A dovetail seal assembly for sealing a gap between a bucket dovetail and a rotor, said assembly comprising: a rotor comprising a plurality of circumferentially spaced slots, each slot configured to matingly engage a respective dovetail of a turbine bucket; a turbine bucket comprising a dovetail with a U-shaped sealing groove, the groove extending along a perimeter of a tab protruding downwards from the bucket dovetail; and a dovetail seal comprising: a first end portion extending from a first extent of the first end portion a predetermined distance along a length of the dovetail seal; a second end portion extending from a first extent of the second end portion a predetermined distance along a length of the dovetail seal towards the first end portion; and a body having a length extending between the first and second end portions, said body comprising a U-shaped bend complementary to the sealing groove in the dovetail of the turbine bucket; characterized in that said first end portion comprises a flared cross-section converging from the first extent of the first end portion toward the second end portion and said second end portion comprises a flared cross-section converging from the first extent of the second end portion toward the first end portion. a rotor comprising a plurality of circumferentially spaced slots, each slot configured to matingly engage a respective dovetail of a turbine bucket; a turbine bucket comprising a dovetail with a U-shaped sealing groove, the groove extending along a perimeter of a tab protruding downwards from the bucket dovetail; and a dovetail seal comprising: a first end portion extending from a first extent of the first end portion a predetermined distance along a length of the dovetail seal; a second end portion extending from a first extent of the second end portion a predetermined distance along a length of the dovetail seal towards the first end portion; and a body having a length extending between the first and second end portions, said body comprising a U-shaped bend complementary to the sealing groove in the dovetail of the turbine bucket; characterized in that said first end portion comprises a flared cross-section converging from the first extent of the first end portion toward the second end portion and said second end portion comprises a flared cross-section converging from the first extent of the second end portion toward the first end portion. a first end portion extending from a first extent of the first end portion a predetermined distance along a length of the dovetail seal; a second end portion extending from a first extent of the second end portion a predetermined distance along a length of the dovetail seal towards the first end portion; and a body having a length extending between the first and second end portions, said body comprising a U-shaped bend complementary to the sealing groove in the dovetail of the turbine bucket; characterized in that said first end portion comprises a flared cross-section converging from the first extent of the first end portion toward the second end portion and said second end portion comprises a flared cross-section converging from the first extent of the second end portion toward the first end portion.