Glee star Heather Morris has been crowned the winner of The Masked Dancer after being unveiled as Scissors.
The US actress and professional dancer saw off competition from Australian stage and screen star Adam Garcia and former Strictly Come Dancing judge Bruno Tonioli during Saturday’s series finale of the ITV show.
After being crowned as the champion, Morris told host Joel Dommett: “I have had the best time. Seriously, this has made my heart so full.”
She also revealed that she was one of two back-up dancers for Beyonce’s hit song Single Ladies.
Morris added that her children inspired her to take part in the show, saying: “My kids at home, I have two boys, we are huge Masked fans.
“My oldest, during the pandemic, would make masks himself… when I got the call for this, hands down, of course I’m going to do this, my kids will be in awe of me.”
Morris is best known for her role as Brittany Pierce in comedy drama series Glee and has gone on to have a successful dance career.
She also competed on Dancing With The Stars, the US version of Strictly Come Dancing, in 2017.
After the reveal, Morris said she was surprised to see who the other celebrities were, particularly Tonioli, as he had been a judge during her time on Dancing With The Stars.
She added: “This isn’t a competition show, it’s about so many other things. These other characters were really selling it and having fun with Joel.
“You just don’t know how the audience sees it, what they like and what song they love that week, so it was fun and exciting and surprising.”
✨👏🥇 THE WINNER OF THE MASKED DANCER 2022 🏆🤩✂️
🎭✂️ #Scissors you were a CUT above the rest!
Never DULL always STYLISH and SHARPLY dressed 💃❤️ #MaskedDancerUK pic.twitter.com/l3b7MCq2sr— #MaskedDancerUK (@MaskedSingerUK) October 22, 2022
The dancer revealed that she had only told her husband and mother she was taking part, but she found it “super difficult” to keep it a secret from her children, aged six and nine.
She added that her friends knew she was up to something and constantly asked what she was filming.
“The whole secrecy of the show in the first week was so difficult. It’s very hard not to say hi to the other contestants, we’re in hoods and completely covered up,” she said.
“With my kids it was super difficult because they are such big fans, so I really wanted to tell them, but now I’m so excited to show them because they are going to think that I am the coolest mum in the world. I cannot wait to see the costume heads that they’ll make.
“With all that said, I love secrets. I am the biggest secret keeper and if anybody tells me a secret it’s locked and loaded forever. So for me it was great because I love to keep secrets so I didn’t have any problems with anybody else except for my children.”
🤩🥈 BOOOOOOM! #Onomatopoeia💥🫡 We loved watching you POP, LOCK, TAP & LOVE throughout this series 💥🎭 #MaskedDancerUK pic.twitter.com/IXmo6uFXM8
— #MaskedDancerUK (@MaskedSingerUK) October 22, 2022
Earlier in the show, it was revealed that Pearly King was professional dancer and judge Tonioli.
Asked why he signed up to the show, he joked: “I said, ‘Singer, oh yeah, I’ll do it. Dancer? You’ve got to be kidding me!’ You should always read your contract.”
Onomatopoeia was unmasked to be Garcia, who told Dommett: “I always step away from dancing and then something brings me back, and I realise, that’s right, I love dancing, it brings joy.”
The show’s panel – Peter Crouch, Davina McCall, guest Dawn French, Oti Mabuse and John Bishop (standing in for Jonathan Ross) – oversaw proceedings as the 2022 series came to a close.
Other contestants during the series included Girls Aloud singer Kimberley Walsh, sports presenter Denise Lewis, former Bake Off contestant Liam Charles, TV host Steph McGovern and Dancing On Ice star Frankie Seaman.
Footballer David Seaman, choirmaster Gareth Malone, presenter Stacey Dooley, actress Joanna Page and actor Jesse Metcalfe also competed.
Last year, former Olympic gymnast Louis Smith was declared the winner after being unveiled as Carwash.
