She was unmasked as Swan earlier this month on The Masked Singer.
And Martine McCutcheon has revealed she was forced to ignore her friend Louise Redknapp’s messages when the singer speculated if she was making an appearance in the ITV competition show.
Speaking to OK! Magazine on Wednesday about keeping her identity a secret, the actress, 44, said she ‘felt so bad’ that she couldn’t tell her pals.
‘I felt so bad!’ Martine McCutcheon admitted on Wednesday she was forced to IGNORE friend Louise Redknapp when she asked if she was on The Masked Singer before being revealed
Martine said of being unmasked: ‘It’s a relief! My loved ones kept asking what I’d been up to and I had to keep saying, “I’m just filming a quiz show today.”
‘They kept saying, “another one?!” It’s one of the hardest things I’ve had to keep secret. Alan Carr said, “Now I know where you’ve been, you sly fox – or should I say swan!”
‘And Louise Redknapp, who I went to school with, put it on Twitter and then asked me. I felt so bad as I was just not responding.’
Honest: Martine said of keeping her identity as Swan a secret: ‘Louise, who I went to school with, put it on Twitter and then asked me. I felt so bad as I was just not responding’
Struggle: Martine was unmasked earlier this month, and she recently revealed that she needed physiotherapy after her ‘heavy’ Swan costume (pictured) made her feel claustrophobic
Earlier this month, Martine revealed that she needed physiotherapy after her ‘heavy’ Swan costume made her feel claustrophobic and left her ‘hardly breathing’ due to her face being squashed in a ‘tight boxing helmet’.
Talking about her ‘really hard to wear’ outfit on This Morning, the singer joked that it was a case of ‘no pain, no gain’.
Martine said: ‘I had to have physio for two weeks afterwards, it was so heavy made from heavy wire. So yeah I had to have two weeks of physio afterwards but no pain no gain… the show must go on!’
Reflecting on her ‘hot and claustrophobic’ costume further, the star added: ‘I even get stressed out if having a treatment but there are no windows.’
He’s cracked it! Prior to her big reveal, judge Jonathan Ross had guessed her identity after he linked her clue to her role as Natalie in Love Actually
Pals: Louise (pictured in 2018), who she met when younger while studying at performing arts school, Italia Conti, also put the clues together
Prior to her big reveal, judge Jonathan Ross had guessed her identity after she teased that she had served a Prime Minister and had deals with more than one president of the USA.
The comedian linked the statement to her role as Natalie in Love Actually, where she acts as a secretary to Prime Minister David, played by Hugh Grant, where she also meets with US president (Billy Bob Thornton).
Jonathan also worked out that Swan’s ‘royal connection’ was in fact the name of the pub in EastEnders in a nod at her character Tiffany Mitchell.
Sneaky: In Love Actually, Martine acts as a secretary, Natalie, to Prime Minister David, played by Hugh Grant (pictured in film still), where she also meets with US president (Billy Bob Thornton)
Louise, who she met when younger while studying at performing arts school, Italia Conti, also put the clues together before she was revealed.
Martine said: ‘[Louise] tweeted that she knew that voice from school, we were at Conti together. We’ve done duets together so she knows my voice!’
The star admitted that Louise was texting her but she had to blank her messages, she added: ‘I felt so bad, I was on contract and I was just ignoring her! Afterwards I texted her and said, “You were right!”‘
Glenn Hoddle was revealed as Grandfather Clock last week, while Mel B was unveiled as the Seahorse character, and Sophie Ellis-Bextor was unmasked as the Alien during the show.
Unmasked: Glenn Hoddle was revealed as Grandfather Clock last week
Star-studded: It also comes after Mel B was revealed to be Seahorse last week and Sophie Ellis-Bextor was unmasked as the Alien on the premiere episode on Boxing Day (L-R)