The Masked Singer fans are set to be treated to a fun-filled Christmas Special, with four new character belting out a range of festive hits in a bid to win over the judges.
The ITV show will return for a one-off episode on Christmas Day, with performances from Decorations, Reindeer, Sprout and Partridge (In A Pear Tree) leaving viewers guessing which stars are behind the masks.
Joel Dommett will return as host, with Davina McCall, Jonathan Ross, Mo Gilligan and Rita Ora back on the judging panel, joined by guest star Leona Lewis.
It will also come as a welcome tease for Masked Singer fans, as the main show is set to return with a brand new series on December 30.
Discussing the festive special, Joel admitted this year’s is more exciting since he became a dad for the first time, welcoming son Wilde with his wife Hannah Cooper in September.
The Masked Singer fans are set to be treated to a fun-filled Christmas Special, with four new characters belting out a range of festive hits for judges Mo Gilligan, Davina McCall, Leona Lewis, Rita Ora and Jonathan Ross
The ITV show will return for a one-off episode on Christmas Day, with performances from iconic characters including the legendary Sprout
Reindeer will be hoping to win over the judges with their singing skills, leaving viewers guessing about their identity
He said: ‘I think it’s certainly the best series, but I think definitely my best series just because of my child arriving. I feel like it’s all so joyous and fun.
‘I am viewing it all in an entirely different way. I think that’s what happens when you have children anyway and the fact that kids in the audience love it so much, I think it puts that entirely into a new context for me and I just love being a part of it.’
Earlier this year, The Masked Singer was awarded a BAFTA for Entertainment Programme, and Joel added that it’s ‘really important’ for the show to win such an honour.
He added: ‘I think that’s really important for any show. People always took us seriously, but now people really have to take us seriously.
‘We’re a BAFTA winning show. It’s just entertainment at its finest and, yes, it’s silly, but maybe that’s what entertainment should be. It’s just silly, ridiculous telly that we can all really enjoy.’
Davina went onto say: ‘It always swings hugely from being sublimely ridiculous to really stunning and magical.
‘There’s a million reasons why I believe it deserves a BAFTA, because if you haven’t watched it, you’d think, “Oh, that’s just a ridiculous show”, but it’s so much more than that.
‘There’s so many aspects. There’s the entertainment aspect. There’s the quiz aspect. There’s the bit where you can take part in it at home alongside everybody else. It’s massive online because everybody’s going, “No, I think it’s this person. No, actually this person.”
Joining Sprout and Reindeer on The Masked Singer stage will be Partridge (In A Pear Tree)
A festive staple, and a tangled headache for some, Decorations will round out the characters set to perform on Christmas Day
‘We’ve gone next level with the clues this year and they really are disguising their voices. Joel’s on the best form ever. His links are so funny.
‘It’s different from any other big shiny floor entertainment show because you are not voting somebody off, the audience chooses who are in the bottom two, and they choose who are in the bottom two generally out of a mixture of talent and fun.’
The Masked Singer’s festive special sees Rita reunited with the judges after taking a break from the main series due to her filming commitments on the US version.
She said: ‘It’s amazing to be back. I love being with everyone, we have so much fun together. It’s one of my favourite things to do, I love the panel, I love having this job and I love doing this show.
‘I’ve come back with better detective skills, I’d like to think. We’ll see how good they are but I am very grateful and happy to be back. These guys are like family.’
Mo said that follwoing The Masked Singer’s BAFTA win, the show has cemented itself as ‘up there with the Saturday night greats.’
He added: ‘The Masked Singer has its place amongst Saturday night TV with this award behind it, it’s just incredible. I meet people or friends of mine who have kids and they have so many questions for me, they love it, can’t get enough of it.
‘It’s nice that people ask me questions like, “Do you really not know who it is?” And I meet a lot of taxi drivers and they’re always asking me who people are. The way it’s captured the nation’s imagination is really cool.’
Jonathan went onto say: ‘We know the show is popular, because of course we know it gets big viewing figures, but I think maybe it just reflects the fact that people do love the big, silly spectacle of it all.
‘The format is such a strong, such a strange and a unique one and I think that’s what people are responding to. It’s fun, silly, doesn’t take itself seriously, it’s beautifully made and always looks spectacular.
‘There’s some really good reveals every week. So I think it won the award because people are responding to the fact that it’s a really different show and it’s really lovely. So much work goes into making it as good as possible.’
The Masked Singer: Christmas Special airs on Monday 25th December at 7.30pm on ITV1, ITVX and STV.
