February and March Dividend Income Round-up

 And so we have now passed the first quarter of the year - jeez that's gone quick! Apologies for the delay in getting these up, I'm still not at 100% but I'm much better than I was this time last month. Since my last post, I've found out that my salary will be increased by around 10%, which is going to be really helpful with the rising cost of living that all of us are dealing with at the moment.

For February, I had 5 dividend payments - 4 from investment trusts, and 1 from an individual share as shown below:

• Anglo Pacific Group: £17.50
• BlackRock Latin American Trust: £13.84
• JP Morgan Asia Growth & Income Trust: £11.25
• JP Morgan Japan Small-Cap Growth & Income Trust: £10.00
• Murray International Trust: £12.00

Making a total of £64.59 for the month.

One of my lower-paying months, especially as Hipgnosis Songs delayed their payment to March rather than pay out in February as they normally do. My £500 investment this month went into Schroder European Real Estate and SDCL - Schroder European Real Estate as this will push me halfway towards my next holding target, and SDCL as I hadn't put any more into that trust since I first purchased back in September, so it was about time.

For March, I had 6 dividend payments - 5 from investment trusts, and 1 from an individual share as shown below:

• Diversified Energy Co: £22.60
• Hipgnosis Songs Trust: £13.78
• JP Morgan Russian Securities Trust: £50.00
• Merchants Trust: £18.83
• Ruffer Investment Company: £0.27
• SDCL: £15.80

Making a total of £121.28 for the month.

Ok, this was definitely helped by JP Morgan Russian Securities paying out both the final dividend for 2021 and the first dividend for 2022 in one payment this month, but it's still a great total. This means that over the first quarter of 2022 I've received £282.10 in dividend payments, so I'm ahead of my year-end target of £1000. There might not be much from Ruffer Investment Company at the moment, but this was one that I moved over from my growth portfolio and I don't have too much in it currently. I am looking to invest further in this though. 

My £500 investment went into JP Morgan Japan Small-Cap Growth & Income, and Persimmon. JP Morgan Japan Small-Cap was one of my smaller holdings so I wanted to top it up a bit, and Persimmon I hadn't put anything into for a while so this was a chance to build it up a little for the summer payment (their first payment will be in the April Round-up). However, I still had some cash left over after this, so I bought enough shares in JP Morgan Russian Securities to take my holding to the next target level, and I also drip-fed some into Hipgnosis Songs as I hadn't bought any shares since my initial purchase in January last year. 

Let me just put this out there: I think it's horrible what is happening in Ukraine at the moment, and I fully stand behind them. The reason why I bought even more of the Russia-based trust? I'm relatively cynical that there's going to be lasting repercussions for the country after this war ends, whenever that may be. I've already seen the value of my holding go up - I was down by nearly 90% at one stage, and currently it's at about 65% down. Still quite a drop, but nowhere near as much as it was only a few weeks ago. Definitely going with head over heart on this one, but my gut instinct is that the economy will be back to normal sooner rather than later.

As far as April goes, it's looking similar to March - I'm expecting 6 dividend payments totalling around the £120-£125 mark, including a bumper dividend from Persimmon. I've received 2 already so far (including Persimmon), with 3 more definitely on the way and 1 that I should find out the details for this week. The April Round-up should be up in early May, possibly around the Bank Holiday period (2nd May for those in the UK). Do let me know if you've got any plans for the Bank Holidays (again in the UK, the Easter Bank Holidays are this coming Friday and next Monday, so 2 days off work and I get paid this Thursday too!) or if you've had any dividend payments come in over the last 2 months. Until then, happy investing!

January Dividend Income round-up

 The first month of 2022 has now been and gone, and I've received my first batch of dividend income for the year. As I mentioned in my portfolio reveal post, my target for this year is to receive £1000 in dividend income - and having done the sums, it looks like I'm on track to achieve that goal. 

I had 5 lots of dividend income come in in January, 2 from individual stocks and 3 from investment trusts: 

• Castings: £9.15
• Ferrexpo: £16.18
• European Assets Trust: £11.00
• Middlefield Canadian Trust: £12.75
• Schroder European Real Estate: £47.15

Making a total of £96.23 for January

I'm really happy with this, as my secondary target is to achieve £1200 in dividend income, or an average of £100 per month, so this is on the right track. Some months will pay out more than others as different holdings pay out at different times, and January is one of my lower payout months. That being said, this total was helped by Schroder European Real Estate paying out both a normal dividend and a special dividend, and I can't always rely on those.

One thing to note is that since my portfolio reveal post, I have actually sold Ferrexpo, which at the time was my largest holding. I placed a stop loss on this stock for 30% below what I had paid (a stop loss is useful as if the holding hits or falls below where you place the stop loss, it will automatically be sold) and it sold the very next day. This meant that I now had around £1200 in cash in my ISA that I could put into other holdings. With this I doubled my holdings in both European Assets Trust, and JP Morgan Russian Securities. 

