Jonathan Ross thinks Simon Cowell will love his new show ‘The Masked Singer’.
The 59-year-old TV presenter has joined a panel of celebrity judges – including Rita Ora, Davina McCall and Ken Jeong – for the latest ITV singing show, which airs on Saturday night (04.01.20), and believes the music mogul will wish he had thought of the idea first.
He said: "Simon Cowell will think this is a great format. He’ll think, ‘I wish I had that format’. I know he felt that way about ‘The Voice’."
The show sees a host of disguised celebrities dressed head to toe in wacky costumes – ranging from a unicorn and bumblebee to a giant duck – sing in front of the panel as they guess who could be hiding under the mask.
Jonathan has predicted Simon could be on the lookout for new ideas about how to improve his shows.
He continued: "Cowell is a smart man so when there’s something good on TV, he’ll think how he can improve his own shows.
"Unfortunately, this idea is taken, Simon. It’s already huge in America."
While co-panellist Davina thinks the show could go on to be a huge success in the UK, she doesn’t believe it will replace ‘The X Factor’ anytime soon.
She said: "’The Masked Singer’ could be broadcast anywhere in the year, it’s not seasonal – but I don’t think ‘The X Factor’ is going anywhere."
Jonathan is adamant the series will bring some joy to viewers as the Christmas period comes to an end.
He added: "January is a depressing time of the year, it’s just after Christmas and people are going back to work, so having something fun and colourful, great escapism, will be ideal."