Why do humans cry? The question confounded no greater mind than Charles Darwin’s.

The evolutionary biologist believed “the secretion of tears serves as a relief to suffering” but in a superficial way that was no more effective than “the uttering of piercing shrieks”. Weeping was “incidental” and “purposeless”, Darwin wrote in 1872. Suggesting teariness was culturally-conditioned rather than innate, he said: “Englishmen rarely cry, except under the pressure of the acutest grief.”

Were Darwin around today he’d make a poor contestant for The Celebrity Traitors, which starts on BBC this week.

Followers of the Traitors franchise will know crying is far from “purposeless”. It has saved many a contestant from being banished from the show – drawing game-saving sympathy from competitors – while entrants who never weep can have suspicion cast on them for failing to display emotion.

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Civil servant Ian Kelly from the recent RTÉ series The Traitors Ireland experienced exactly this prejudice. His refusal to shed a tear as fellow Faithfuls were murdered was seen as a damning indictment........

© The Irish Times