Speaking of JP Morgan Russian Securities, there was also an announcement that they were changing their dividend policy from a semi-annual dividend to a quarterly dividend - so instead of receiving around £70 in dividend income per year (£50 interim and £20 final), I would now get around £120 in income per year (£30 per quarterly dividend). The new payout months are likely to be March, June, September and January (instead of March and October); and this is great news for me as these months I currently have fewer payouts for, so that will be a nice boost. They're also going to be paying both the final dividend for 2021 and the first quarterly dividend for 2022 in March, so similar to Schroder European Real Estate in January. 

As I write this I've currently had 2 payouts for February so far, with another 3 to come. Normally I would have had a payout for Hipgnosis Songs as well but there wasn't a dividend declaration at the end of January like usual so I'll have to keep an eye on that trust I think. I've planned out which holdings I'm going to be topping up each month for the rest of the year, and I check the numbers once a week so I have a rough guide of how much I will have in each holding by the end of the year. This is all based on me paying £500 of my salary into my ISA each payday, and even with the rising cost of living, I still feel that this is doable, especially as my salary will have to increase to be in line with the new National Minimum Wage coming in in April. 

February round-up should be posted by around this point in March - please let me know if you have had any dividend income come in for January, as I do like seeing how others have fared and what holdings they have. Happy investing!

The Masked Singer - weeks 3, 4 and 5 mini round-up

Morning everyone and apologies for being AWOL the last few weeks - I've had a really bad cough and have also lost some hearing as a consequence, so I haven't been able to rewatch the episodes like I've previously done. I do feel bad about not posting so thought I'd do a smaller post covering the missing weeks together and then hopefully I can rewatch the future episodes from there. 

Week 3: Bagpipes was unmasked as Pat Cash - even the forums were split on whether this was Pat Cash or John McEnroe. I only got it from the last clue package where there was a sign that had a 'no entry' symbol over someone using a debit card. Nice to see Davina get one right as well.

Week 4: Poodle was unmasked as Tom Chaplin from Keane - admittedly I wasn't sure to begin with, but the clue packages fitted and I could hear him in the sing-off version of 'Symphony'. I wouldn't have been able to pick him out of a line-up though, same as when Ricky Wilson from Kaiser Chiefs joined The Voice, as I remember them before they lost weight and had completely different hairstyles. I can see why the panel didn't guess him, as I think this is one where you needed the clues first and then the voice slots into place after.

Week 5, elimination 1: Firework was unmasked as Jaime Winstone - I didn't get this one, I could hear Pixie Lott during the week 4 performance. This was one where there were quite a few guesses on the forums, but someone did guess Jaime before the show. Bad luck to the panel when they had said her name previously.

Week 5, elimination 2: Doughnuts was unmasked as Michael Owen - I think the whole world and his dog got this one right. He wasn't too bad for a non-singer, and as a 90s child, I thoroughly appreciated that his final song was 'Everybody Get Up' by 5ive (although the band is now 3hree). I don't really follow football so I couldn't get it from the speaking voice, but there was enough in the clue packages to steer you towards him (red herring of 'Capri-Corn Flour' aside).

Now for my guesses for the remaining contestants:

Robobunny - said this all along, 100% Mark Feehily from Westlife.

Mushroom - very good at disguising her voice, but the clues are pointing me towards Charlotte Church.

Rockhopper - 100% Michelle Williams from Destiny's Child.

Traffic Cone - this is one where I just have no idea. Popular forum guess of Aled Jones doesn't fit for me, not with how much they sounded like Rick Astley during their first song. I'm going to go for 'Morten Harket mark 2' and guess Rick Astley.

Panda - I'm going to go with the forum consensus of Natalie Imbruglia, even though I can't personally hear her.

As a side-note, both series 1 and 2 had 7 professional singers out of 12 (Denise van Outen and Martine McCutcheon have sung professionally but they're more known for other things so I haven't included them). If this series were to follow the same mould then there should be one non-singer within our top 5 - looks like this would have to be Traffic Cone.

Dividend Income Portfolio Reveal

Time for a dose of Finance Friday! I said in my 'a new year, and a new focus for this blog' post that on the first Friday of each month I would be outlining the dividend income that I received the previous month. I've only been investing for around 18 months, but I've got an income portfolio that I'm pretty happy with on the whole and my target for 2022 is to receive £1000 in dividend income. I've done the sums based on my current holdings (which are revealed below) and it looks like I should be getting at least £950 so hopefully with me making 2 purchases each month, I can push this up to my target.

My income portfolio is held in a stocks & shares ISA (or S&S ISA for short) with Interactive Investor, and I put in around £500 out of every paycheck (I'm paid every 4 weeks in my job rather than every month, so one month has 2 paychecks), which I then make 2 purchases with. The fee structure that I have means that although I pay a direct debit of £19.99 each month, I can then make 2 trades (purchases or sales) without having to pay commission. Fees can add up quickly and swallow up any potential profits, so I try to keep myself to just those 2 trades. Again, I've done the sums and I've worked out that if I take my current holdings out of the equation, I have made a profit of a little over £1300 during the lifetime of my ISA (around 14 months), and I've done a fair few trades during that time! I've planned out which of my holdings I will be making purchases in each month based on when the dividends should be received as well, subject to change of course but I do like having a semblance of structure. 

