The Masked Singer: All the clues, rumours and guesses so far

Get out your magnifying glasses and dust off that notebook, because The Masked Singer is back to turn a nation of viewers into sofa detectives.

Helmed once again by comedian Joel Dommett, the unique competition shows 13 mystery celebrities singing familiar tunes on stage, while dressed up in a costume obscuring who they really are.

Guessing along with the in-studio audience and the viewers at home are the judges: Mo Gilligan, Davina McCall, Rita Ora and Jonathan Ross.

In the season’s first episode on New Year’s Day, Ghost was eliminated and was later revealed to be football star Chris Kamara.

Still, there’s a long season ahead, with plenty more costumes to be unmasked. Here’s a guide to the clues and guesses so far.

Who is Otter?

Otter first appeared in episode one with a passionate performance of Jimi Jamison’s “I’m Always Here” – also known as the Baywatch theme tune.

Clues given in their first video package included the acronym “RADA”, the fact that Otter is “known for their resilience”, a shamrock and the random appearance of a vicar.

“Otters are naturally curious creatures and just a little bit naughty,” the character said.

Names floating around so far include Phoebe Waller-Bridge, Fiona Shaw, Father Ted actor Pauline McLynn and Una Healy of The Saturdays.

One of the most debated suggestions from fans on social media is that the infamously elusive singer Kate Bush is under the quirky costume.

During the 14 January episode, Otter performed “Reflection” from the film Mulan. Before singing, a number of clues were revealed. Otter was seen rumaging through a lost property box, containing a witch’s nose and broom.

“You might remember me from something a little bit medical-sounding,” they said.

Among the judges’ next guesses were Zoë Wanamaker, Catherine Tate, and Mel Giedroyc.

Find the Otter clues and guesses in full here.

Who is Jellyfish?

Jellyfish gave their debut performance with the Guns N’ Roses classic, “Sweet Child O’ Mine”.

Ahead of her rendition of the rock hit, Jellyfish’s video clues were: a sign on a beach that read, “How Loa can you Goa?”, astoundingly high heels, and a fossil of a shell.

During Saturday 14 January’s episode, a number of further clues were given, as Jellyfish performed “Take Me to Church” by Hozier.

“A group of jellyfish is called a smack, that’s awesome, right?” she said. “Having a group, a support network, is important. But me, I’m not always a smack. I like to float around.”

Another clue followed: “Something exceptionally small turned out to be my biggest encouragement. It’s important to know yourself. But let me say this, there’s more than one of me to know.”

This last clue led to the judges speculating that Jellyfish could have an alter ego.

Two more clues followed, one of which was a mislead. The first read: “Past life regression. Whoopie. I’ll have none of that.”The second, meanwhile, read: “Across time, mononymous has been synonymous with me.”

So far, the possible names linked to Jellyfish have included X Factor season five champion Alexandra Burke, Brassic star Michelle Keegan, RuPaul’s Drag Race judge Michelle Visage and “Love Me Like You Do” singer Ellie Goulding.

Want some more insight into all things Jellyfish? Look here.

Who are Cat and Mouse?

The only contestants this year to work as a duo, Cat and Mouse entertained the judging panel on episode one with their version of the show tune “Anything You Can Do (I Can Do Better)” from Annie Get Your Gun.

The clues revealed in the first episode included the number 200,000,000 written on a notepad.

Cat said he was “no stranger to legalities” and liked to “get to the bottom of cases”, as well as knowing “how to spin a tale”. The video package also showed five different jars of spices lined up.

Some fans guessed that the duo are Spice Girl Emma Bunton and her husband Jade Jones. Meanwhile, others are convinced that Cat and Mouse are married couple Shirlie and Martin Kemp.

During the Saturday 14 January episode of the show, Cat and Mouse performed “Get Happy” by Judy Garland.

Mo Gilligan guessed Line of Duty stars Martin Compston and Vicky McClure. Davina McCall guessed Buffy the Vampire Slayer stars Sarah Michelle Gellar and Anthony Michael Head. Rita Ora thought it could be David Walliams and Amanda Holden.

The Clue or False clues read as thus: “Call us Bill and Ted because one of us is a time traveller.”

The second read: “You don’t have to go back to the past to catch us. Just to the break of day.” The studio. audience overwhelmingly favoured the latter clue.

Find all the guesses for Cat and Mouse so far here.

Who is Phoenix?

Phoenix made their stage debut with a jazz-inspired version of Daft Punk’s “Get Lucky”.

Their clue package hinted that they’d “risen from the ashes” and had been “reincarnated”. Phoenix also said that they were good with “mysteries” and “following a trail” before the character was shown inspecting footprints with a magnifying glass.

These clues, along with the performance, led to guesses such as David Tennant (a former Doctor Who star), Take That’s Jason Orange, former child actor Nicholas Hoult and influencer Joe Sugg.

During the episode on 14 January, Phoenix performed “Loco in Acapulco” by The Four Tops.

The judges surmised that Phoenix has a link to movies. After making reference to being “independent”, he was guesssed to be an independent film star.

“I’m magical If you keep your eyes open, then you’ll see it,” he said.

The character also made reference to “treading the boards”. “How would I describe that feeling? Out of this world. Some say life immitates art, but I say vice versa,” they said.

Davina McCall suggested it was Jason Statham, an ex-diver who became a movie star. Jonathan Ross, meanwhile, guessed that it was Robbie Williams.

Find out more about Phoenix here.

Who is Knitting?

According to the teaser clip ahead of Knitting’s first performance, they’re no stranger to arts and crafts: the character was seen cutting scraps of paper into geometrical shapes.

