Yahoo News The Masked Singer judge Mo Gilligan reveals how TV bosses keep celebs top secret
Who are the stars behind the mask on The Masked Singer?
What did you miss?
The Masked Singer judge Mo Gilligan has revealed the secrets behind the reality show ahead of the upcoming series which is set to air on Saturday, 30 December.
In a pre-recorded interview segment on This Morning which aired on Wednesday, the TV host joined Rylan and Emma Willis on the sofa to discuss The Masked Singer. This series of The Masked Singer sees a whole new cast of big characters from Air Fryer to Eiffel Tower and Owl. But Gilligan, 35, insisted he has no idea who is behind the masks - and everyone else on set is in the same position.
What, how and why?
"I get the same feeling the people at home get - you don't know who is going to be on and who is going to be singing and at the end of the show, you get a reveal," he said. "We don't know who it is. People still think we know who it is. I get taxi drivers, friends, family, who say you know who it is. I still don't know who is behind the mask."
The TV judge revealed how The Masked Singer TV bosses keep the celebrities a complete secret on set. Gilligan joins Davina McCall, Rita Ora and Jonathan Ross on the judging panel while Joel Dommett hosts the show. Lorraine Kelly will star as a guest judge on The Masked Singer this series - as well as Sir Lenny Henry, Rob Brydon and Ellie Goulding.
"It is so so secretive. We go in at different ends of the building," he explained. "I think that's what people love about the show. People play at home, they get their notebooks. It's a fun show!" Not knowing all adds to the drama of the show, Gilligan said. "That's the craziest thing of the show, you never know who it is going to be," he explained. "It could be someone you know or it could just be a legend you never thought you would get to meet."
The judges do sometimes get told something in advance, such as the theme of the week. Gilligan said: "Sometimes we get told it’ll be told it is festival week or back to school week. We get dressed up in back to school gear or festival stuff."
However, he insisted the judges are kept in the dark about what songs are going to be performed and they are looking out for clues just like everyone at home. He added: "We don't know what they’re going to perform. You see the costumes, the dancers come out. We’re trying to get any clue we can get." He added: "It could be someone we’ve met briefly, so you think is it someone I've met before? Sometimes you get to meet someone you want to meet. It's tough. We’re so competitive we don't show it much."
What else happened on This Morning?
And no star is out of reach for the show as Gilligan teased there really could be a Hollywood star behind the mask. "Sometimes the clues do match to a Tom Cruise," he said. "There are times when you think he’s promoting his new film, who is to say, he might be a brussels sprout… We don't know."
The comedian revealed his genuine shock when Neo was revealed as Badger on his first series on the judging panel. He said: "I remember when I first joined the show and we were guessing someone and then it got revealed it was Neo. I couldn't believe it. He was Badger... Neo walked past me. We locked eyes! Him being a badger." Previous The Masked Singer winners include Queen Bee (Nicola Roberts), Sausage (Joss Stone), Panda (Natalie Imbruglia) and Rhino (Charlie Simpson).
The Masked Singer returns for a new series to ITV1 at 7pm on 30 December.
