead of our sit-down, I was admittedly giddy. I blame that on the bag’s widely reported lore. It’s an approximately $22,000 apology gift from Maura’s former Traitors ally and fellow Love Island alum Rob Rausch, promised to her during the show’s reunion. Together, Maura and Rob supplied fans with a Hall of Fame–worthy reality TV scene when the 35-year-old Ireland native learned in the show’s final moments that she wouldn’t be splitting the show’s ~$220K prize with Rob because he, in fact, had been a traitor the whole time. She was blindsided—visibly disgusted, in fact. She called Rob a “piece of work” and questioned whether he’d ever find love after this televised weeks-long showcase of his ability to deceive.
But the betrayal—and Maura’s dramatic reaction to it—has probably earned her a spot in reality TV history. Throughout the course of The Traitors’ latest season, she proved herself to be one of those bespoke reality television characters you could never script. Because along with her impressive personal style and distinct Irish lilt (her pronunciation of “think” has been widely imitated), she’s got the endlessly quotable quality of the Snooki and Tiffany Pollard types who’ve preceded her—those who seem like their sole purpose on Earth is to be in front of a camera and provide one-liners for the rest of us to reference until the end of time.
Viewers who met Maura on Love Island UK back in 2019 were clued into this early. Her turn on season 5 of the hit dating show was marked with emotional confrontations and plenty of mentions of “fanny flutters.” But her introduction to American audiences via The Traitors has been both entertaining and somewhat controversial in its own respect. Love Island fans who met Maura as a bold Irish lass unafraid to hold men’s feet to the fire found the slightly less hotheaded version they saw on The Traitors unfamiliar. And other viewers totally new to Maura’s tale went so far as to brand her a pick-me, claiming she allowed Rob’s good looks and Southern charm to cloud her judgment as a game player.
According to Maura, both groups have things completely misread. “I am still a very fiery character. I haven’t changed, but I know when it’s a game,” she says about her time on The Traitors. “I’m so proud of myself for handling that with grace.” And on the pick-me front, she’s not looking to get picked by Rob, or any man at all, these days. She has been celibate for a year and is more focused on her career, maneuvering her full pivot into fashion and not allowing romantic relationships to define her, despite being introduced to the public via the world’s most popular reality TV dating show. “I’m not saying I’m not open [to a relationship],” she says, “but I’m not checking my DMs to see who’s in there.” We caught up with Maura, consolatory Birkin in tow, to dissect her latest reality TV run and get a sense of what her road ahead looks like.
What discrepancies have you noticed in Traitors fans’ reactions to you versus the Love Island community?
When I came out of Love Island, the reactions were [centered around] female empowerment. I was a very fiery character, and I’m still the exact same way today. But they’re two very different shows! On Love Island, we’re not in there as Traitors and Faithfuls. We’re just in there to find a connection. You don’t look at Love Island like a game.
Some people do.…
Some people do, but for me, I went in there to find a connection. That’s why when I had the massive explosion with Tom [editor’s note: If you’re not familiar, get familiar], it went everywhere and still comes up to this day. But The Traitors is a made-up game. It’s not that deep.
You can see at the end of The Traitors that I go through so many emotions, but by the end, I was just like, “Fair play.” I’ve seen people post clips from Love Island online, saying, “This is the Maura we wanted at the finale!” But like, they’re two separate shows! In my opinion, Rob played a fantastic game. His job was to deceive the Faithfuls, and that’s exactly what he did. But when I applaud him, people call me an idiot.
I know there have been people online calling you a pick-me for your loyalty to Rob on the show. How did you initially receive that reaction?
I was very confused about people online saying, “Why would you trust the man? You should always go with the girls.” Are they forgetting that there were more female Traitors than male? This isn’t about a man or a woman being a Traitor or Faithful. It’s about who you trust in that game. And I know why they called me a pick-me. If I were some shy character, they wouldn’t say that about me. It’s because I’m loud, I’m confident, and I’m a strong woman. Women get dragged through the media every single day about our fashion, our hair, our weight, and what we look like. They’ll do anything they can to tear women down, and I don’t care. I know who I am. Like, it’s a made-up game. I trusted someone; get over it.
Do you feel like any of your Irish-isms were misinterpreted by American audiences?
When I was on Love Island, there was a scene where I said,“Oh my god, I’m gonna get the shift tonight.” And online, that blew up. People were like, “What is she saying?” But the Irish loved it because there, we say “shift,” not “snog.” They went crazy over it. I was just being myself!
Similar to “tink”! How have people at home reacted to people making a thing out of your standard pronunciation?
Everyone’s spelling it T-I-N-K! Even I’m doing it now. My Irish fans, they’re all DMing and making videos. I have seen a few Irish people get defensive and say, “Really you shouldn’t be doing this.” But look, if I’m okay with people making fun of [my accent], then I tink it’s fine.
How has your run on Traitors distanced you from the Love Island universe?