Knitting then sang “Remember” by Becky Hill. The vocal stylings led to guesses such as presenter Konnie Huq, Absolutely Fabulous actor Jane Horrocks, Big Brother host AJ Odudu and West End Samantha Barks.

Following Knitting’s performance, the series’ official Twitter account shared the following riddle: “Knitting is easy, it’s the crossing of stitches. Count all your stitches, there should be 26.”

One viewer used 26 to inform their guess of former dance-pop group Steps member Claire Richards. “When you add @OfficialSteps hit track ‘5+6+7+8’ together, it equals 26,” they wrote. “It’s Claire Richards!”

In the 14 January episode, Knitting performed “No More Tears (Enough is Enough)” by Barbra Streisand and Donna Summer.

Before performing she teased a number of new clues, including the claim that she is a “kind and generous thing”.

“Learning to knit is about watching and copying... that’s just what I did to learn my skill,” the character said, but added: “I’ve never been trained in something I’m very well known for.”

In the video, a cookie in the shape of a broken heart could be seen.

You can speculate on more Knitting clues here.

Who is Rubbish?

Rubbish will give their first performance on Saturday (7 January).

“I’m the one you’ve bin waiting for, and I’m here to work... clean up, that’s what I do best... I’m here to pick up litter, or as some call it, garbage,” he said.

Rubbish appeared to hint that he had been in a band but had later gone solo. Another clue came in the form of a red bin with “No 1” written on it.

He performed “Let Me Entertain You” by Robbie Williams.

Rubbish could potentially be masking the identity of someone known for dealing with waste and cleaning, such as TV stars Kim Woodburn (How Clean is Your House?) and Marie Kondo (Tidying Up with Marie Kondo).

Other guesses include actor Dean Gaffney, singer Anthony Costa, and rapper Goldie.

Find out more about Rubbish here.

Who is Jacket Potato?

Similarly, we’ll know more about Potato once they’ve performed for the first time.

So far, there’s just one vocal clue about Jacket Potato, which reads: “Their vocals are sure to get you creamed – it’s jacket potato!”

Their outfit consists of a silver jacket, a baked beans-patterned top and a hat resembling butter.

Already, fans have speculated that Jacket Potato could either be a celebrity chef like Gordon Ramsay or Jamie Oliver, or one of the actors from Dinnerladies, such as Maxine Peake.

For more servings of Jacket Potato clues, look here.

Who is Rhino?

Until Rhino performs for the first time, the only minor verbal clue for the character is: “They were horn this way – it’s Rhino!”

One name in fans’ minds is Joanna Lumley, a patron of the Rhinos’ Last Stand charity. Elsewhere, some have suggested country star (and father of Miley) Billy Ray Cyrus as the horned mammal, due to their costume being a red cowboy outfit – complete with a flashy cowboy hat.

Find out more about Rhino here.

Who is Fawn?

Fawn’s glamorous costume has gone down a treat with fans on Twitter, with some already pegging them for the win.

One person has made a guess that Fawn is Faye Tozer from Steps.

She asked for five sugars in her tea, before remarking: “Like a fawn, I admit that when I was young I was a bit awkward.”

The judges noted she was wearing a necklace that said “Sandy”.

“Call me a boffin, but maths was a passion... that my brain later helped me to win later in life,” she said. “Now I’m grown up, I’m not awkward at all.”

Fawn sang “Tale as Old as Time” from the Disney musical Beauty and the Beast as her debut, wowing the judges with her voice. Some viewers immediately suggested Carol Vorderman was behind the mask, given her former stint on Countdown.

Rita Ora guessed British actor Hannah Waddingham, while Mo Giligan thought it could be Kim Woodburn, but admitted he was struggling.

Jonathan Ross decided it was ex-chancellor of the exchequor Kwasi Kwarteng, while Davina McCall thought it was former Spice Girls singer Mel C.

“I live in a cottage, but not in a palace... I visited Wonderland, but my name isn’t Alice,” Fawn said for her riddle.

Fan of Fawn? Find more information here.

Who is Piece of Cake?

With enough clues, figuring out who Piece of Cake seemed sure to be... an easy feat.

Ahead of Piece of Cake’s first performance on Saturday 7 January, the only clear clue attached to the character was this announcement: “Could this be history in the baking? It’s Piece of Cake!”

Some fans guessed that it’s someone known for their skills in the kitchen – such as former The Great British Bake Off judge Mary Berry.

Viewers got their first look at Piece of Cake in Saturday 7 January’s episode, when she sang Ed Sheeran’s hit single “Shiver”.

Gilligan guessed Icelandic singer Bjork after Piece of Cake’s first performance, while McCall guessed DJ Annie Mac. Ross thought it was comedian Ruby Wax, while Ora admitted she had “no idea” but guessed Kylie Minogue.

Piece of Cake’s riddle was: “My icing is white, pinkish and blue, as confectionary go, I’m a select few.” Some viewers took this to be a hint that she was Scottish singer Lulu, who won Eurovision in 1969. They were later proved right, as Piece of Cake ended up in the bottom three and was later unmasked as Lulu.

Who is Pigeon?

Last but not least, Pigeon rounds out The Masked Singer class of 2023.

So far, the feathered character’s only audible clue has been: “It must be dove – it’s Pigeon!”

With so little to go on, fans online have been creative with their guesses, with suggestions ranging from Coleen Rooney to pantomime star Christopher Biggins.

For more things Pigeon, look no further than right here.

The Masked Singer continues on ITV1 and ITVX.