If you are still reading (well done if you are, I know investing can be a boring subject for some), then here is my income portfolio as of 1st January 2022:

Investment trusts have a blank background, whilst individual company holdings are in colour. I used to have a lot more individual companies in my S&S ISA but I found that investment trusts were a better way to diversify my holdings, and actually, they already held some of the individual companies I had. The current top 10 holdings of Merchants investment trust contains 8 individual companies that I owned shares in at some stage (only SSE and WPP that I have never owned). Makes sense to sell the individual companies and go for the investment trust doesn't it? As I said above, I'm pretty happy with this portfolio on the whole. There might be one or two changes but I'll come to those in a moment. 

Altogether, this portfolio has around £20k in it so far, so I'm still in the early stages really. My top holding has a little over £1800 in it, whilst my bottom holding has around £750. There's a couple of my holdings that have been around since I first started investing back in August 2020, and the newest ones came in around September/October, so that partly accounts for the difference. 

Top 5 Holdings according to spend (fees included):

1. Ferrexpo

2. Anglo Pacific

3. Persimmon

4. Hipgnosis Songs

5. Diversified Energy

Bottom 5 holdings according to spend (fees included):

1. European Assets

2. iEnergizer

3. JPM Russian Securities

4. Lloyds Banking Group

5. Schroder Euro Real Estate

I did mention earlier that there may be 1 or 2 changes to my portfolio - usually I only look to change in one of two scenarios: if the holding becomes expensive in relation to the dividend (this tends to be where the dividend policy has changed) or if the value of my holding drops by at least 30% compared to what I have spent. With this in mind, 2 of my holdings are potentially going to be sold, but I will need to review them first. Castings is one where I'm not getting too much income (it is just outside of my bottom 5 holdings) and the value is more often than not lower than what I paid for it. I've been wavering on this one for a little while as I've held it for over a year, but I'm more likely than not going to sell it. The second one is actually my top holding Ferrexpo. I've held this one for around 9 months but the current value is nearly 25% lower than what I paid for it, so there's not too much further to go for it to hit my 30% sell trigger. I think I'm going to wait until their final results come out (which I believe is March) and make a decision then, if it hasn't already hit the trigger. If I do sell those two, it would free up a little over £2k which I could then pile into some of my lower holdings - it would take me nearly 4 months to pay in that much, so it's a lot!

I'll probably do a mini-update around July, if only to see if my top 5 and bottom 5 holdings have changed at all. Otherwise, the next dividend post will be around Friday 4th Feb where I reveal how much dividend income I made in January and from which holdings. I've had a couple of payments already but I still have some more to come in. 

Until then, Happy Friday!

The Masked Singer - series 3, week 2

Back to Group A we go, but just for a quick recap - last time we saw Group A, Chandelier was unmasked as Heather Small, whilst Mushroom, Robobunny, Doughnuts, Lionfish and Firework all made it safely through. Meanwhile over in Group B, Snow Leopard was unmasked as Gloria Hunniford, whilst Rockhopper, Traffic Cone, Poodle, Panda and Bagpipes went through. Is tonight's unmasking going to be a surprise like Heather, or someone who is more obvious like Gloria? Tonight's bottom 2 will sing-off to keep their place, and this might be key, as we found out when Duck (aka Skin from Skunk Anansie) sang opera back in series 1. 

As before, bottom 2 but saved is underlined, whilst unmasked is in strikethrough. Any of my musings during the clue packages are in ( ) brackets. The 2 Lies 1 Truth statement that I think is correct will also be in bold.

Mushroom

1st clue package: forest theme, quite mellow and carefree but known to sprout in a more serious part of the forest from time to time. Some kind of lantern in the background, help control life in the woods, help to bring new life. Mushroom likes to start new things and try new lives. A digital clock with a time of 01:28. When mushrooms pop their heads above the ground, they can take many forms. As they grow, they might want to be any number of things (she bangs a gavel as she says this). 

1st song: It's Oh So Quiet' by Bjork; sounds more Irish when she sings but could be an attempt to disguise their voice. Definite performer of some description, quite a good voice and definitely able to emote the song. I'd guess around 40s/50s in terms of age.

Extra clue: I just want to bring peace and love man.

Initial guess: With the 'try new lives' clue, I reckon this is an actress. Given the initial clue of 'quite mellow and carefree but known to sprout in a more serious part of the forest from time to time', I'd say someone more known as a comedic actress but who acts in serious roles from time to time - this would potentially count out a more popular guess of Jodie Whittaker (seeing as she was mainly known for Broadchurch when she got the role of Doctor Who, although the 'take many forms' clue would point to her role as the Doctor). The extra clue makes me think of the Beatles so maybe someone from or associated with Liverpool? Someone who I think could fit the bill in terms of age is Claire Sweeney, and I know she's done West End productions so can definitely sing. I'll go with her to begin with.

