The Masked Singer: McTerrier is unmasked after head topples off in unprecedented costume malfunction

It was the first time a celebrity has been accidentally unmasked in the history of the show

A contestant was accidentally unmasked during the season seven premiere of The Masked Singer US.

The hit reality series sees stars dress up in wacky costumes and perform cover songs to a panel of judges who attempt to decipher their identities using clues.

The American edition of the show returned to screens on Wednesday night (9 March) with a dramatic first episode.

For the first time ever on the programme, a contestant’s mask came completely off by accident.

McTerrier had finished their performance and was thanking the panellists – Ken Jeong, Nicole Scherzinger, Jenny McCarthy-Wahlber, and Robin Thicke – when the incident occurred.

Appearing to lose sight of the stage, McTerrier took a tumble and his ginormous, furry head fell off.

Jeong (star of Community and The Hangover) was visibly taken aback, while McCarthy-Wahlberg urged Scherzinger to look away so she wouldn’t catch a glimpse of the celebrity.

McTerrier, however, recovered quickly and turned away from the judges.

Still filtered through his voice changer, the celebrity could be heard shouting: “What do I do? What do I do?”

While McTerrier did a good job of concealing their identity, the canine character was fully unmasked when he was eliminated from the show and revealed to be pastry chef Duff Goldman.

Other contestants on this year’s season include Ram, Lemur, Armadillo, Thingamabob, and Firefly.

You can watch The Masked Singer US on Fox and Hulu.