The final of The Masked Singer UK season 3 has come to an end, with Panda announced as the winner of the 2022 series.
After numerous mind-boggling clues and incredible musical performances, the victorious singer took off their mask to reveal singer Natalie Imbruglia underneath the costume, much to the amazement of judges Rita Ora, Mo Gilligan, Jonathan Ross and Davina McCall and host Joel Dommett.
The show began tonight with all 12 of the costumed singers, including the eliminated stars, returning to the stage to perform Lady Gaga’s Edge of Glory, much to the audience’s delight.
The reigning champion Joss Stone returned as a guest judge on the panel, having won series two as Sausage this time last year.
Following her win, Natalie, known for chart-topping hits including Torn and her role on Neighbours in the 1990s, singer explained that she decided to take part for her son.
‘He loves the character I chose. I also thought it would be fun to sing with a mask on, no need to spend hours in hair and make-up. I liked the idea of hiding my identity and putting on an accent to throw people off the scent. I guess it’s also an acting gig,’ she said.
Natalie said that she loved her mask because it had ‘such a friendly face’, admitting that she wished that she could take it home.
She admitted that it took her some time to ‘get used’ to the costume, recalling being ‘terrified’ for her first performances.
‘I thought the mask would make me feel more confident but it took a while to get used to. Your voice is booming back at you so that is strange at first. By the third performance I was loving it. You sweat a lot too so that made me feel better about eating all the treats in the dressing room,’ she said.
For their first performances of the night, Robobunny opened the show with Run by Leona Lewis, before Panda arrived on stage to sing Blank Space by Taylor Swift, followed by Mushroom singing Léo Delibes’ track Flower Duet.
Each of the finalists then took to the stage for surprise duets with former stars of the show, with Robobunny going first with a beautiful rendition of I Knew You Were Waiting (For Me) with the winner of series one Queen Bee, aka Girls Aloud star Nicola Roberts.
Next up was Panda dueting with Jason Manford as Hedgehog, with the pair belting out It Takes Two by Marvin Gaye and Kim Weston.
Mushroom then sang Rihanna’s We Found Love with Robin, as JLS star Aston Merrygold made a triumphant return.
After Robobunny’s elimination, when they were revealed to be none other than Westlife singer Mark Feehily, it was up to Panda and Mushroom to sing once more for their final chance to win.
Panda gave a rousing performance of One Direction’s Story Of My Life, surrounded by a floral display on stage.
Mushroom had the audience cheering with her incredibly powerful take on Demi Lovato’s song Stone Cold, as dancers performed around her.
Finally, the moment of truth arrived, as Joel announced that Panda had been crowned the winner, with Mushroom finishing as runner-up.
As Mushroom took off their mask, many people’s suspicions were confirmed as Charlotte Church emerged beaming from underneath the costume.
That marks the end to yet another great season of The Masked Singer UK!
From Michael Owen taking part to Will Young, Jaime Winstone and Michelle Williams, this year’s series has been a star-studded spectacle.
So which A-listers will sign up for next year? We have our detective monocles on already.
The Masked Singer is available to watch on ITV Hub.
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