Warning: This article contains speculation and possible spoilers for ITV’s The Masked Singer.
We’ve spent the last seven weeks of The Masked Singer second-guessing the stars behind the elaborate disguises, frantically Googling any clue that sticks out at us, and – shockingly – even shouting “take it off!” along with the studio audience at the end of each episode.
However, we’re sad to say that the first series of TV’s biggest celebrity singing contest (sorry, X Factor) is now almost over, with just three masked contestants left in the competition.
And as the final looms, we still haven’t quite pinned down all of the finalists’ identities, despite a few hunches.
So, as we get ready for the tripe reveal on Saturday night – not to mention finding out which of them has been voted the winner – here’s our ultimate round-up of the three contestants’ identities.
Queen Bee
We’re going to start with the most obvious one, because Queen Bee is very plainly Nicola Roberts (some viewers had worked out before the show even started, just from a short burst of her distinctive singing voice in the ITV advert).
Since then, we’ve only had our suspicions confirmed, as Queen Bee revealed she was really a former talent show winner, who has struggled with confidence issues and shyness in the past.
“But wait”, we hear you ask, “that doesn’t necessarily mean it’s Nicola Roberts, does it?”
Well, as time has gone on, Queen Bee has described herself as an activist and “law-maker” (Nicola previously campaigned to have the required age to use sunbeds raised), and in a later episode referred to having done “silly things to change her appearance”, another probable sunbed reference.
The regal insect also let slip that she’s a descendent of Marie Antoinette – as is Nicola – but still Can’t Speak French.
Really, do we need to spell this one out any further?
Hedgehog
So, Hedgehog we’re a little more unsure about, but a few comments he’s made over the course of the series have led us to believe he’s actually Jason Manford.
First off, Hedgehog has repeatedly hinted at being a comedian, and in addition to his stand-up career, Jason has more recently branched out into musical theatre and even recorded his own album.
Hedgehog also revealed early on that he once had a job that required him to die at 8:30pm every single night, a joke Jason previously made about his stint in a production of the musical Sweeney Todd.
And in the week when the contestants each performed a song that hinted at their true identity, Hedgehog chose an Oasis track, a potential reference to Jason’s own Mancunian background.
Hedgehog also ended one of his VTs with “let’s see what’s coming up on tonight’s show”, a line Jason uses in Sunday Night At The Palladium.
Other popular theories surrounding Hedgehog have involved musical theatre performer Michael Ball, namely because of the week we saw inside Hedgehog’s “house”, which was littered with bric-a-brac relating to shows Michael has either been in or covered songs from.
This included a Phantom Of The Opera mask, figurines of cats (though this could relate to Jason’s stint in 8 Out Of 10 Cats) and a can of hairspray (again, though, both Michael and Jason have appeared in Hairspray in the past).
Then there’s the matter of Hedgehog saying he wanted to “have a ball” on stage, which is either a very on-the-nose hint or a deliberate red herring.
We’ll have to wait and see…
Octopus
First of all, we have to hand it to The Masked Singer, because we are almost at the final, and we’re still not really sure who Octopus is.
So far, she’s hinted at some class of history with Jason Donovan, potential appearances in Emmerdale, The Apprentice and I’m A Celebrity, a modelling past and some class of deal worth a million pounds.
Then, of course, there’s her singing voice, which started off in a classic musical theatre, but has gradually developed into something more operatic as the weeks have rolled on.
Her operatic tones have led many fans to speculate that Octopus is actually Katherine Jenkins, and plenty of clues would appear to confirm this.
She’s done modelling, she hired her house out to appear on The Apprentice, she made a cameo as herself in Emmerdale and she’s confirmed her first crush was Jason Donovan.
Octopus also hinted at being able to speak foreign languages, which Katherine’s opera career has required her to perform in, too.
For some reason, though, we can’t shake the idea that Octopus is actually Myleene Klass.
Myleene, of course, famously appeared on I’m A Celebrity back in 2006, where her co-star was Jason Donovan. She previously signed a multi-million pound deal to model for M&S (Octopus did hint at being a model, too) and appeared briefly in The Apprentice.
And with Myleene being a former Royal Academy Of Music graduate, that would explain her operatic streak, too.
Fortunately, we don’t have too long to wait before we find out the true identity of all three contestants, with the final of The Masked Singer set to air on Saturday 15 Februaryon ITV.