Stephen Hendry ‘fined’ by snooker chiefs following Masked Singer stint

On Saturday night remaining characters, Fawn, Jacket Potato, Pigeon, Rhino, and Rubbish then all took to the stage in episode four to sing in disguise and shock the panel and viewers alike.

However, it was the end of the road for Rubbish – aka seven-time world champion Stephen, 54.

When asked how he kept his identity a secret for so long, the star shared that he actually had to withdraw from some of the sporting events.

‘I do have wildcards to play in some snooker events and I actually pulled out of a couple of events and got fined by the WPBSA (World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association) for doing it,’ he said.

‘And I couldn’t tell them why because this recording was going on and I couldn’t obviously say why I pulled out… I just said ‘Look, I can’t play the tournament’.

‘So, yeah, it was, very, very, very strange… you’re dying to tell people what you’re doing but you can’t.’

In a Q&A post-show, the snooker champ also described the wild and wacky TV series as his ‘guilty pleasure.’

On why he wanted to give it a go, he said: ‘To try something completely out of my comfort zone.

‘I have had the opportunity to do other shows that would have put me in that same uncomfortable position but being completely hidden made it so much easier for me to let loose and get my head around the challenge.’

Explaining his favourite clues, he recalled the VT packages saying that he is the ‘youngest in your field’ (as a world champion), mentioning cars and Grand Prix (The Grand Prix was his first ranking win).

‘But my favourite of them all was the “No Smiling” clue which ironically always makes me smile.’

The Masked Singer airs Saturdays at 7pm on ITV.

Got a story?