The talent of the queens shone bright, with Mis-Teeq singer and guest judge Alesha Dixon screaming, cheering and harmonising as the queens stomped, span and dropped into the splits. Their performance of Mis-Teeq’s Scandalous, which set social media ablaze for all the right reasons, was Drag Race UK – and Drag Race full stop – at its best. Indeed, the best moments in this series have been the ones that have felt authentic and joyous, such as the lip sync between Vanity Milan and Scarlett Harlett (dressed as Bianca from EastEnders, because, of course). Photograph: Ray Burmiston/BBC/World of Wonder The lip sync didn’t seem to justify both queens being sent home – with RuPaul’s decision feeling unnecessarily harsh (and necessitating a double save later in the series to balance the numbers). While River had been criticised by the judges in the main challenge, Choriza had been largely praised. Despite almost exclusively positive feedback from the judges for Kitty Scott-Claus and River Medway following the “Drag-Lexa” challenge in episode five, RuPaul revealed that there would be no winners that week and that all queens were at risk of elimination.Įpisode six saw yet another controversial decision, with the double elimination of fan favourites River Medway and Choriza May. The judges’ opinions of the cast has also seemed less important this year than delivering shocking results. Neither the queens nor the viewers knew whether to laugh or cry. All this, while also asking them to talk about their childhood traumas. It was a clever twist on a classic, but Drag Race UK didn’t stop there, throwing in an additional celebrity guest to bark catchphrases at the harangued queens, who had precious little time to create a look from scratch. This year’s challenge took place against the clock, meaning contestants had just one hour to create and change into each outfit. Expectations were sky-high, with previous ball challenges having birthed incredible looks such as Divina De Campo’s legendary laundry bag pantsuit and A’Whora’s breathtaking superhero Covid Nine-Tina (constructed entirely from blue bin bags). Photograph: Ian West/PAĪ lack of time has been a consistent theme across the series, not least in episode seven, an adaptation of the show’s classic “ball” challenge where contestants must present three themed outfits on the runway. It also celebrated queer people and shared their stories in a way that many shows struggle to do, with British drag celebrated on the global stage.Ĭontestants on the first series of Drag Race. Breathing new life into Drag Race, it struck the balance between revering and ridiculing the franchise. Embracing the camp irreverence of its queens, it allowed them to shine on their own terms, relishing their rough edges and quintessentially British pop culture references (think EastEnders, Gemma Collins and, er, Margaret Thatcher). In fact, the first two series of Drag Race UK were worlds away from the heavily produced and polished US series. It’s the closest the UK series has felt to its US counterpart, but in doing so it risks losing the subversive, cheeky charm that made it so irresistible. The third – currently airing on BBC Three – has seen a number of twists on the format, however, with shock eliminations and surprise saves, and lip-syncs used to separate both the top and the bottom of the pile. The UK version debuted at the end of 2019 to much acclaim, with two more series filmed in London and Manchester following in quick succession. I n recent years, RuPaul’s Drag Race has become a mainstay of international TV, with outposts from Spain and Australia to Thailand and Canada.
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