Global star Anastacia wins The Masked Singer Australia as Em Rusciano places second

The Masked Singer Australia concluded its third season on Channel 10 last night, with the final reveal drawing 771,000 metro viewers overnight.

The episode saw former Australian Idol star Axle Whitehead place third and fellow Idol alumni turned performer, radio broadcaster and podcaster Em Rusciano place second.

The overall winner was international pop stat Anastacia, who is behind the likes of 'I'm Outta Love' and 'Sick And Tired'.

Anastacia performed as Vampire and took to the stage last night with Paul McCartney's 'Live And Let Die'.

When asked why she joined The Masked Singer Australia, the performer said: "I was actually asking myself that question when I saw the costume for the first time. I was terrified to be the Vampire."

Rusciano performed as Dolly and fought back tears when it was her moment in the spotlight.

"I haven't been able to sing live for 18 months. I am a live performer, so this has been magic. It's put all the magic back into my blood. It was been the best experience of my life."

Axle attracted attention as the Mullet, and said: "It's been such a blast to get in touch with my inner bogan and be able to take him on. What a character."

Channel 10 noted the "most bonkers show on television" had a total national average audience of 951,000. Across the series, over 34 million minutes were viewed on its catch-up and streaming platform 10 Play, a 37% increase from 2020. Its broadcast video on demand (BVOD) audience was up 64% compared to 2020, it said.

Daniel Monaghan, SVP of content and programming, thanked host Osher Gunsberg, judges Jackie 'O' Henderson, Dannii Minogue, Dave 'Hughesy' Hughes and Urzila Carlson, as well as the performers, crew, Warner Bros., Network 10 and the viewers.

"This year, The Masked Singer Australia delivered on star power and family fun entertainment. Incredible performances, bonkers masks and jaw-dropping reveals were a winning combination across all platforms and with all ages," he said.

10 ViacomCBS' national sales director, Lisa Squillace, thanked the show's commercial partners for their support.

"The Masked Singer Australia allows brands to be creative and captivating, and the integration they brought to the show was first class."