Two contestants narrowly miss out on place in The Masked Singer final
Rapper Example and EastEnders star Natalie Cassidy have missed out on a place in The Masked Singer final after being eliminated from the ITV reality show.
The musician and producer, real name Elliot Gleave, was unveiled as the celebrity behind the Bear mask when he was voted out after the five remaining contestants performed during Saturday's semi-final.
After the masked famous faces sang for a second time, actress Cassidy was eliminated from the show and unmasked as Bush.
Example delivered a soulful performance of She by Elvis Costello during the show, with Love Island host Maya Jama correctly guessing it was the musician and record producer.
Fellow panellist broadcaster Jonathan Ross thought it could be documentary maker Louis Theroux, presenter Davina McCall opted for comedian Romesh Ranganathan and guest panellist Richard E Grant chose Shakespeare In Love actor Joseph Fiennes.
After being unmasked, Example said he knew he had to 'do something different every week' as his usual singing voice was too distinctive.
He added that the experience had been 'great' and explained that some of his clues had been obscure as he has 'done so many weird, random things over a 20-year career'.
During the show, Cassidy gave a joyful rendition of Abba classic Thank You For The Music for her first performance and sang Stay (I Missed You) by Lisa Loeb for her second.
Grant thought it could be Harry Potter star Miriam Margolyes behind the mask and Jama went down the actress route as well with EastEnders' Maisie Smith, which Ross agreed to before opting for Coronation Street star Angela Griffin, while McCall went for comic Morgana Robinson.
Following her reveal, the actress said: 'It's been one of the best jobs I've ever done.'
Cassidy, best known for her long-running role as Sonia Fowler in BBC soap EastEnders, added: 'I think my little one will love it. My little Alfie, my great nephew, loves the show, so he's going to be thrilled.
'And I think my 14-year-old is going to go either way. She's either going to say 'Mum I'm really proud of you' or 'This is the most embarrassing thing'.'
The semi-final kicked off on Saturday by Wolf releasing their inner rocker with a rendition of Rebel Yell by Billy Idol.
Jama guessed it could be Blue singer Lee Ryan behind the mask due to singing and acting references, while Ross thought it could be US star Adam Lambert and Grant opted for singer Billy Idol himself.
They later performed a stripped back version of Don't Dream It's Over by Crowded House, with Ross thinking the experience could mean it was singer Sir Cliff Richard.
🎭 ✨ SEMI-FINAL TIME! 🚨 Tonight at 7pm on @itv & @itvxofficial!!! pic.twitter.com/wZrNoZihPd
— #MaskedSingerUK (@MaskedSingerUK) February 8, 2025
Dressed Crab showed off their powerful vocals as they took on Suddenly by Billy Ocean for their first song, with their second being a lively version of Hit The Road Jack by Ray Charles, which made Ross consider it could be US star John Legend.
Meanwhile, McCall and Jama were both convinced it was either US actor and singer Billy Porter or Grammy winner Gregory Porter.
Pufferfish delivered a gentle rendition of Billie Eilish's What Was I Made For? with Jama describing them as having the 'voice of an angel' and leading her to guess it could be Pussycat Dolls star Nicole Scherzinger.
The contestant showed off their vocal range further in their second song by performing One Night Only by Jennifer Hudson.
Ross thought US actress Lea Michele could be behind the powerful vocals, while Grant opted for Bridget Jones's Diary star Renee Zellweger and McCall went with actress Samantha Barks, who starred as Elsa in the West End production of Frozen.
Last week two contestants were eliminated in a double unmasking ahead of the semi-final, with Kingfisher revealed as Sir Grayson Perry while singer Andrea Corr of The Corrs was unveiled as Snail.
Dressed Crab, Pufferfish and Wolf will compete in the grand finale next week.
