Kimberley Walsh has said she now shares a “unique experience” with fellow Girls Aloud star Nicola Roberts after being revealed on The Masked Dancer.
Roberts, 37, won sister show The Masked Singer as the Queen Bee in 2020 while Walsh was unveiled in the mystery celebrity dancing show on Saturday, a week before the finale.
Walsh, 40, said she had it “harder” than her former girl group bandmate as she had to move in a heavy costume and breathe in a helmet while dancing.
Walsh said: “We can share that now. It’s quite a unique experience being in disguise at all times and the actual feeling of the mask is so bizarre.
“I so think it’s a lot harder to dance in it though because you lose breath and you feel you literally lose air.”
Girls Aloud’s Walsh, Roberts, Cheryl and Nadine Coyle also recently reunited to raise money for cancer charities in memory of former bandmate Sarah Harding.
While speaking about carrying the bulky costume, Walsh said: “You have to move around a lot and create a lot of movement and because it’s quite heavy, it almost swamps the movement.
“I had to do bigger gestures and it didn’t read and you kind of have to see what works for your character.
“I definitely felt fitter and I was training with the extra weight and altitude mask.
“And by the time I left, I could do two or three runs in the mask … I think it was really good for fitness.”
She also had to give up on some of her dance moves because of the difficulty moving.
“Certain moves you choreographed without the mask and have to literally change on the day of the show,” she said.
“I had to do like a break dancing move in one of my routines. It was tricky to get down on the floor … it was literally like I had to roll over.”
After her reveal, Walsh said: “I did this for my kids, they love this show. They have no idea. I had to pick Odd Socks, I’m a mum of three boys, that’s my life.”
Speaking on Monday, she also said her sons were still in a state of shock from seeing her on the show.
“(My kids) were like absolutely mind blown,” she said. “I think it was just so bizarre for them that I had done all this without them having any idea.
“And because they are huge fans of the show they do their own Masked Dancer competitions every weekend.
“It’s a full on thing in our household and that’s why I had to say yes.
“They still just keep randomly popping out with ‘I can’t believe you’re Odd Socks’.
“For me doing it for the kids was just such a brilliant thing that I’ll remember forever and I’ve got that memory and it was really amazing.”
She added: “I think the best things about being Odd Socks was that nobody had a clue who I was which actually feels quite liberating when nobody has any idea.”
The Masked Dancer continues Saturdays at 6.30pm on ITV and ITV Hub.