2nd clue package: last time the panel tried to get to the root of who they were, but their guesses were criminal. They’ll need to get up much earlier and take a good ---- if they want to catch Mushroom out (I couldn't get the word in ---- but it sounded like 'tinker' - tinkering with a Sonic screwdriver perhaps?). There’s very few places on Earth that you won’t find mushrooms, and they’ve been very lucky that they’ve been able to leave their forest and plant themselves in lots of exciting places far from home. We can see letter W’s on a bush that Mushroom walks past (could be a reference to George W Bush for all we know). They must say, it really is nice to be part of the action, and they’ve seen a lot of places. Images of 2 milk bottles, a naan bread?, chattering teeth. Honestly, they could never have imagined it all, but they’re trying to take it all in their stride, as you never know when it might be cut short. Tonight they’re putting down roots to give us a song.

2nd song: There Are Worse Things I Could Do’ by Stockard Channing – voice is a bit different from last week. Wow, they sound trained, that was amazing.

2 Lies, 1 Truth: it could be said they’ve raised an eyebrow; something they did got everyone talking; their career started out a little bit fizzy.

Current Guess: This sounds like someone older, Jane McDonald would fit with the W referring to Wakefield. I still think it’s an actress, and the clues are pointing more towards Jodie Whittaker this week (‘criminal’ = Broadchurch, plant themselves in lots of exciting places far from home could refer to her role in Doctor Who), so I’m going to go with her.

Robobunny:

1st clue package: set in some kind of underground warehouse/factory. 'You thought I was a real tough guy eh? Well that's just my shell' They're actually a real softie who's part of a machine. Bottle of peroxide being used, they're not going to rabbit on about hard exteriors but they will say that they're here to ctrl-alt-delete what we think about them. Police sirens in the background, buckle up because they came to play. 

1st song: 'Saving All My Love for You' by Whitney Houston. Jeez this bunny can sing! Both low and high they're great. 

Extra clue: QR code on the back of the costume - I might be made of metal but that doesn't stop me making a splash.

Initial guess: My first guess is also the popular guess, that being Mark Feehily from Westlife. There's not many male singers who can vocally sing that high, but Mark is one and if you listen to the chorus of the new Westlife song 'My Hero', the high part is all him. That being said, I do wonder if the vocal on a whole (even the lower range) from Robobunny is actually too high to be Mark, so it may turn out to be someone younger. That being said, the 'we'll be making love' part definitely sounded like him. The clue package doesn't really hint towards a singer, more of either an actor or a gamer. Maybe someone who has been in trouble with the law in the past or who has been known to act in tough guy roles? Normally there's a misdirection guess (like how Queen Bee was gearing towards Jade from Little Mix to the point where Nicola Roberts used a Geordie accent) and I'm going to take a punt and say the misdirection guess will be Jason Statham, as he's known for tough guy roles and was a diver before becoming an actor.

2nd clue package: ‘Mark it’. In their first performance, their mettle was tested as the panel tried to take a laser focus on who was the Bunny. They hit him with their best shots, but they’ll need to swing bigger to land a hit on this Rabbit. See a shot of a police badge – doing what they do it can feel like everyone wants a piece of you, literally. Shot of some cowboy boots. Indian headdress (ETA is this a Village People reference?!). Hare today gone tomorrow, so it’s nice sometimes to get back to base and spend some time on the ranch – shot of a builders hat here (this is so referencing YMCA, we just need a pilot now I think?) Nothing makes them happier when they’re at their deck (flight deck?) and nothing around them but country. They might be a small bunny in a big mechanical suit, but it doesn’t mean that they can’t enjoy a good boogie. Bit of line dancing – you’re really wondering who I am aren’t you? Well get in line! We see a poster showing how to line dance in the background. 5, 6, 7, 8!

2nd song: ‘Shallow’ by Lady Gaga and Bradley Cooper – bunny is certainly throwing their voice off for the higher vocal. Lower voice is definitely Mark Feehily though, I can hear it now. That chorus is him!

2 Lies, 1 Truth: metal shoes are made for more than moonwalking; not one for revenge but they’ll always get payback; was a knock-out performance that launched their career.

Current guess: Mark Feehily, 100%. Wasn’t sure it was him first time, but this performance he showed us his real voice. I’m going to bet that he’ll make the final but not win.

Doughnuts:

1st clue package: tray of doughnuts going into an oven, dial turned so we can see '150' in red, they hope we have a sweet tooth. Oven is seen shaking before the door pops open and Doughnuts jumps out. Then some kind of sweet-themed location, at a theme park possibly? In the background next to some candy canes are sweets shaped like records - pointing to either a singer or someone who either holds or has broken records in their career. Doughnuts are a fast food but they are extra speedy. Never been the lazy sort but must be all that sugar, have run ice rings around the competition. Pick n Mix bags seen at the end. Scoffing crisps and saying that being the best has always been one of their goals. Going to do their best to jockey for position, and there is a jockey's hat perched on the 'clown' in the background. 

