''RuPaul's Drag Race UK'' is a British reality competition television series based on the
American television series of the same name. The television series, a collaboration between the
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...
and
World of Wonder, premiered on 3 October 2019. The show is the fourth installment of the ''
Drag Race'' franchise, and the second fronted by
RuPaul
RuPaul Andre Charles (born November 17, 1960) is an American drag queen, television host, singer, producer, writer, and actor. He produces, hosts, and judges the reality competition series ''RuPaul's Drag Race'' and has received List of awards ...
. The show documents RuPaul and a panel of judges' search for "the United Kingdom's next drag superstar", the
first series
First most commonly refers to:
* First, the ordinal form of the number 1
First or 1st may also refer to:
Acronyms
* Faint Images of the Radio Sky at Twenty-Centimeters, an astronomical survey carried out by the Very Large Array
* Far Infrared a ...
title dubbed "UK's First Drag Superstar". RuPaul plays several roles on the show including host, mentor and head judge for the series, as the contestants are given different challenges to participate in each week. The show also employs a panel of judges: RuPaul,
Michelle Visage,
Alan Carr
Alan Graham Carr (born 14 June 1976) is an English comedian, broadcaster, and writer. His breakthrough was in 2001, winning the '' City Life'' Best Newcomer of the Year and the BBC New Comedy Awards.
In the ensuing years, Carr's career burgeo ...
, and
Graham Norton
Graham William Walker (born 4 April 1963), known professionally as Graham Norton, is an Irish comedian, broadcaster, actor, and writer. He is a five-time BAFTA TV Award winner for the comedy chat show ''The Graham Norton Show'' (2007–present) ...
.
The show was renewed for a
second series in 2019; however, production was suspended in March 2020 due to the
COVID-19 pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...
.
Production of the second series resumed later in the year, with filming concluding in late 2020. The cast of 12 new queens was announced on 16 December 2020 and the series premiered on 14 January 2021. The show was renewed for a
third
Third or 3rd may refer to:
Numbers
* 3rd, the ordinal form of the cardinal number 3
* , a fraction of one third
* 1⁄60 of a ''second'', i.e., the third in a series of fractional parts in a sexagesimal number system
Places
* 3rd Street (di ...
(2021),
fourth (2022) and
fifth (2023) series.
After the first series aired, the show received numerous award nominations from the
twenty-fifth National Television Awards
The National Television Awards (often shortened to NTAs) is a British television awards ceremony, broadcast by the ITV network and begun in 1995. The National Television Awards are the most prominent ceremony for which the results are voted o ...
including: "The
Bruce Forsyth
Sir Bruce Joseph Forsyth-Johnson (22 February 1928 – 18 August 2017) was an English entertainer and television presenter whose career spanned more than 75 years.
Forsyth came to national attention from the late 1950s through the Associated Te ...
Entertainment Award" and "Best TV Judge" with both Visage and RuPaul receiving a nomination.
The show was critically acclaimed in the UK,
with 15.6 million streams during the first season.
The show's success is credited for being the driving force behind the
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...
bringing back the defunct
television channel BBC Three
BBC Three is a British free-to-air Public service broadcasting in the United Kingdom, public broadcast television channel owned and operated by the BBC. It was first launched on 9 February 2003 with programmes for a 16 to 34-year-old target aud ...
.
Spin-off show ''
RuPaul's Drag Race: UK vs. the World'' relaunched the television channel in February 2022. The return proved successful, with the show securing five times more viewers than any other show broadcasting during the channel's first day.
The show is now recognised as one of the BBC's most popular non-scripted shows.
The show's success has also paved way for contestants to break into the
music industry
The music industry are individuals and organizations that earn money by Songwriter, writing songs and musical compositions, creating and selling Sound recording and reproduction, recorded music and sheet music, presenting live music, concerts, ...
, as well as creating drag pop groups:
Frock Destroyers and
United Kingdolls, with both groups charting on the
Official UK Charts.
Bimini Bon-Boulash
Thomas George Graeme Hibbitts (born 12 May 1993), better known by the stage name Bimini Bon-Boulash or Bimini, is an English drag queen, author, recording artist and model based in East London, and born in Great Yarmouth, England. They are be ...
, who was a member of the latter group, was the first drag queen from any ''Drag Race'' franchise to sign a major mainstream record deal, signing a joint deal with
Relentless Records and
Sony Music
Sony Music Entertainment (SME), commonly known as Sony Music, is an American multinational music company owned by Japanese conglomerate Sony Group Corporation. It is the recording division of Sony Music Group, with the other half being the ...
in July 2022.
A number of contestants from the show have also signed major
modelling contracts.