Obviously, I’ll always love Love Island because that’s where it all started. I wouldn’t be where I am without it. But I think it’s nice to venture away from that. I’ve been classed as an “Islander” for the last seven years. You work so hard to try and get out of that box that you’re put in. It’s really difficult, and it takes a lot of work and perseverance. Now that I’m finally only just starting to distance myself, I’m like, Oh my god, it was all worth it.
Do you think that your Love Island beginnings are why people are so eager to ship you with people? Like with Rob on The Traitors?
Yeah, I feel like starting on Love Island is why everyone’s so invested in my love life and wants to know whether I’m single or dating.
What has being single in this moment taught you about yourself?
That I don’t want to bring just anyone into my energy. It wasn’t even a plan to be celibate. I didn’t put a timeline on it. I just had terrible exes and needed a break. I wanted to focus on me, my career, and my energy. Now that it’s been over a year, I don’t even think of men. I’m not saying I’m not open [to a relationship], but I’m not checking my DMs to see who’s in there. I’m not searching for it.
So no one should DM you.
Well, I wouldn’t say that!
Your history with dating started a little later in life. You didn’t go on your first date until you were 25, right?
I met my first boyfriend in school, and we were with each other nine years. I was engaged. And obviously, when you meet someone young, you don’t really go out for dinner. You kind of just, like, meet up and, like, sit in each other’s cars. Obviously, when we were in a relationship for a while, we’d go for dinners and stuff. But it’s different than when you just meet someone and you’re getting to know each other over a date.
I find that people have such disparate opinions on this, but do you recommend getting into a long-term relationship at a young age?
No. But in saying that [I realize] that some people meet in school and they’re married happily for X amount of years. You just don’t know.
What makes you personally anti?
I genuinely believe if I stayed with that partner, I would have never moved out of my hometown and did what I wanted to do with my life. As much as I cared for him, I knew I didn’t want to marry him or have kids with him. And I think that kind of cemented the decision for me.
At this stage, what qualities are you looking for in a partner?
My friends tell me that I need someone quieter than me. Some of my ex-partners didn’t like me overshadowing them—it was probably an ego thing. My friends keep saying that my next partner needs to let me shine and be who I am. When I was at [fellow Traitors contestant] Lisa Rinna’s house for an event, her husband, Harry Hamlin, gave a speech, and I sat there thinking, That’s exactly what I want. He spoke about her with so much respect, and he adores her. They’ve been with each other for 30-something years, and I just thought, Are men like this anymore? When I listened to Harry Hamlin, I genuinely thought, That’s the type of relationship I want. I want a man to let me be me and not try to dim my light.
Speaking of Lisa, you really grew close to her and obviously Rob: I’m curious if you picked up anything or observed anything about the way they navigate fame that you respect and want to embrace?
You look at Rob and he’s very like, whatever. He shrugs his shoulders. But it suits Rob, and he can get away with that. Imagine if that were me? The reason it works for Rob is because that’s him being authentic. And you know what? He’s actually really funny.
More than we see? Why do you think we see a different version?
When the cameras are on, he goes into himself. But he’s got a lot of humor, and he’s witty. And Lisa, she’s been in the industry for years. I’m sure I could learn a lot from Lisa. I call her my American mom now. Since coming out of The Traitors, she’s been really supportive of me. It’s so nice, because obviously I’m not American. I come from the middle of nowhere in Ireland, surrounded by sheep and cows. Now that I’m venturing into America, she’s like a security blanket. I look at her, and she’s literally me. She is so over the top and doesn’t give a shit what she says, and she loves her fashion. I just live for that.
Your looks on the show caused some buzz. Did you expect this to be such a launchpad for you as a fashion girl?
No! Everyone was telling me how big this show is and to take the fashion really serious. But if someone told me I was gonna win Best Dressed, I would have been like, “Don’t be so stupid.” I had a lot of fun with my stylist prepping all the looks. I love to play around with fashion and try different things.
That was my favorite part of The Traitors. I didn’t enjoy the bloody missions and the Round Table and everyone’s screaming and shouting. I didn’t care enough. My brain genuinely consisted of, Oh, god, I can’t get banished because I want to wear tomorrow’s outfit; it is a good one. I think [the other contestants] knew that I didn’t give a shit. So maybe people on the show need to care less to make it further. Rob also said that he kind of mimicked me, which I didn’t know until recently! He tried to mimic [my ignorance about the game], because he knew I was a Faithful and that no one suspected me. He knew that that’s all he needed to survive, along with me telling him everything and helping him win at the end. But it was very smart. I wouldn’t have thought of that.
What would you have spent your money on had you secured the win?
I probably would have put it toward my house renovations. I bought a house last year, the end of last year, and I still have no furniture in it because I’ve not been home.
I heard recently that some people don’t want to do The Traitors because they don’t want to have to do their own glam and styling, which you have to do if you’re on the show. What would you say to those people?
I don’t want people to think like that! Of course, it’s tiring. But think of me. I did Love Island. That was months, glam every single day. The Traitors was a small stint! And look, you might only be in there for two days, but it’s worth it. You just look like shit on the missions, and then you go back to looking like a little doll. It’s fun.
Styled by Jessica Neises.