1st song: 'Eye of the Tiger' by Survivor - this person certainly isn't a singer, he sounds too low for the song even though it's definitely been pitched down for him. 

Extra clue: As well as being sweet they've also been savoury. 

Initial guess: I know a lot of people think this is Michael Owen, but I reckon that's the misdirection guess. I do feel it's a sportsman of some description, probably a footballer. People's singing voices tend to be similar to their speaking voice, so I figure this person has a deeper speaking voice than Michael Owen. I'm going to guess it's a goalkeeper (save-oury) and go with the Dancing on Ice link (ice rings) and take a punt that it's David Seaman.

2nd clue package: in their first performance they scored a win against a Chandelier. The panel thought they had him licked, but they had a big hole in their guessing. Bit of raving going on, and people always ask him what’s the recipe for success? There’s a table that has a jar of sprinkles labelled ‘Talent’, a tin of ‘Golden Boots’ and some ‘Capri-Corn Flour’ (ETA: ok I’m supporting this guy as he’s my starsign!) – takes a spoonful of sprinkles, some sweetness, and a light dusting of flour. Mix them all together and he promises that life is pretty sweet. He uses some binoculars to see ‘The Big Book of Ornithology’. ‘Then you pop it in the oven, stoke that fire up, and oh boy, wonder at that delicious result’.

2nd song: ‘Spice Up Your Life’ by The Spice Girls – oh good lord if anything he’s worse this week!

2 Lies, 1 Truth: share a name that’s very close to home; managed to develop a range of talents; something about them has been compared to royalty

Current guess: Trying to think of a footballer that has my starsign and failing (would be something along the lines of 20^th Dec – 19^th Jan), but this is very much pointing towards Michael Owen now so I’m going to have to reverse my ‘singing voice usually sounds similar to the speaking voice’ theory and plump for him. I would have liked it to have been Robbie Savage for the giggles, as I think he performed to that song on Strictly, but nope, looks like it’s Michael now.

Firework:

1st clue package: sparkly backdrop, does she say 'hiya babs'? OMG, what am I like? Always been a pocket rocket, a total bundle of energy. People taking pictures with their phones,. That's just their style, but maybe that's because fireworks are designed to make people smile, modelled to be colourful and create joy and happiness. Makes any event a party, and can't have a party without a few fireworks. On a shelf we can see two porcelain cats on top of some books, and a wooden model, almost as if they're dancing. On another shelf there's a porcelain dog with what looks like black crosses on it, and a gold/blue/red lightning bolt. Normally you find fireworks in the sky, but this one has also lit things up in another fashion. Stand back and shield our eyes as they're about to walk into this competition with a bang. 

1st song: 'Domino' by Jessie J, not a bad singer. Someone relatively young, 20s/30s.

Extra clue: Light up the street with a different kind of flash. 

Initial guess: The clue package points to a model of some description, and someone who's quite short for a model would be Kate Moss, but the singing voice doesn't point to her, it's a bit too low. I'm going to take a punt on the fashion clues being a bit of misdirection, and if it wasn't for the fact that she would have just been eliminated from Strictly at the same time as filming, I would have thought Katie McGlynn was a good shout. I'm going to go with someone else who was on Strictly, and who has been in musicals including 'Flashdance' and guess Joanne Clifton. 

2nd clue package: first performance went off with a bang, ready to shine once more. Setting is an apartment living room, similar to their first VT. Reality of being a firework is that you’re always looking for a spark – note saying ‘You light up my life. I love you xxx’. They like things that spark their interest, but they have a very short attention span. Ice skates hidden underneath the settee. The wooden man from the first VT is shown again. Apparently they’ve always been that way, as when they were a little sparkler, they were always jumping from sport to sport. They did all of them: they were a swimmer, a runner, tried gymnastics, even won a gold medal once. Did end up taking part in some games later on in life. Those early years lit a fuse under them that made them the firework they are today.

2nd song: ‘Fame’ by Irene Cara – this is a white female, podium has a sticker saying ‘100 shots’

2 Lies, 1 Truth: Don’t like waste but have been guilty of dumping; couldn’t make up how they beat 900 people; made a real impression with something they wore

Sing-off song: ‘Sex on Fire’ by Kings of Leon – she did a really good job with it, I still feel this isn’t a professional singer though.

It's Not Me, It's You: don’t get mad, get equal (we know this one relates to Firework)

Current guess: I’m going to have to revise my guess of Joanne Clifton from last week. What’s getting to me is that they ‘took part in some games later on in life’ – would that be Channel 4 show ‘The Games’? I think Kirsty Gallacher did that show so I’m going to go with her. Anne-Marie doesn’t sound right voice-wise, but she would fit with the gold medal clue.

Lionfish - I might not have got Will Young to begin with, but the sing-off song I most certainly heard him (oddly enough it was the lower range vocal that did it). I had a feeling the plane in the clue package was to do with the 'Switch it On' as well but the rest of the clue package stumped me. I'm beating myself up for not getting the Cabaret reference from the hatstand, must try harder.