The show also produced spin-off series ''
God Shave the Queens'', which follows the ''Drag Race'' contestants on tour together after the completion of the show.
The show's success also resulted in the BBC purchasing broadcasting rights for both ''
Canada's Drag Race'' and ''
RuPaul's Drag Race Down Under
''Drag Race Down Under'' (formerly ''RuPaul's Drag Race Down Under'') is a reality competition television series based on the American television series of the same name produced by World of Wonder and Warner Bros. International Television Pr ...
''.
History
''
RuPaul's Drag Race
''RuPaul's Drag Race'' is an American reality competition television series, the first in the Drag Race (franchise), ''Drag Race'' franchise, produced by World of Wonder (company), World of Wonder for Logo TV (season 1–8), WOW Presents Plus, ...
'' originated in the United States and has been adapted in various countries. The show's aim is to find the next "Drag Superstar", with the winner occupying the traits of "charisma", "uniqueness", "nerve" and "talent". RuPaul has stated that the show looks for an entertainer who can stand out from the rest. Whereas
Fenton Bailey has stated that: "Everyone can relate to the feeling of being an outsider".
In 2014, it was speculated that
Jonathan Ross was in talks to host a UK version of ''Drag Race''. Where he had stated that he was working on the version with UK drag queen,
Jodie Harsh, along with
Katie Price as one of the judges. However, production took a halt in April 2014, due to Ross having to work on family issues. A year later in 2015, Ross and Price assisted RuPaul in a one-off search of the "UK Drag Race Ambassador", which eventual
Series 1 winner,
The Vivienne won in 2015.
The Vivienne won a trip to the set of the
American version of the show.
During
Michelle Visage's time on ''
Celebrity Big Brother
''Celebrity Big Brother'' or ''Big Brother VIP'' is an adaptation of the '' Big Brother'' reality television series. It is the celebrity version of its parent franchise ''Big Brother'', the celebrity version airs in several countries, however, t ...
'', she said; "I tell you what, I could cast ''RuPaul's Drag Race'' the British invasion or the UK version in five minutes because there's so much talent over there. It's so different, the Liverpool queens, to the Blackpool queens, to the Mancunian queens, to the London queens. I'm not going to stop until
'RuPaul's Drag Race UK''gets made. Trust me."
Channel 5 expressed interest in broadcasting the show in 2018. However, in June 2018, the producers of the
American version hinted that a British version of the show was in the works.
Fenton Bailey then confirmed that he,
Randy Barbato and
RuPaul
RuPaul Andre Charles (born November 17, 1960) is an American drag queen, television host, singer, producer, writer, and actor. He produces, hosts, and judges the reality competition series ''RuPaul's Drag Race'' and has received List of awards ...
had a meeting with the BBC and that "something is coming, be afraid – be very afraid. Nothing's impossible."
Visage said about her driving force to get a UK version made: "Let me tell you I'm a big driving force behind it happening because I came over here like six or seven years ago and started performing in the gay bars. And I saw the love and the passion for ''Drag Race'' and that's the reason I did ''Celebrity Big Brother'' five years ago, was to bring attention to it. I knew that the LGBTQIA+ community in the UK needed their own version. These kids craved it, they deserved it. So, I fought really hard for this British version to happen. It took five years, but it ended up where it belonged at the BBC of all places. And it was a huge hit because there's so much heart and so much love in the UK for the art of drag."
The show was commissioned by Fiona Campbell, Controller BBC Three and
Kate Phillips, Controller,
BBC Entertainment
BBC Entertainment was an international television channel that broadcast comedy, drama, light entertainment, reality and children's programming (some regions only) from the BBC, Channel 4 and other UK production houses. The channel broadcast re ...
. The executive producers are RuPaul Charles, Fenton Bailey, Randy Barbato, Tom Campbell, Sally Miles and Bruce McCoy, and the BBC commissioning editor is Ruby Kuraishe.
Bailey credits the show as a turning point, because it helped demonstrate the show's universality.
Format
Like the American version, RuPaul has several roles within the show, acting as host, coach and judge. As the host, RuPaul introduces celebrity guests, announces the challenges the queens will take part in each week, and reveals who will be leaving the competition. For his role as a coach, RuPaul offers guidance to the contestants through each challenge, and as a judge, he critiques the queens on their overall performance of the challenge. The show uses progressive elimination to reduce the number of drag queens in the competition from the initial field of ten contestants (series 1), down until the final three, who compete in the final challenge, and the final two lip-syncing for the crown. Each episode follows a format consisting of a mini-challenge, a main challenge, a runway walk (where the contestants model fashion on a runway, usually with a theme based on the main challenge), the judging panel, a lip sync battle, and the elimination of a contestant.
