IT’S been just over a year since ITV decided to “rest” The Masked Dancer after just two series.
Now it looks more like “rest in peace” as bosses have decided to kill off the show, which first aired in 2021 with host Joel Dommett.
The good news is that the programme which inspired it, The Masked Singer, will definitely return for a sixth season next year.
A TV insider said: “The Masked Dancer was always something of a tricky sell.
"But ITV thought it was worth taking a punt on a concept which had clearly struck a chord with the public as The Masked Singer.
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“But they made the mistake of shifting it from a show that ran every night over a week, to a weekly show that aired on a Saturday night.
“That saw it go out on the same evening as Strictly Come Dancing, which is a very challenging rival.”
Thankfully it is not all bad news as host Joel has struck gold with his quiz show, In With A Shout.
ITV yesterday confirmed it would be returning for a second instalment.
And The Masked Singer — with panellists Mo Gilligan, Jonathan Ross, Rita Ora and Davina McCall — has remained a runaway success.
The second episode of the fifth and most recent series — which was won by Danny Jones — had a very impressive five million people tuning in.
And to be fair, almost all of them guessed it was the McFly singer from the start.
Boyz done good
Shane Lynch, Keith Duffy and Brian McFadden began filming this weekend for their TV series, which is being made by Lime Pictures, on their purchase of Chorley FC.
Following in the footsteps of Hollywood star Ryan Reynolds at Wrexham, the Boyzone and Westlife stars were seen pitch-side for the first time.
The trio smiled as they signed their contracts with the semi-pro Lancashire club. Putting their own Welcome To Wrexham-style documentary series into action, they were joined by a camera and sound crew, as well as the team’s players.
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Discussing his involvement last month, Brian said: “I love the romance of it, I love the idea of getting involved in the club, especially a club like Chorley that belongs to the community.”
The Gladiators have revealed just what it takes to stay in top shape ahead of the show’s finale on BBC One this Saturday.
While Apollo chows down daily on food with an average of 4,000 calories, Sabre does 20 hours of intensive training per week to keep her physique in prime condition.
A close call for Joshers
E4’s latest reality experiment The Underdog: Josh Must Win lands tonight – but the wheels almost came off just as the show was getting started.
Nick Grimshaw, Vicky Pattison, Amber Gill and Pete Wicks are charged with pulling the strings behind the scenes to help one man – Josh – win a popularity contest.
But the four celebs almost got rumbled in the early stages.
At one point, a contestant called Miles suspects something is afoot.
Piecing together clues, he says: “I think that one of us is here with a job to do.”
Nick gasps: “Wow, this could be dangerous!”
Pete adds: “Miles is the biggest threat to us, it might be time to get him out of there.”
This sounds like it could be a good ’un.
The show begins tonight on E4 at 9pm.
Bey's hit for Gino
Gino D’acampo has revealed he had to ring up Beyonce for permission to use one of her hits – for a campaign about vegetables.
The telly chef surprised shoppers last week by joining them in supermarket aisles and encouraging them to ditch plastic-packaged produce in favour of loose items.
He was helping raise awareness for Food Waste Action Week.
But in order to use smash hit Single Ladies, dubbed Single Veggies for the promo, he had to ask the superstar directly.
Gino said: “Thank you to Beyonce for allowing us to use the song – not an easy task, I have to say! I had to call her to ask permission.”
There's no stopping husband and wife duo Chris and Rosie Ramsay.
They have been announced as hosts of Ant & Dec’s new Saturday Night Takeaway spinoff show, Ring My Bell.
It will see them challenge the public to win money by playing fun games right on their own doorsteps.
Gwyn so slovenly
It seems meditation isn’t quite enough to give Gwyneth Paltrow the brain break she needs.
As well as following her own Goop wellness regime, which includes healthy eating and mindfulness, the actress also admits tuning in to “rubbish” telly to unwind on a weekend.
She told The Sunday Times Style magazine: “I love on a Sunday to not do anything, watch rubbish TV and not make dinner and order in food. I need one slovenly day.
“I watch Love Is Blind, which is like so terrible, but I can’t stop watching it, and there are these dating shows on Netflix, like Love On The Spectrum.
“I had not seen a reality TV show until Covid – now it’s a slippery slope.”