The Masked Singer, hosted by Joel Dommett, continues on Saturdays on ITV1, ITVX, STV and STV Player.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Forbes
44 minutes ago
- Forbes
‘Love Island UK' Release Schedule—When Do New Episodes Come Out On Hulu?
Love Island UK Courtesy of ITV Another dramatic season of Love Island UK has arrived in the U.S. following its premiere on Thursday, June 12. Wondering when new episodes will drop on the streaming platform? The release schedule can be a bit confusing due to the slight U.S. delay, but don't worry – we've laid it out clearly for you below. Host Maya Jama is back to host the O.G. reality dating show in the popular Love Island franchise, and she'll be joined by narrator Iain Stirling (who is also narrating Love Island USA this summer). In honor of 10 years of Love Island UK, a new group of singles is heading to a luxurious villa in Mallorca, Spain, to live together and, ultimately, find a partner. Over eight weeks, the couples pair up and must re-couple throughout the series to avoid elimination. At any given moment, new 'bombshells' can enter the villa to shake up existing relationships. Oh, and the public also has a say on who stays and goes – and which couple will split the hefty £50,000 cash prize. On June 3, the main cast of Season 12 was confirmed by UK's ITV. Contestants competing include Sophie Lee, Megan 'Meg' Moore, Dejon Noel-Williams, Tommy Bradley, Alima Gagigo, Ben Holbrough, Helena Ford, Megan Forte Clarke, Blu Chegini, Shakira Khan, and Harry Cooksley. The first bombshell, who will be introduced in the premiere episode, is America's very own Toni Laites, a cabana server from Connecticut. If you've watched the premiere episode of Season 12 and want more Love Island UK, you're in for a treat! As fans know, the show airs almost every day for about two months. Here's how to not miss an episode. Maya Jama Love Island UK Series 12 Courtesy of ITV In the UK, Love Island UK airs every night except Saturday, meaning new episodes drop on Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday. In the U.S., new episodes of Love Island UK are released on Hulu Wednesday through Monday, with no new episode on Tuesday due to the UK's Saturday night off. The official aftershow, Love Island: Aftersun, airs after each Sunday night episode in the UK (which arrives on Hulu Wednesdays in the U.S.). Check out the full Love Island UK Season 12 release schedule below. Love Island UK is filmed almost in real time, with a one-to-two-day delay between filming and airing in the UK. So, if you add the three-day delay for U.S. viewers watching on Hulu, it ends up being more like a four- to five-day delay. (Here's how to watch the show live if you're in the U.S. and don't want to wait.) To watch Love Island UK in the U.S., you'll need to sign up for a Hulu subscription. The basic subscription plan (with ads) starts at $9.99 per month (or $99.99 per year), while the plan without ads is $18.99/month. The platform also offers student discounts and free trials for new and eligible returning subscribers; however, the duration of the trial depends on the plan you choose. Visit Hulu's website to explore all available options to see if you're able to stream Love Island UK for free.