Spin-off series ''RuPaul's Drag Race UK: The Podcast'', presented by
Scarlett Moffatt and Baby Lame, airs on
BBC Sounds
BBC Sounds is an Over-the-top media service, over-the-top audio streaming media, streaming and download service from the BBC that includes live radio broadcasts, Streaming media, audio on demand, and podcasts. The service is available on a wide ...
, with interviews with the queens who ''Sashay Away'' each week, as well as guests.
Mini challenges
In mini-challenges, each contestant is asked to perform a different task with varying requirements and time limitations. Certain mini-challenges are repeated from series to series, or repeated from the original American season. For instance, the first mini-challenge is a photo shoot with a photographer or RuPaul himself, that includes a special twist (such as being doused with water while in full drag, having a high-powered fan turned on during the shoot, or being photographed while jumping on a trampoline): in the UK version, the queens had to do something with their own heads via
Green Screen
Chroma key compositing, or chroma keying, is a visual-effects and post-production technique for compositing (layering) two or more images or video streams together based on colour hues ( chroma range). The technique has been used in many fie ...
. Another recurring mini-challenge is dedicated to "reading", a drag term for making insulting observations about one's peers for comedic effect, inspired by ''
Paris Is Burning''. The winner of a mini-challenge is sometimes rewarded with an advantage in the main challenge. Though most episodes have a mini-challenge, select episodes do not.
Maxi challenges and runways
The requirements of the maxi challenge vary across each episode and can be individual or group challenges. The winner of the maxi challenge also receives a special prize for their win, for example, a "RuPeter Badge" a spoof of the
CBBC
CBBC is a British free-to-air Public service broadcasting in the United Kingdom, public broadcast children's television channel owned and operated by the BBC. It is also the brand used for all BBC content for children aged 6 to 12. Its sister c ...
's famous ''
Blue Peter
''Blue Peter'' is a British children's television entertainment programme created by John Hunter Blair. It is the longest-running children's TV show in the world, having been broadcast since October 1958. It was broadcast primarily from BBC ...
''
badge
A badge is a device or accessory, often containing the insignia of an organization, which is presented or displayed to indicate some feat of service, a special accomplishment, a symbol of authority granted by taking an oath (e.g., police and fir ...
, which would be received for doing something well. The final maxi challenge consisted of the queens taking part in an all-singing and all-dancing routine to one of RuPaul's songs.
The goal of each maxi challenge involves a new theme and outcome. Contestants are often asked to design and construct a custom outfit, sometimes incorporating unconventional materials. Other challenges focus on the contestants' ability to present themselves on camera, perform with music, or perform humorously. Some challenges became a tradition across series, such as the "Snatch Game" (in which the contestants impersonate celebrities in a recreation of ''
Blankety Blank''s US equivalent, ''Match Game''), a ball or a makeover, in which the contestants create drag personas for other people. The contestants walk down a runway presenting outfits. If the maxi challenge involves the creation of an outfit, that outfit is presented to the judges on the runway. Otherwise, a theme is assigned and the contestants must put together a look that fits the theme, which is presented to the judges. The runway looks and presentation are judged along with the maxi challenge performance.
Judging panel
A panel of judges cast opinions about the challenge performances and runway looks, first to the contestants onstage, and then again with them offstage.
RuPaul
RuPaul Andre Charles (born November 17, 1960) is an American drag queen, television host, singer, producer, writer, and actor. He produces, hosts, and judges the reality competition series ''RuPaul's Drag Race'' and has received List of awards ...
, as with the
original American version, acts as both the host and main judge, with
Michelle Visage supporting him on the panel every episode.
Graham Norton
Graham William Walker (born 4 April 1963), known professionally as Graham Norton, is an Irish comedian, broadcaster, actor, and writer. He is a five-time BAFTA TV Award winner for the comedy chat show ''The Graham Norton Show'' (2007–present) ...
and
Alan Carr
Alan Graham Carr (born 14 June 1976) is an English comedian, broadcaster, and writer. His breakthrough was in 2001, winning the '' City Life'' Best Newcomer of the Year and the BBC New Comedy Awards.
In the ensuing years, Carr's career burgeo ...
are rotating supporting judges, with one of them usually appearing on the panel each episode, with the fourth slot filled by a new guest judge each episode. For the seventh episode of the fourth series, RuPaul was absent from the panel and Visage acted as stand-in host and main judge. In 2023, Norton, Carr, and Visage all returned to judge the fifth series of the show.
