Shirley Ballas had to remove her 'special underwear' on The Masked Singer

15 January 2024 , 15:57

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Shirley Ballas had to remove her 'special underwear' on The Masked Singer

Shirley Ballas has revealed some backstage secrets from her time on The Masked Singer - including how some of the celebrity contestants are given "special underwear" as part of their costume.

The Strictly Come Dancing head judge - who recently called off her wedding - became the third star to be unmasked on the ITV series over the weekend, leaving judges Davina McCall and co stunned as she revealed she was Rat.

Speaking about her exit, Shirley has now revealed why she opted not to wear the special underwear provided for her by the Rat's costume designers and "embraced" the challenges of the heavy costume. "They gave me special underwear to go in, of which I took most of it off," the professional dancer admitted after confessing she found the rodent ensemble "quite heavy".

Strictly Come Dancing judge Shirley Ballas lost out to Dippy Egg on the show singing YMCA (ITV)

Explaining to Metro how she got used to the costume after some practise, Shirley mused: "I think it's just like any experience. It's just about embracing it. Like my mum said, 'You signed up for it, just get on with it.' That's exactly what I did.' Shirley continued to reveal that she designed her own costume as Rat, choosing something "down to earth".

One clue about Rat's costume that one of the panel picked up on, and wasn't included in any of the clues packages, was the fact that Shirley was actually born in the year of the rat in 1960. Speaking to the publication, Shirley admitted she was surprised ITV bosses didn't use that hint for one of the clues.

Three new celebrities are set to join The Masked Singer panel this weekend

"I have to say, I've had many experiences, many, many that's by far the highlight of my career," she went on to gush. "I enjoyed every minute of it and I am desperately wanting them to give me Rat so I can stuff him and put him in a corner in my house because he's family for me now. He's my Rat."

As head judge on one of the nation's favourite TV shows, the Strictly Come Dancing star is not stranger to reality TV and has teased she's ready to take on more televised challenges following her stint on The Masked Singer. The dance teacher admitted she was "up for anything" when it comes to future TV projects.

"I want to do SAS: Who Dares [Wins], [ I'm A Celebrity...] Get Me Out of Here! I want a man to scream in my face because I've had that all my life. I think that could kind of be fun," she shared. "I like anything that's jungle-oriented. I like anything that puts Wellington boots on and gets you out there, out on the moors and things, not the glitz and glamour."

Zoe Delaney