Richie Sambora has opened out about his experiences as Jacket Potato on The Masked Singer, including the difficulty of playing his guitar when he couldn’t even see it.
The guitar icon and Bon Jovi co-founder was unmasked during Saturday’s semi-final, much to the surprise of the judging panel and the audience.
During his farewell act, the 63-year-old artist set a global record by becoming the first masked vocalist to play an instrument while dressed up.
Richie has explained how difficult it was to play his guitar while wearing in such a bulky and unwieldy outfit for his version of Fleetwood Mac’s Go Your Own Way.
The guitarist told hosts Tim Lovejoy and Simon Rimmer on Sunday Brunch the morning after his pre-recorded elimination – and the morning after a good time at a Brit Awards after-party – ‘It was pretty heavy man, I had to get them to put a brace on the back of it and strap it in because they asked me to play guitar on one of the songs.’
Explaining what had gone into making sure that was a possibility, he explained: ‘They cut my gloves off and matched [my] fingers to gloves,’ as footage reminded fans of Jacket Potato’s yellow hands.

When he was asked if he could actually see what he was doing while playing, Richie replied: ‘Uh, not really. You’ll see me – I look down once, just to make sure!’
That’s really impressive work.
The actor also revealed that he believed his fellow Glee star Amber Riley, who was eliminated immediately after him and after playing a Bon Jovi song, was a “wonderful vocalist” – even though he had no idea who she was!
He also said that if he had survived another week and made it to the final, he planned to disclose himself by performing a Bon Jovi song while removing his head.
The show’s surviving contenders are Rhino, Fawn, and Phoenix, who will compete to be proclaimed champion next weekend.
Charlie Simpson, Kym Marsh, and David Tennant have all been suggested as possible identities.
The Masked Singer returns next Saturday at 7pm on ITV and ITVX. Sunday Brunch airs from 9:30am on Channel 4 every Sunday.