The Masked Singer Christmas Special 2025: four mystery stars, festive chaos and every mask off in one night
- A one-off Christmas episode of The Masked Singer where four celebrities perform in elaborate festive costumes.
- All four mystery stars are unmasked in the same episode, so there is no waiting a week to find out you were completely wrong.
- Joel Dommett hosts as the panel try to decode clue packages, wobbly vocals and suspiciously familiar dance moves.
- Christmas themed outfits turn the stage into a glittery fever dream that looks like a bauble factory exploded on live television.
- Perfect for families who enjoy shouting incorrect guesses at the screen while pretending they recognised the voice all along.
TV’s loudest guessing game crashes Christmas night again
What the 2025 Christmas special actually is
The Masked Singer Christmas Special 2025 is a stand alone festive edition of ITV’s hit guessing game, sitting alongside the main series rather than replacing it.
Instead of a full line up of costumed acts, this special focuses on four celebrities who appear only for this episode before being unmasked on the same night.
How it fits into the recent Masked Singer tradition
Since 2023 the show has used Christmas as an excuse to add tinsel to the costumes and lean even harder into family friendly chaos.
The 2025 outing keeps that run going, acting as a noisy trailer for the new series due in the New Year while still working as a self contained festive treat.
Format, costumes and how the mystery works
Four singers, four festive disguises
The special features four well known faces hiding under Christmas themed outfits, with designs that usually fall somewhere between charming and deranged.
Each character performs at least once, delivering a seasonal song while the panel and audience try to work out which human is buried under the foam and sequins.
Clue packages and vocal red herrings
Before each performance there is a short clue video stuffed with visual hints, puns and backstory fragments that may or may not be helpful.
The vocals themselves are another weapon, with some celebrities putting on accents or stylised deliveries that are clearly designed to make you doubt your own ears.
One night, four reveals
Unlike the main run, where masks come off week by week, every costume is unmasked by the end of this single special.
That makes it ideal festive viewing because you can commit to theories, dig your heels in and then be proven catastrophically wrong before the credits roll.
Hosts, panellists and the art of wild guessing
Joel Dommett back in the middle of the madness
Joel Dommett returns to host, bouncing between cheerleading the performers and gently mocking the panel whenever their guesses go completely off piste.
His job is to keep the show moving, hype the crowd and pretend he is not gleefully aware of how much the secrecy drives everyone slightly mad.
The superstar panel of detectives
The regular panel of celebrity detectives are back trying to identify the singers from their voices, mannerisms and increasingly convoluted clue trails.
They fire off names at high speed, ranging from plausible options to suggestions that sound like they were generated by a sleep deprived search engine.
Guest involvement and running jokes
Christmas specials often lean into running gags from the main series, including call backs to previous costumes and infamous misguesses.
You can expect plenty of references to earlier festive episodes, along with at least one moment where a panel member realises they have just described their own past performance.
Tone, music and why families latch onto it
Big songs, bigger staging
The set design turns the studio into a Christmas card, with fake snow, oversized decorations and lighting that could probably be seen from space.
Song choices tend to mix classic festive tracks with pop hits that can be given a holiday twist, creating an unapologetically loud soundtrack for the evening.
Silly, safe and surprisingly sincere
The humour is broad and family friendly, relying on visual comedy, daft costumes and playful panel bickering rather than sharp edges.
At the same time there are occasional sincere moments when a celebrity talks about why performing means something to them, giving the glitter a bit of heart.
Clues, theories and social media chaos
Why the internet loses its mind over this show
Because the special airs in one go, social media fills up quickly with screenshot analysis, slowed down clips and arguments about regional accents.
Fans debate whether a prop in the clue package refers to a particular soap, a sports career or simply the prop department being chaotic for fun.
Guessing games for the living room
At home, viewers can play along by writing down their guesses before each reveal, which adds extra satisfaction when you actually get one right.
It also provides families with a useful distraction from real life disagreements, because it is hard to argue about politics while shouting over who might be inside a giant bauble.
Who this Christmas special is perfect for
Families and casual viewers
The format is easy to understand, so relatives who have never watched the main series can drop in without needing any backstory.
It works well as background viewing during the later part of Christmas Day, when people want something bright and noisy that does not demand full concentration.
Dedicated Masked Singer fans
Long term fans get fresh costumes, new clue trails and the satisfaction of a complete set of reveals in a single night.
The special also helps bridge the gap to the next full series, teasing upcoming energy while still feeling like a bonus rather than homework.
Who might not enjoy it
If you already dislike the main show, the Christmas edition will not convert you, because it doubles down on everything loud and silly.
Viewers who prefer quiet, reflective festive drama may find the whole thing feels like a sugar rush in television form.
When and where to watch in 2025
Broadcast details and timeslot
The Masked Singer Christmas Special 2025 is scheduled to air on Christmas Day on ITV, in a prime evening slot that sits neatly between other big entertainment shows.
It has been confirmed for approximately ninety minutes, giving enough time for all performances, clue packages and four full unmaskings.
Catch up and streaming options
After transmission, the special is expected to be available on ITV’s streaming platform, allowing viewers to rewatch performances or catch up if they missed the first broadcast.
This also helps fans who want to pause and analyse the clue clips frame by frame, which is genuinely a hobby for some people and not just a joke.
How the 2025 special fits the wider Masked Singer story
Continuing the Christmas spin off run
The 2025 episode follows earlier festive editions that introduced the idea of Christmas themed one offs alongside the main competition series.
Those specials established the template of four costumes, a seasonal soundtrack and all the reveals in one night, which this new outing continues.
Setting up the next main series
The Christmas show also acts as a soft launch for the new series starting in the New Year, reminding viewers of the format and the panel chemistry.
It keeps the brand present over the holidays, so when the regular run begins, audiences are already warmed up and ready to start guessing all over again.