Guest judges in Series 1 included
Maisie Williams,
Geri Halliwell,
Jade Thirlwall
Jade Amelia Thirlwall (born 26 December 1992) is an English singer. Her music career began at the age of 15, when she auditioned for ''The X Factor (British TV series), The X Factor UK'' on three occasions before rising to prominence as a member ...
,
Andrew Garfield
Andrew Russell Garfield (born 20 August 1983) is an English and American actor. After his breakout role in '' Boy A'' (2007), he came to international attention with the supporting role of Eduardo Saverin in the drama ''The Social Network'' ...
,
Michaela Coel
Michaela Ewuraba Boakye-Collinson (born 1987), known professionally as Michaela Coel, is a British actress, writer and television director. She is best known for creating and starring in the E4 television sitcom ''Chewing Gum'' (2015–2017), ...
,
Cheryl, and
Twiggy
Dame Lesley Lawson (''née'' Hornby; born 19 September 1949), widely known by the nickname Twiggy, is an English model, actress, and singer. She was a Culture of the United Kingdom, British cultural icon and a prominent teenage model during th ...
.
MNEK
Uzoechi Osisioma "Uzo" Emenike (; born 9 November 1994), professionally known by his stage name MNEK ( ; a gramogram of Emenike), is a British singer, songwriter and record producer. He has been nominated for a Grammy and a Brit Award, and ha ...
and
AJ &
Curtis Pritchard served as guest vocalists and choreographers to the contestants during themed tasks.
Dawn French
Dawn Roma French (born 11 October 1957) is a British actress, comedian and writer. She is known for writing and starring on the BBC sketch comedy series '' French and Saunders'' (1987–2007) with her best friend and comedy partner Jennifer Sa ...
revealed herself to be the first guest judge of the
second series.
She went onto reveal that the BBC had originally asked French to be a main judge on the
first series
First most commonly refers to:
* First, the ordinal form of the number 1
First or 1st may also refer to:
Acronyms
* Faint Images of the Radio Sky at Twenty-Centimeters, an astronomical survey carried out by the Very Large Array
* Far Infrared a ...
.
French said: "They did originally ask me if I would be a full-time judge, but I couldn't – because I just don't live in London. But I am going to be a guest judge in a couple of weeks."
She further revealed that for the second series, due to
COVID-19
Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2. In January 2020, the disease spread worldwide, resulting in the COVID-19 pandemic.
The symptoms of COVID‑19 can vary but often include fever ...
, that each of the judges would sit on their own panel, instead of sitting together on one panel. As well as a "sort of Perspex between each judge".
Series 4 guest judges were revealed on 31 August 2022 to include:
Olly Alexander
Oliver Alexander Thornton (born 15 July 1990) is an English singer, actor and List of LGBTQ rights activists, LGBTQ activist who rose to prominence as the lead singer of the English pop band Years & Years, who achieved two No. 1 albums on the U ...
,
Boy George
George Alan O'Dowd (born 14 June 1961), known professionally as Boy George, is an English singer-songwriter and DJ who rose to fame as the lead singer of the pop band Culture Club. He began his solo career in 1987. Boy George grew up in Eltham a ...
,
Alison Hammond,
Mel B
Melanie Janine Brown, Order of the British Empire, MBE (born 29 May 1975), commonly known as Mel B or Melanie B, is an English singer, songwriter, television personality, and actress. She rose to fame in the mid 1990s as a member of the Pop mus ...
,
Dame Joanna Lumley,
Lorraine Pascale,
Leomie Anderson,
FKA Twigs
Tahliah Debrett Barnett (born 16 January 1988), known professionally as FKA Twigs (stylized as FKA twigs), is an English singer, songwriter, record producer, actor, and dancer. She was a backup dancer for numerous musicians, and made her musica ...
,
Hannah Waddingham,
and former ''
RuPaul's Drag Race
''RuPaul's Drag Race'' is an American reality competition television series, the first in the Drag Race (franchise), ''Drag Race'' franchise, produced by World of Wonder (company), World of Wonder for Logo TV (season 1–8), WOW Presents Plus, ...
'' contestant
Raven
A raven is any of several large-bodied passerine bird species in the genus '' Corvus''. These species do not form a single taxonomic group within the genus. There is no consistent distinction between crows and ravens; the two names are assigne ...
.
Carol Vorderman was revealed as the celebrity guest for the
fifth series in February 2023.
Alexandra Burke
Alexandra Imelda Cecelia Ewen Burke (born 25 August 1988) is an English singer, songwriter and actress. She won the fifth series of the talent television show ''The X Factor'' in 2008. Following the show, she was signed to Syco Music and releas ...
was revealed to feature during the
Snatch Game
Snatch Game is a comedy challenge recurring across the ''Drag Race'' television franchise and a fixture of the reality competition series. Since the second season of the original American ''RuPaul's Drag Race'' series in 2010, the challenge ha ...
episode as a guest judge.