Miami Herald
4 hours ago
- Miami Herald
Simon Cowell admits he's ‘very worried' about giving his son this as he gets older
During an interview with ITV's This Morning, 'America's Got Talent' judge Simon Cowell opened up about being a parent to a now 11-year-old son. Cowell and his partner Lauren Silverman share son, Eric Cowell. And as his son continues to get older, Cowell admitted that he's getting more and more nervous about an upcoming milestone, giving Eric his first cell phone. For Cowell, getting Eric a phone means giving his son 'access to anything,' according to People. 'I'm very worried, Jeff, about how much kids can see at a certain age,' Cowell told Jeff Brazier with ITV, a British broadcast television network. 'I grew up ... learning things at the right time, the right age, etcetera, etcetera. I just would be petrified of him having access to anything that would really worry me.' In addition to worrying about giving Eric too much information too soon, Cowell opened up about one of the lessons his mom bestowed upon him that he will also bestow upon Eric. 'My mom used to say, manners make the man, and my dad was very good about respecting other people, and I'm trying to do the same thing with him,' Cowell continued. 'Don't make it overcomplicated, you know? Find your path, be happy, [and] be respectful to other people.' Cowell has often discussed his love of being a dad to Eric. He told Brazier that fatherhood is 'the best thing to ever happen' to him 'out of everything I've ever done in my life.' 'The very first time I saw his scan, I was literally obsessed,' Cowell recalled. 'When he was a baby, because they don't really do anything, I'm like, 'Well why doesn't he like me?' and Lauren was going, 'He's a baby' and I didn't understand that. Then, at about a year and a half, we started to communicate, that was magic.' But despite saying Eric is the reason for his 'softer' side, that doesn't mean Eric will get a free pass from his father's infamous judgment for talent. 'If Eric said to me, 'I want to be a singer' and he couldn't sing, I would be absolutely honest with him,' Cowell admitted, according to the Daily Star. 'If he couldn't, I would say, 'You know what, be a drummer'.' However, Cowell is confident he won't have to have that conversation because at just 11 years old, Eric is already proving he has musical talent. 'Eric actually can play the drums well but he's quite shy. I walk and I hear him, and he stops. I say, 'Why are you stopping?' and he says, 'Well, I'm a bit embarrassed' and I say, 'Well don't be, you're really good.''
Los Angeles Times
8 hours ago
- Los Angeles Times
Harvey Weinstein gets mistrial for rape charge after jury foreperson says he felt bullied
The criminal court judge overseeing Harvey Weinstein's sexual assault retrial in New York declared a mistrial on Thursday over the movie mogul's remaining rape charge after the jury foreperson expressed concerns over ongoing deliberations. Deliberations ended Thursday — in an anticlimactic conclusion to the weeks-long retrial — a day after a majority-female jury convicted Weinstein of one 2006 sexual assault but acquitted him on another from the same year. On Wednesday, the Oscar-winning 'Shakespeare in Love' producer, 73, was found guilty of forcing oral sex on former Weinstein Co. production assistant Mimi Haley and acquitted of the same regarding former model Kaja Sokola. At the time, the jury was hung on a third charge of Weinstein raping once-aspiring actor Jessica Mann in 2013. Weinstein was retried five years after he was convicted in February 2020 of rape and a felony sex crime connected to individual allegations from accusers Mann and Haley, respectively. He was acquitted at the time on two charges of predatory sexual assault. A month later, he was sentenced to 23 years in prison. After handing down the partial verdict on Wednesday, the majority-female jury was set to continue deliberations Thursday on the the rape charge. Judge Curtis Farber on Wednesday informed the jury foreperson, who complained earlier this week that he felt bullied, that he won't have to go into the jury room if he doesn't want to. The foreperson told prosecutors, defense lawyers and Farber in a closed-door discussion on Wednesday that another juror yelled at him for standing by his opinion and at one point vowed, 'You going to see me outside.' The foreperson told the judge and attorneys, 'I feel afraid inside there,' according to a transcript. He added Thursday that he would not return to the jury room. 'No, I'm sorry,' he responded when asked. Farber declared a mistrial weeks after rejecting a Weinstein attorney's request for a mistrial stemming from courtroom tensions with Mann. The hairstylist, who testified that she met Weinstein in the 2010s after moving to Los Angeles, is willing to go to trial a third time, Manhattan prosecutor Nicole Blumberg said Thursday. A new trial date has yet to be revealed. Weinstein's retrial began April 23 and featured emotional testimony from Haley and Mann, who returned to the stand, plus Sokola, who did not testify against the mogul in the 2020 trial. The disgraced Hollywood boss was tried on the allegations that led to his original rape and felony sex act conviction, plus a new sexual assault charge stemming from Sokola's allegation that he forced oral sex on her in 2006 when she was 19. Weinstein pleaded not guilty and his defense maintained the alleged sexual encounters were consensual. The Associated Press contributed to this report.
