Masked Singer runner-up leaves judges stunned
The surprise winner of The Masked Singer has been revealed, but there was plenty of controversy when the runner-up gave a showstopping performance. Warning: Spoilers
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Neighbours star Bonnie Anderson has taken home the winner’s crown at the grand finale of The Masked Singer.
Anderson sung her way to victory with a final dynamo performance of David Guetta’s club anthem When Love Takes Over.
Singer Kate Miller-Heidke’s Queen came second – but stunned judges with an electrifying final performance of Gloria Gaynor’s I Will Survive.
Shocked fans took to Twitter to praise the star for her regal performance, with many saying she had been robbed of the winner’s title.
Eddie Perfect’s Frillneck came in third after being booted out.
When asked by judge Jackie O whether she would focus on singing in the future Anderson said her win had “sparked a fire”.
“I haven’t really been singing, Neighbours has taken a lot of my time. This has sparked a fire in me, and it’s nice to know I can do this. I can’t believe I’ve won this thing, it has blown my mind!”
In the days leading up to the big night, judge Dave Hughes shared some of the secrets behind the show that runs on secrets.
THOSE WILD GUESSES
Does anyone really believe that Adele, Kylie Minogue, Taylor Swift, Will Smith, Nicole Kidman, Hugh Jackman, Kim Kardashian, John Travolta or Desmond Tutu need to be in Melbourne filming the Masked Singer? The wildest guesses came from Dave Hughes and Urzila Carlson, both amusing and infuriating viewers.
“We all laugh at some of the choices,” Hughes says. “It’s just throwing names out there. Maybe Adele is in the grand final! It’s a bit of pantomime. In the first episode I’m not pretending, I have no f----ng idea who anyone is basically. Because of COVID we had to film while the show is actually on air. Last year was easier, we filmed it all in advance. Gorgi Coghlan was a complete and utter shock last year when she took her mask off. Now with the internet you’re seeing all these people guessing in real time doing your job for you.”
TWITTER TROLLS
The Masked Singer sees people on Twitter either joining in the guessing and sharing clues or those who are hate-watching and hate tweeting.
“That doesn’t bother me,” Hughes says. “It’s a kids’ show, it’s fun. It’s one of the shows my children are happy to watch. You can get mad at it if you want to. Who doesn’t want to see a cactus sing Total Eclipse of the Heart? I don’t care if people say I’m the worst dancer in the world, they’re still watching. I’ve become more tolerant of that kind of thing over the years.”
FILMING IN COVID
The grand final was shut down after a COVID-19 outbreak. Hosts and crew had to spend 14 days in quarantine before tackling the last episode again.
“True story, when we were about to do the grand final I literally said ‘OK we’re so lucky to be filming in Stage 4, we’ve made it to the grand final, lock the door, nothing is going to stop us now’,” Hughes says. “And they literally stopped us. It’s a shame we got shut down. But the COVID-safe environment they used probably saved us all from getting the virus in the end. People are mad at the AFL footballers getting to go to Queensland. People were mad we got to film, too. But I’m all for people being able to work, especially in Victoria. The crew were so happy to have a job. And it meant they got to leave the house. The show has given people a lot of joy. We got through it because of the madness of the show, having stuffed animals as the only audience, it probably adds to the oddness of the whole experience.”
THE GASLIGHTING
Celebrities are cleverly covering their tracks with fake Instagram posts to put people off the scent. Sophie Monk and Julia Morris even fooled their friends on the judging panel with barefaced lies.
“Urzila (Carlson) was telling me Julia Morris has a really bad back, she couldn’t possibly be doing this,” Hughes says. “I did think she might be catfishing us. And she was. We really appreciate the people under the masks keeping the secret, it’s fun when people don’t know who they are.”
KEEPING SECRETS
A costume designer blabbed on Sydney radio, outing Julia Morris before her unveiling had actually screened. “It’s tricky, but I’m pretty good at batting off the names people throw at me,” Hughes says. “You just have to focus on what episodes have gone to air. We’ve all been in lockdown and going stir-crazy so keeping that focus can be tricky. I’ve been lucky to do a radio show from my front room, that’s helped keep me sane.”
LINDSAY LOHAN’S
ANTI-SOCIAL MEDIA
Stuck overseas and unable to join the panel for series two, Lindsay Lohan unfollowed her Masked Singer castmates on social media. “Jackie (O) came to me and said ‘Lindsay has unfollowed me and Dannii (Minogue) but she hasn’t unfollowed you’,” Hughes says. “I thought ‘Great’. Then she eventually unfollowed me as well. I did ask her on WhatsApp if she can re-follow me on Insta. I could see that she’d read the WhatsApp message but she still hasn’t followed me again! But I know what it’s like if you’re on a TV show and then you’re not for whatever reason and you see people on that show you were on having fun. You don’t want to see that, it’s annoying. So I absolutely understand. If I get stuck in another country and can’t do the next season of The Masked Singer I’ll probably unfollow Jackie and Dannii and Urzila as well.”
The Masked Singer grand final, 7.30pm Monday, Channel 10. Hughesy & Ed, weekdays from 5pm on the Hit Network.
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Originally published as Masked Singer runner-up leaves judges stunned