That's 2 professional singers eliminated from Group A now, I think there's only one more (Robobunny) but I could very well be wrong! 

The Masked Singer series 3 - week 1, night 2

 In the first episode we saw Mushroom, Robobunny, Doughnuts, Lionfish and Firework make it through to week 2 whilst Chandelier was unmasked and revealed to be singer Heather Small. In this second instalment we see Group B take to the stage: but which of Rockhopper, Traffic Cone, Poodle, Snow Leopard, Panda and Bagpipes will be leaving their masks firmly on and who will be revealed? As before, my initial guesses will be based on the clue package and performance (plus the extra clue they reveal before heading off stage). No Googling on my part but I will refer to forum guesses where applicable. 

Bottom 3 but survived are underlined, the revealed contestant is in strikethrough.

Rockhopper - set in a circus, call them 'the entertainer', they're here to bring us a show. Rockhoppers are known for their ability to jump, hopefully they'll bounce through this competition and dazzle us all. There's some Roman numerals on the back of their jacket - looks like XLVII which is the number 47. They'll put on the greatest show we've ever seen. 

Song: 'Higher Love' (can't remember the artist) - she's a singer, but not quite strong enough to be a soloist, I'd say they were in a girl band. 

Extra Clue: made headlines by being the first.

First Guess: Kimberly Wyatt and Alesha Dixon seem the popular guesses, but that's too tall to be Kimberly (plus I've got one of her solo songs on a YouTube playlist and the voice is very different). Alesha would be tall enough but that singing voice isn't her. I like the forum guess of Michelle Williams from Destiny's Child (despite the fact that she was Butterfly on the US version) - it did sound like her in parts and the AC/DC comment from Jonathan (which I couldn't hear in the VT?) would support it as DC=Destiny's Child. Destiny's Child performed at the 47th Super Bowl and 'The Greatest Showman' starred an actress of the same name. I must admit, didn't think Michelle would have the energetic physicality of Rockhopper, but she's definitely tall enough (when she was on Strictly over here she got paired with Brendan who iirc was the tallest male pro at the time).

Traffic Cone - set in a traffic jam, we're looking at them like 'what a traffic cone'. Easiest decision ever as the shape of the traffic cone is like something close to their heart. Might think that traffic cones are all about safety, but not them, they're here to bring the party. With the help of 'these threads', they reckon they have a sporting chance of keeping us guessing. See a red lunchbox containing a pie, and Traffic Cone is seen drinking from a Thermos flask. They're hoping that they're on the road to success, and they show us a silver boombox. They pass a car with the number plate CC07 10BB, and are then seen dancing whilst saying that 'there ain't no plan b', and to get ready cos they're the OG TC. 

Song: 'Never Gonna Give You Up' by Rick Astley - not a bad singer, but I think they're potentially disguising their voice. Imagine if it were Rick Astley doing a Morten 😄

Extra Clue: they made their money taking their top off. 

First Guess: There's a couple of ways I could go with this. If we go down the sporting side of things, then Linford Christie might be a good shout (with the lunchbox clue, plus Rick Astley was often mistaken for being non-white from the voice alone. Unless they're seriously disguising their voice then I'd say that's not the voice of a white male); otherwise the boombox and 'get ready' make me think of Chris Ramsey, who did 'Let's Get Ready to Rumble' featuring a boombox for his Couple's Choice dance on Strictly. Height-wise I'd say the person in the costume is slightly shorter than Joel (the arms are a bit lower), which Chris is. Hmm, bit of a difficult one but I'm going to go with Linford Christie for the first guess.

Poodle - says 'Take H&F' on the clapperboard, we see Poodle in 'Angel Nails Bar'. They've always loved a bit of glamour, and they don't mind telling us that flamboyance is a little bit fabulous as it's something that they've always admired. Collars with the names Anne, Elizabeth, Victoria and Mary. We then see them at an agility course and they say that they can't wait to be let off the leash in this competition. They're very eager to start, are we ready for them?

Song: 'Rocket Man' by Elton John; they've got quite a bit of the Elton John twang in their singing. This is definitely someone who is a singer. If only it were Taron Egerton...

Extra Clue: once went on a very long walkies. 

First Guess: People seem convinced this is Tom Chaplin from Keane, but I really can't hear it in the singing voice. To me, Tom's voice is too high to be Poodle. Height-wise they're definitely a good few inches above Joel. I wonder if this is someone who did one of the 'Pilgrimages' for the BBC with the clue about the long walkies? I can't think of who did them off the top of my head, so at the moment with nothing else to go on but height, I'll have to go with one of the panel guesses and say Rylan. 

