The Masked Singer's behind-the-scenes secrets revealed

Turns out, there were way more celebrity clues than you could've imagined hidden throughout this season of The Masked Singer. 

It's been a season unlike any other - and as we await next week's grand finale, a candid special brings us behind the scenes of TV's craziest show.

 The Masked Singer: Unmasked, which aired on Ten tonight, gave fans of the show a chance to play catch-up on all the rapid fire clues that have been lobbed at us this season. 

Plus, we got a handful of brand new clues relating to this year's top three - Queen, Frillneck and Bushranger - for the six or so viewers remaining who haven't yet figured out who they are (it's Kate Miller-Heidke, Eddie Perfect and Bonnie Anderson, for those playing at home). 

We liveblogged all the clues and behind-the-curtain tidbits below, as we await next week's grand finale. 

Updates

8:39 pm September 8, 2020

Final clues for your top three

Finally tonight we get some brand new clues for the top three contestants…

The Queen says she is "not afraid of death." "Showbiz is tough, fame is fleeting. You could say it's 'hair' today, gone tomorrow. Or maybe not. Do I like talk shows? Yes. And no. One revealed my deepest, darkest secret."

Hmm… talk shows… Kate Miller-Heidke did open up about her life in an episode of Australian Story, didn't she?

The Frillneck: "My interests are unusual. I'm a huge fan of the eighth wonder of the world, and 1930s skyscrapers. I love to create new things. I want them to be without error. My performances on The Masked Singer have been faultless."

That reference to the eighth wonder of the world and 1930s skyscrapers relates to King Kong – Eddie Perfect wrote the songs for the stage musical.

The Bushranger: "In The Masked Singer, I rose to every challenge. I've stood tall and stood my ground. Dressed for the fight. Although I do prefer the leather look. My decision wasn't based on being a minor. But it did create quite the buzz."

8:20 pm September 8, 2020

Kitten and Puppet's clues explained

A crustacean poster in the Kitten's intro package symbolised Julia Morris' character on House Husbands, Gemma Crabb. Another shot showing black bars over the Kitten's private parts was a reference to her big break in the 90s sketch comedy show Big Brother. And this line from kitten – "Holy moly, it's getting hot!" – referenced her support for a melanoma charity.

And then there was last night's unmasked contestant, Red Wiggle Simon Bryce. When the puppet said "I love to entertain!" – it's because he studied drama at uni and has been working ever since.

Another puppet quote – "Do what I say…not what I do" – is a reference to the children's game Simon Says. Flowers and a carousel reference Simon's Luna Park marriage, while exercise classes reference "how fit you have to be to be one of the Wiggles."

8:15 pm September 8, 2020

Big Wizard and Cactus clues

Did you see the scene with 12 wizards? That's because the Wizard, Isaiah Firebrace, has 11 siblings. A toy bus represented Isaiah travelling for six hours every Saturday to attend singing lessons. And the azaleas represented Iggy Azalea, a judge on X Factor when Wizard won.

Odd references to Bill and Andy Murray actually showed Wizard grew up on the Murray River.

On to Lucy Durack as the Cactus: A tiara told us that Cactus came from local royalty, and the Duracks were a pioneer family of Western Australia (seems like a reach, that one).

A bullfighter's red rag represents the opera Carmen, which was Lucy's first professional performance at the age of 11. Then there's this scene:

Cactus is in the kitchen because Lucy's a very keen cook, and the crossed-out woman on the apron hints at the song Not That Girl, which she sang in the musical Wicked. Osher's favourite clue is the toy horsein Cactus' hand: Lucy's husband is choreographer Chris Horsey.

8:09 pm September 8, 2020

Sophie Monk's clues revealed

Apparently the numbers in Sophie's intro package showed that she's "not a triple or quadruple threat, she's a singer, actor, dancer, presenter and model – that makes her a quintuple threat." (That's not a thing, but OK). And how does Dragonfly make the world a 'kinder place'?

Because she's a vegetarian who advocates for animal rights.

The Titanic clues were obvious – Sophie's Popstars audition song was My Heart Will Go On.

The car washing was an obvious homage to Sophie's scene-stealing role in the film Date Movie. But why the taps hanging in the car? Because "Dragonfly was a tap dancer as a child."

8:06 pm September 8, 2020

More clues revealed

Katie Noonan's intro package as the Sloth contained yet more cryptic clues. Apparently her bowling alley setting showed she "can't keep to just one lane. She's had a successful career in opera, pop and jazz singing."

And this shot?

Osher explains: "The three silver chairs? Katie's aunt was a high school music teacher who taught Daniel Johns of Silverchair. The newspaper headline? Sloth's great-aunt was actually a topless dancer back in the day. As a child, Sloth wanted to be a nun, but now she describes herself as a soccer mum."

7:57 pm September 8, 2020

Cryptic clues we all missed

Osher takes us through some of the blink-and-you'll-miss-it clues from previous weeks that probably went over a lot of people's heads.

Starting with the clues for the Echidna, revealed as Mark Philippoussis. This one shot from his intro package held a plethora of clues:

"The turntable was a huge clue. The five records represented the Olympic rings, Mark was a triple Olympian, and the numbers were important too. He started tennis at age 6. 8 was his highest ATP ranking. Mark won 11 titles, he served 46 aces in one Wimbledon match, 229km/h was Echidna's fastest-ever serve. Heaps of clues in one shot," Osher revealed.

Next to be eliminated was cricketer Michael Bevan. A couple of his clues explained: "Not being on my own" – cricketers always bat in pairs.

And the statement "My skills let me travel anywhere English is spoken"? That refers to the old British Empire, where English is spoken and cricket is played.

Christine Anu as the Goldfish left third – Osher explains the cryptic clues in her intro package, including a Playstation book (Anu voiced a Playstation game) and a wheelchair with a rainbow flag (she played a gay woman who uses a wheelchair in the ABC TV show Outland). "And finally, the university degree – well, that's easy. The letters of a fictitious university spell A-N-U – Christine's surname!"

Sure – also, she sounded exactly like Christine Anu.

7:37 pm September 8, 2020

How the grand finale's being filmed

How do you finish filming a show in the middle of a pandemic – when you've already been hit by an on-set coronavirus outbreak? The Herald Sun reports the finale was filmed today in Melbourne's Docklands, with New Zealand-based judge Urzila Carlson back at home and set to appear via videolink.

7:30 pm September 8, 2020

A very creepy Wiggle

Red Wiggle Simon Pryce appeared on The Project tonight after being eliminated from the competition in yesterday's episode, and acknowledged what we've all been saying about his Puppet disguise: It's really, really creepy.

"I think everyone else seemed to have nightmares from the costume. I was a bit surprised by that. I had no idea the fear people have of puppets. On the first night when Dannii Minogue was totally freaked out, I thought, 'This isn't going to last long,'" he said.