Singing competitions are a tried-and-test TV format, but The Masked Singer has managed to outdo everyone else with one big difference – lavish theatrical costumes that hide singers’ identities from the audience.

An impressive amount of time and effort went into designing and building each of these characters, with Brighton-based Plunge Creations estimating around 5,000 hours and 47 people needed to bring them to life in clay, silicone, rubber, fur and foam. Creating Tree’s bark, for example, meant six people crumpling organza for a week, while every single crystal on Unicorn’s head was laboriously stuck on by hand.

The Masked Singer’s production company Bandicoot approached Plunge early on, with some loose ideas for characters they were keen on including. “They wanted a hedgehog, and a monster that would appeal to children,” says Plunge founder Tim Simpson. “I wanted a monster with a bit of calm charm, rather than wacky, and in the end this whopping great monster came out of a tiny pencil doodle.