Panda - 'if you go down to the woods today, prepare for a panda surprise'. Their neckerchief has a badge with a sheep on, and further down their shirt is a badge of a hammer. They do love an adventure, 3 tents are seen in the woods. White feather next to a campfire, being out and about is second nature to them. Badge with a globe on their shirt sleeve (and a leaf on the other sleeve), and from a young age they always followed their own path.  Sign saying 'talent show musical night'. Doing what they do, we might be surprised to learn that pandas can be solitary creatures, and they guess that they are what we would call an introverted extrovert. Final fact - not the first time that they've been connected to these creatures. Can see a red star on their shorts at the end, this contains a theatre mask.

Song: 'Levitating' by Dua Lipa - again like with Rockhopper, I'd say this isn't a soloist. 

Extra Clue: it's not the first time they've been this animated. 

First Guess: Alesha Dixon is a popular guess again, but this looks too short to be Alesha and the singing voice doesn't seem right. The clue package points to someone who is associated with a talent show in some sense, but instead of judge I'm wondering if it is as a contestant? A short American who I think the singing voice could be (along Rita's line of thought but not quite) is Ally Brooke from Fifth Harmony.

Bagpipes - set at a castle, and this person has the fakest Scottish accent ever. A set of bagpipes are very traditional, and we might know them for having started a tradition or two of their own. Two tennis rackets and a tennis ball are seen on a wall ledge. They're no stranger to an instrument, and there's a wee bit of Scottish in their past. As for how they're going to play The Masked Singer, there's going to be tough competition out there - as they say this there's a cuddly Westie dog perched on a wall with the nametag Annette. It's not going to be as easy as AC/DC, but they've been in this situation before and come out on top. Two bagels seen on a ledge in the foreground. 

Song: 'Song 2' by Blur - bit of an odd choice? An older man (so late 30s at the youngest) with a slight rock edge to their voice, but I think they might be disguising their singing voice. 

Extra Clue: played a wee tune with a tumbling rock.

First Guess: They've played with the Rolling Stones then. Popular guess going with the tennis theme is Pat Cash or John McEnroe (same as Davina). I wonder with the Scottish heritage whether it's someone who's done 'Who Do You Think You Are?' - but I would love it to be Alex James from Blur just for the fun of it. At the moment I'd say the tennis theme is a misdirection, and I like the guess of AC/DC band member Angus Young.

Snow Leopard - yeah there was enough for us to guess Gloria Hunniford (the speaking voice not being altered enough for one), and I did spot the award on the left-hand side of the jacket during the clues VT. Never knew she sung but she was great. Props to Jonathan for landing the first correct guess from the panel.

The Masked Singer series 3 - week 1, night 1

The Masked Singer is well and truly back! I love trying to guess the celebrities, even though the forums usually get at least a couple spot-on as soon as they see them (Nicola Roberts and Morten Harket were two that I remember got named for definite very early on, someone got Nicola from the trailer before the first episode of series 1). This and night 2 are going up later than I'd hoped as I wanted to get them in before week 2 on Saturday 8th, but oh well. My guesses are going to be without any Googling, but I will make note of forum guesses. I haven't seen the week 2 episode featuring the 5 remaining masks from this group yet, so I don't know which one has gone or who they were.

Bottom 3 but saved are underlined, unmasked is in strikethrough.

Mushroom - forest theme, quite mellow and carefree but known to sprout in a more serious part of the forest from time to time. Some kind of lantern in the background, help control life in the woods, help to bring new life. Mushroom likes to start new things and try new lives. A digital clock with a time of 01:28. When mushrooms pop their heads above the ground, they can take many forms. As they grow, they might want to be any number of things (she bangs a gavel as she says this). 

Song: 'It's Oh So Quiet' by Bjork; sounds more Irish when she sings but could be an attempt to disguise their voice. Definite performer of some description, quite a good voice and definitely able to emote the song. I'd guess around 40s/50s in terms of age.

Extra clue: I just want to bring peace and love man.

First guess: With the 'try new lives' clue, I reckon this is an actress. Given the initial clue of 'quite mellow and carefree but known to sprout in a more serious part of the forest from time to time', I'd say someone more known as a comedic actress but who acts in serious roles from time to time - this would potentially count out a more popular guess of Jodie Whittaker (seeing as she was mainly known for Broadchurch when she got the role of Doctor Who, although the 'take many forms' clue would point to her role as the Doctor). The extra clue makes me think of the Beatles so maybe someone from or associated with Liverpool? Someone who I think could fit the bill in terms of age is Claire Sweeney, and I know she's done West End productions so can definitely sing. I'll go with her to begin with.

Robobunny - set in some kind of underground warehouse/factory. 'You thought I was a real tough guy eh? Well that's just my shell' They're actually a real softie who's part of a machine. Bottle of peroxide being used, they're not going to rabbit on about hard exteriors but they will say that they're here to ctrl-alt-delete what we think about them. Police sirens in the background, buckle up because they came to play. 

Song: 'Saving All My Love for You' by Whitney Houston. Jeez this bunny can sing! Both low and high they're great. 

Extra clue: QR code on the back of the costume - I might be made of metal but that doesn't stop me making a splash.

