James Blunt was a British Army captain before becoming a singer and joining Celebrity Traitors

James Blunt is swapping his guitar for the castle this week as he joins the cast of Celebrity Traitors, but his life before becoming a chart-topping singer was very different. Long before he was releasing emotional pop songs and making jokes about his own music online, Blunt was serving in the British Army.

Via BBC

The singer served for six years between 1996 and 2002, joining the Life Guards, a cavalry regiment within the Household Cavalry. He trained at the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst before rising to the rank of captain.

His military career also took him to Kosovo in 1999 as part of NATO’s peacekeeping mission. Blunt was involved in the advance towards Pristina International Airport, where his unit was part of the NATO force moving in from the North Macedonia border.

It was a pretty far cry from the life of a musician, although he apparently still managed to bring a little bit of music with him. During his time in Kosovo, Blunt famously had his guitar strapped to the outside of his tank and would perform for troops and locals. He also wrote one of his best-known songs, No Bravery, while serving there.

 

 

 

 

 

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Blunt had been thinking about music while he was still in the Army, but it wasn’t until after leaving the military that he fully pursued it as a career. He officially left the Army in 2002 after six years of service and went on to become one of the UK’s best-known singer-songwriters. He has since sold more than 20 million records worldwide.

The Army connection also runs in Blunt’s family, with his father Charles Blount having served as a colonel in the Army Air Corps.

Blunt has since become a pub owner. He has owned The Fox & Pheasant in Chelsea since 2017, and in July 2026 he acquired The Carpenter’s Arms in Hammersmith, bringing his number of London pubs to two.

Now he’ll be putting those military instincts to a rather different test as he enters the castle for Celebrity Traitors.

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Featured image credit: BBC