What is The Masked Singer UK and how does it work?
3 January 2020, 15:42
The Masked Singer, dubbed as "TV's greatest guessing game", this crazy show started in South Korea and is as bonkers as it sounds!
The Masked Singer UK is a brand new singing competition which sees 12 famous faces perform to a judging panel each week in an attempt to win the show's coveted crown.
But there's one huge twist – the contestants are all in disguise hidden behind masks.
In what has been dubbed "TV's greatest guessing game", a string of celebs perform on stage while the audience, host and judges including Davina McCall and Jonathan Ross try to guess who really lies beneath the crazy costumes.
From the bizarre format to the UK trailer, here's everything you need to know about the show.
What is The Masked Singer?
The Masked Singer is a weird and wacky entertainment show that originally hails from South Korea.
The talent competition, which made its way to America in 2019 and has now launched in the UK, sees 12 celebrities compete against each other to impress a glittering judging panel, but with one amazing twist – the famous cast all perform in disguise.
Taking to the stage to sing in crazy full-body costumes and outer-worldly masks, from monsters, rabbits, lions, peacocks, and even life-size pineapples, the totally bonkers telly format has been described as a cross between X Factor: Celebrity, The Voice and Black Mirror.
It has previously attracted an A-list cast in the States, with Donny Osmond, Seal, Kelly Osbourne, T-Pain, and even Destiny's Child star Michelle Williams taking part, so it's no surprise the UK version also has a string of VIPs singing for the trophy.
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How does The Masked Singer work?
The kooky talent show pits anonymous celebrities, from sports stars to Grammy winners, against each other week-by-week in a series of 'face-offs'.
Before each contestant takes to the stage, a teaser clip reveals clues about their identity – but their true voices are masked.
The famous face then performs in their own voice and the judging panel attempts to guess who's inside the elaborate disguise.
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Which celebrities are taking part in The Masked Singer?
The contestants themselves are top secret for now, but the show does feature a celebrity judging panel.
Singer Rita Ora, telly legend Jonathan Ross, presenter Davina McCall, and Hollywood actor Ken Jeong (who already stars in the US version) are acting as detectives in the first ever UK series of the show.
Rita said: "I'm so excited to be part of this incredible panel, bring it on! I'm a huge fan of The Masked Singer, it's such a fresh and original show."
It's also presented by British comedian and former I'm A Celebrity contestant Joel Dommett.
He said: "I’m incredibly excited and proud to be hosting The Masked Singer for ITV. I’ve been a huge fan of the show in the US and being a part of it here is a dream come true!
"The panel is brilliant and it’s an incredible idea. In all seriousness this is my best chance to become friends with Jonathan Ross and I’m not going to mess it up."
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What are the costumes in The Masked Singer?
One of the best parts of the show is the elaborate costumes. This series, celebs are hiding inside the following outfits:
Butterfly
Chameleon
Duck
Daisy
Fox
Hedgehog
Monster
Octopus
Pharaoh
Queen Bee
Tree
Unicorn
The Masked Singer | Starts This January on ITV
When is The Masked Singer on TV?
The Masked Singer launched on ITV with a double-bill during the first weekend of 2020, with six of the 12 contestants performing on Saturday 4th January from 7pm and the remaining six performing Sunday 5th January.