First guess: My first guess is also the popular guess, that being Mark Feehily from Westlife. There's not many male singers who can vocally sing that high, but Mark is one and if you listen to the chorus of the new Westlife song 'My Hero', the high part is all him. That being said, I do wonder if the vocal on a whole (even the lower range) from Robobunny is actually too high to be Mark, so it may turn out to be someone younger. That being said, the 'we'll be making love' part definitely sounded like him. The clue package doesn't really hint towards a singer, more of either an actor or a gamer. Maybe someone who has been in trouble with the law in the past or who has been known to act in tough guy roles? Normally there's a misdirection guess (like how Queen Bee was gearing towards Jade from Little Mix to the point where Nicola Roberts used a Geordie accent) and I'm going to take a punt and say the misdirection guess will be Jason Statham, as he's known for tough guy roles and was a diver before becoming an actor.

Doughnuts - tray of doughnuts going into an oven, dial turned so we can see '150' in red, they hope we have a sweet tooth. Oven is seen shaking before the door pops open and Doughnuts jumps out. Then some kind of sweet-themed location, at a theme park possibly? In the background next to some candy canes are sweets shaped like records - pointing to either a singer or someone who either holds or has broken records in their career. Doughnuts are a fast food but they are extra speedy. Never been the lazy sort but must be all that sugar, have run ice rings around the competition. Pick n Mix bags seen at the end. Scoffing crisps and saying that being the best has always been one of their goals. Going to do their best to jockey for position, and there is a jockey's hat perched on the 'clown' in the background. 

Song: 'Eye of the Tiger' by Survivor - this person certainly isn't a singer, he sounds too low for the song even though it's definitely been pitched down for him. 

Extra clue: As well as being sweet they've also been savoury. 

First guess: I know a lot of people think this is Michael Owen, but I reckon that's the misdirection guess. I do feel it's a sportsman of some description, probably a footballer. People's singing voices tend to be similar to their speaking voice, so I figure this person has a deeper speaking voice than Michael Owen. I'm going to guess it's a goalkeeper (save-oury) and go with the Dancing on Ice link (ice rings) and take a punt that it's David Seaman.

Lionfish - 'the fishbowl' sign, set in what looks like a speakeasy. Tested the microphone before speaking, German and French subtitles appearing on screen. Pleasure to be our host this evening, there's a golden egg in a fishbowl. Aiming to bring some soul to the proceedings, hopes that joke wasn't too cheesy. Shells on the table with the golden egg in the fishbowl. Never too late to start, and they should know. Might be a lionfish but they promise that they're gentle, only use their barbs to defend themselves when absolutely necessary. Fear not, they're hoping to have a good time and get under the skins of their fabulous costume. 

Song: 'Nessun Dorma', definitely a singer with some training, but not an opera singer. 

Extra clue: Appeared in places they've never been.

First guess: The clue package points to the popular guess of Will Young, but unless he's disguising his singing voice then I don't think it's him. Will's natural voice is quite a bit higher than that of Lionfish. The golden egg in the fishbowl makes me think of Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (there was a task involving a golden egg), so it could be someone in the film. I'm struggling with this one, as although almost everything in the clue package points to Will, the singing voice is throwing me off. It sounds a bit older, so considering I have nothing else and I think he's done a musical or two, I'm going to go with Jonathan's guess of Jack Dee.

Firework - sparkly backdrop, does she say 'hiya babs'? OMG, what am I like? Always been a pocket rocket, a total bundle of energy. People taking pictures with their phones,. That's just their style, but maybe that's because fireworks are designed to make people smile, modelled to be colourful and create joy and happiness. Makes any event a party, and can't have a party without a few fireworks. On a shelf we can see two porcelain cats on top of some books, and a wooden model, almost as if they're dancing. On another shelf there's a porcelain dog with what looks like black crosses on it, and a gold/blue/red lightning bolt. Normally you find fireworks in the sky, but this one has also lit things up in another fashion. Stand back and shield our eyes as they're about to walk into this competition with a bang. 

Song: 'Domino' by Jessie J, not a bad singer. Someone relatively young, 20s/30s. 

Extra clue: Light up the street with a different kind of flash. 

First guess: The clue package points to a model of some description, and someone who's quite short for a model would be Kate Moss, but the singing voice doesn't point to her, it's a bit too low. I'm going to take a punt on the fashion clues being a bit of misdirection, and if it wasn't for the fact that she would have just been eliminated from Strictly at the same time as filming, I would have thought Katie McGlynn was a good shout. I'm going to go with someone else who was on Strictly, and who has been in musicals including 'Flashdance' and guess Joanne Clifton. 

Chandelier - unmasked and revealed to be Heather Small. I can safely say that none of us got her whatsoever. Definitely disguised her voice (unlike Sophie Ellis Bextor and Mel B who were the first two out last year) but turned out to be to her detriment in the end. I don't think the clue package really pointed to her at all. 

Night 2 should be up within a couple of days, and the week 2 post will be up by end of Friday. I've probably got all of these completely wrong, but that's part of the fun!