‘I’m chuffed to be a lesbian!’: Harriet Rose ushers in new era of TV representation on The Masked Singer: The After Mask (EXCLUSIVE)

TV presenter Harriet Rose recently worked with not one, but two of her role models. The first, “the GOAT!”: The Masked Singer’s Davina McCall – Harriet makes her debut as host of The Masked Singer spin-off The Masked Singer: The After Mask tomorrow – and second: Sue Perkins. “Which was quite a slay!” the rising star tells Attitude. “I hosted a premiere, House of the Dragon, with her and Sarel. When I was coming up, she was the only representation, really. Sandi Toksvig as well, but Sue does more of what I do.” 

This sheds light on a rather surprising fact. “I’m pretty sure I’m the only lesbian of my generation who’s a TV presenter…” observes Harriet, whose TV work also includes Big Brother: Late & Live. Just let that sink in!

Harriet – who’s presented from the red carpet at Brits, and whose YouTube shows for Kiss include Say It or Shot It, returning in 2025 – honed her craft “watching Graham Norton. I think it’s Judi Dench who said she’ll only go on his show because she trusts him, knows him. I don’t know whether they’re best friends in real life, but that’s not the point. They’re colleagues, they trust each other.” The 35-year-old DJ and podcaster, who recently interviewed The Rock in Hawaii for Moana 2, went on: “I don’t like salacious stories. Sometimes they come out naturally. But I never want anyone walking away from an interview panicking about what they said.”

Here, Harriet reveals all about her new job (“the biggest lesson it’s taught me? To believe in myself – I’ve gained a lot of confidence”), going from “straight to bi to gay” and her hopes of interviewing Chappell Roan… 

Hi Harriet! How does it feel to have this amazing new gig?

“I am so lucky in my job. Every next job is the best job I’ve ever had. It’s so exciting to have been given the opportunity to host a show that’s never been done before; a totally new concept. It was really lovely to go in and make it my own. Also, on top of that, it’s The Masked Singer. There’s nothing not to love about a show where you dress celebrities in giant, random, niche costumes and make them sing and dance on stage for us!”

Is it scary originating a new show?

“100%. It’s nerve-wracking. I’m a perfectionist. And I want everyone to have a wonderful time. But what I’ve let go of is the idea of anyone watching it. I’m focused on the guests having a fab time. As long as Davina, Mo, Jonathan and Joel are having fun when they come in, and all the other guests, I know we’re doing the right thing.”

What was it like working with Davina? You’ve said is a big inspiration to you.

“She’s the GOAT. When I came into the industry, she was the person I looked to, was like, that’s who I want to be. A couple of times people have said ‘you’re like Davina on Streetmate’, and that’s the biggest compliment. I used to do a lot of on-the-street stuff. She was everything you could dream of and more. One of the best in the industry. Hilarious. Funny. Supportive. Gave me so many pep talks. She knows how to big up other women. She told me she thought I was brilliant. I couldn’t believe it.”

You and Maya Jama joined the franchise at the same time. Was it nice to have a peer?

“Honestly, yes, so nice. We were both the new girls. Our paths have crossed loads in the party world, but never in the work world. I loved working with her. She’s brilliant on the show. The whole judging panel’s fantastic. What I’d say to people wanting to watch my show is, if you want to see a side to Maya, Davina, Mo, the whole team, you should come find us.”

Who’s your dream participant?

“Really iconic, old school people you’d never expect to do it. Let’s say it: I want Judi Dench! Helen Mirren, Meryl Streep, Whoopi Goldberg.”

And anything’s possible with that show!

“I’m telling you. Expect the unexpected with this series.”

What’s been your most surreal red-carpet experience?

“The winners’ room with Raye after she’d won all those Brits. What an iconic moment. I’ve known her since she was 21. We both cried. For me, it was beautiful to get to share that with her. And see a girl who’s worked so hard. She said the same to me – ‘look, we’ve both been doing this such a long time and now we’re where we want to be.’ My biggest dream is to host the Brits.”

Who’s your favourite interviewee of all time?

“Jason Momoa. I went on a ‘date’ with him. It was one of the best days of my life. I opened with: ‘We’re on a date, but you’re being paid to be here and I’m a lesbian.’ You can imagine where it went! He’s wonderful. So funny and kind. And so comfortable to banter with me about being a lesbian. “This is my best date with a lesbian ever!” That, to me, was chef’s kiss. 

Who are your dream interviewees?

“Jodie Foster. Cate Blanchett. The other person who’s more likely in the soon-future is Chappell Roan. I love her music. She means the world to me as a queer person. I also love her boundaries. But on top of that, she has a similar journey to me in that she went from straight to lesbian. Her reasoning for being a lesbian is similar to mine. It’s not just about sexual attraction. It’s about trust, feeling safe, lots of other stuff. I’m desperate to have a chinwag with her.”

Can you tell us about your coming out story?

“I came out very late. I remember my dad said to me – he died when I was 17, and I wasn’t gay then – when I was really young: ‘By the way, if you’re gay, we don’t care. I’m saying it to the boys and I’m saying it to you.’ And I didn’t even know what gay was! I was like: ‘Whatever!’ Cut to years later and I was like: ‘No, I am gay.’

I came out at uni, Goldsmiths, where I was surrounded by queer people. When I worked out logically that I was bi, because I did date men, I cried for about two weeks and didn’t leave the house. I was so scared of what that meant. It wasn’t easy to look like me, kind of feminine, and be gay. I fancied the girls who are feminine, and I couldn’t see any representation of that in the media and I didn’t see any of that even at uni, of people who were out and looked like me, a similar vibe to me. I thought I wouldn’t be able to have children, I thought I wouldn’t be able to get married – I was like, I’ve ruined my life.

In the end, no one cared. I told my family, and they were like: ‘Yeah, huge. Did you see you as a child? We got the hint!’ I literally used to dress like a middle-aged lesbian when I was eight! Now I feel so lucky and proud that I had a coming out where my family… I know it sounds weird, but I was almost disappointed that they didn’t kick off. Nor screaming with joy. More like: ‘No, don’t worry about it.’ Which is absolutely how everyone should react! But I wanted this big dramatic thing, because it was so dramatic for me.

In the end I went from being bi to – well, I identify as a lesbian. I think it’s really important for people to understand that when someone identifies as a lesbian, it’s irrelevant of who they’ve slept with or dated. If they identify as something, that’s what they identify as.”

What’s your advice be to any young LGBTQ viewers struggling with coming out?

“What I say to people in my DMs is, allow the feelings you’re feeling to sit inside you, and work through them. In a way I think I did that with my sitting indoors for two weeks crying. I look back and think, oh my god, it’s so sad that that girl did that. But if I hadn’t, I wouldn’t be where I am now. The other advice is, find your family. Whether your own or your chosen family who can support you. If you are seeing unsupportiveness around you, that has nothing to do with you, and everything to do with them. There’s not one person in my life I regret getting rid of who had an issue with me being gay. It’s probably the coolest thing about me. I’m extremely chuffed that I’m a lesbian. You are loved, cared for, wanted. And you can change your mind. You can work it out along the way. I started straight, went to bi, went to gay – who knows, I could marry a man in 15 years, and it would be no one’s business!” 

Catch Harriet on The After Mask this Saturday evening (4 January 2025) on ITVX.