The Masked Singer reveals beloved rapper behind Bear’s mask in epic semi-final

Bear has been unmasked! (Picture: ITV)

The Masked Singer UK 2025 final is just one week away—but who won’t be there?

Another double elimination rocked the show this weekend, resulting in the final three lineup being confirmed.

Unfortunately for Bear, he fell at the final hurdle, meaning his mask was removed tonight after weeks of baffling us all with cryptic clues and obscure riddles.

But hey, at least now we know who was underneath the elaborate costume all along… and it was only Example!

Previous guesses from the panel included Romesh Ranganathan and even Louis Theroux, but Maya Jama was pretty certain she ‘knew’ the Kickstarts hitmaker was beneath Bear’s furry exterior.

Indeed, plenty of clues in previous VTs have pointed in the direction of the musician, with even his initials, EG, flashing up at one point. Example’s real name is Elliot Gleave.

Did you guess Bear’s identity correctly? (Picture: ITV) It’s… Example! (Picture: Ollie Millington/Getty Images) The Kickstars rapper had plenty of people fooled (Picture: ITV)

Following his unmasking, viewers took to X, with one hailing him as ‘brilliant’ in the contest.

‘Bear is @example. I had it since day one. Finally, it only took me 6 series to get one right. Phenomenal voice, too. Should go into Opera with those pipes’, wrote aweehaggis.

‘Not heard from Example in ages from what I remember he’s a very good rapper as it turns out can also sing’, wrote RebeccaHindle_C.

Example released his debut studio album, What We Made, in 2007, followed by the mixtape What We Almost Made in 2008.

However, it was the now 42-year-old’s second album that really propelled him to stardom in 2010, producing two top 10 singles: Won’t Go Quietly and the classic Kickstarts.

Example released his fifth studio album, Live Life Living, in 2014, but the road to creating his sixth album was rocky, leading to him parting ways with his record label and releasing standalone singles instead.

The star has been quieter on the music scene in recent years (Picture: ITV) But Maya Jama still ‘knew’ it was hit voice (Picture: ITV)

In recent years, Example has performed at Glastonbury Festival and collaborated with the likes of Professor Green, Big Narstie, and Doc Brown.

He now joins a list of impressive stars who have already been eliminated this series. We’ve had everyone from Bake Off legends to an artist doing his best Harry Hill impression…

In week 1, Good Morning Britain’s Kate Garraway was unmasked as Spag Bol, before Dame Prue Leith Leith was revealed as Pegasus.

The following week, music legend Macy Gray was unveiled to be Toad in the Hole… well, after she stormed off stage in a moment of high drama, causing producers to panic and viewers to cringe.

Comment nowDid you guess who Bear was?Comment Now

After the vocalist’s unbelievable exit, Tattoo removed her mask, with viewers stunned to find 80s singing legend Carol Decker underneath.

And then came the quarter-final double unmasking, in which Kingfisher and Snail were knocked out of the competition.

Snail turned out to be Irish songwriting icon Andrea Corr, while Kingfisher was actually artist Sir Grayson Perry, who admitted to playing up to the speculation that he was actually the You’ve Been Framed host.

This left just five characters in the running for the title of Masked Singer champ, with judges Maya, Davina McCall, Jonathan Ross, and Mo Gilligan returning next week to discover who will be victorious…

The Masked Singer 2025 final airs next Saturday on ITV1 and ITVX.

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