The Masked Singer's John 'Johnny Rotten' Lydon reveals injuries after taking part in the ITV show
The punk star was unmasked as Yak on the weekendThe Masked Singer star John Lydon has revealed he was injured during this year’s series of the ITV show.
John, aka Johnny Rotten, has admitted he hurt himself due to the weight of his Yak costume.
The Sex Pistols star has said he was left with a bad shoulder and back after performing inside the huge aluminium-framed outfit.
His surprise admission comes after he was unmasked as Yak on Saturday night’s episode of The Masked Singer.
The Masked Singer’s John Lydon ‘hurt’ on show
John spoke about his time on The Masked Singer during an appearance on ITV’s This Morning. The punk star opened up about what it was like to take part to hosts, Cat Deeley and Ben Shephard.
And despite confessing that he was left in pain, John was in good spirits about it all.
John told the pair: “It was so difficult, that costume. The weight of it.
“It felt like a steel frame but was aluminium. I practiced with that and the handlebars for the head, but when they put the material on, it just became so heavy.
“It put my shoulder out. And I had backaches for a long time. You’re standing there for 25 minutes and all that weight is crushing. You also can’t see nothing in there!”
The musician went on to reveal that he was given “options” about what character he could be on the show. But he laughed and admitted: “I said no to all of them.”
John didn’t make it clear how they settled on Yak. But he really didn’t speak fondly of having to perform inside of it.
“The weight of the damn thing!” he continued. “You can hear me huffing and puffing to Let’s Get Physical.
“I had to try and find a different voice in there. But you cannot sing in an outfit like that.
“It is so hot and heavy. I put my shoulder out, put my back out. But it was worth every penny!”
How much did John get paid?
John mentioned his fee for The Masked Singer several times during his appearance on This Morning. Unfortunately, he did not confirm how much he was paid to take part.
The singer did, however, hint that it was a pretty nice sum. He told Cat and Ben that the cash is now paying for a trip abroad for himself and his Sex Pistol bandmates.
John revealed: “The money has now paid for us to go and record in Portugal and have a little holiday afterwards!”
Despite his back and shoulder trouble, John spoke very highly about being on The Masked Singer. He described the experience as “fun” and said he has no regrets about taking part.
He added: “I’m up for a laugh. Whole families can watch, it’s great fun!”
John was in the bottom two on Saturday night with Monkey Business. Fans have been busy trying to guess the identity of the female singer, who is dressed as a monkey and wearing a striped business suit.
The Masked Singer continues on ITV this Saturday (January 17, 2026) at 7pm.
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