Burke said of her experience as a guest judge: "I had the best time ever being a part of the iconic Snatch Game. I'm the biggest fan of RuPaul and the show. I've been desperate to appear on Drag Race, and so to be there was a real honour and I'm dreaming of being able to do it again and again!"
Other guest judges were revealed to be
Aisling Bea,
Cush Jumbo,
Yasmin Finney,
Joel Dommett
Joel Patrick Dommett (born 8 June 1985) is an English comedian, television presenter and actor. After beginning his career as an actor, and appearing in various television shows including '' Casualty'' and '' Skins'', he embarked on stand-up com ...
and
Suranne Jones.
Sophie Ellis-Bextor
Sophie Michelle Ellis-Bextor (born 10 April 1979) is an English singer and songwriter. She first came to prominence in the late 1990s as the lead vocalist of the indie rock band Theaudience. After the group disbanded, Ellis-Bextor went solo and ...
was also revealed to be a guest judge.
Series 6 guest judges included:
Claire Richards of
Steps,
Simon Le Bon of
Duran Duran
Duran Duran () are an English pop rock band formed in Birmingham in 1978 by singer Stephen Duffy, keyboardist Nick Rhodes and guitarist/bassist John Taylor (bass guitarist), John Taylor. After several early changes, the band's line-up settled ...
,
Siobhán McSweeney
Siobhán McSweeney (born 27 December 1979) is an Irish actress and presenter. She is best known for her role as Sister Michael in the teen sitcom ''Derry Girls'' which earned her a British Academy of Film and Television Arts, BAFTA British Acad ...
,
Beverley Knight
Beverley Knight (born Beverley Anne Smith, 22 March 1973) is an English singer, songwriter, actress and radio personality. She released her first album, ''The B-Funk'', in 1995. Heavily influenced by American soul music icons such as Sam Cooke ...
,
Mabel and
AJ Odudu
Onatejiro "AJ" Odudu (born 12 February 1988) is a British television presenter. She co-presents the ITV2 reality shows '' Big Brother'' (since 2023) and ''Celebrity Big Brother'' (since 2024) alongside Will Best, and previously the spin-off sh ...
.
Series overview
Series 1–3 (2019–2021): BBC Three iPlayer
The first series of ''RuPaul's Drag Race UK'' began airing on 3 October 2019 on the BBC Three section of BBC iPlayer in the UK and World of Wonder's WOW Presents Plus streaming service internationally, and ran for 8 episodes. The cast was announced on 21 August on YouTube and Instagram.
Baga Chipz,
Divina de Campo and
The Vivienne made the final, with The Vivienne being crowned the UK's First Drag Superstar and heading to Hollywood to star in their own digital TV series. In October 2020, Series 1 contestant,
Crystal
A crystal or crystalline solid is a solid material whose constituents (such as atoms, molecules, or ions) are arranged in a highly ordered microscopic structure, forming a crystal lattice that extends in all directions. In addition, macros ...
sued
Laurence Fox for defamation after he called them a "paedophile" on social media as he ranted at
Sainsbury's
J Sainsbury plc, trading as Sainsbury's, is a British supermarket and the second-largest chain of supermarkets in the United Kingdom.
Founded in 1869 by John James Sainsbury with a shop in Drury Lane, London, the company was the largest UK r ...
for supporting
Black Lives Matter
Black Lives Matter (BLM) is a Decentralization, decentralized political and social movement that aims to highlight racism, discrimination and Racial inequality in the United States, racial inequality experienced by black people, and to pro ...
.
It was revealed that the contestants from Series 1 would all star in a documentary web television series about the tour following the first series of ''RuPaul's Drag Race UK''.
The show originally premiered internationally on 10 September 2020 on WOW Presents Plus and will debut on BBC iPlayer on 15 November 2020.
The eight-episode series follows ''RuPaul's Drag Race UK'' Series 1 contestants and it also features
Alyssa Edwards from
Season 5 of the
American version as the host of the six-city tour across the UK, titled ''
God Shave the Queens''. The first series was a massive success generating many memes, huge critical acclaim, picking up numerous award nominations, and even breaking into the music charts with a top ten single, series one of ''RuPaul's Drag Race UK'' was a triumph for BBC Three, with a huge 15.6 million requests on iPlayer so far.
The second series of ''RuPaul's Drag Race UK'' was confirmed and casting was closed on 15 November 2019. Filming was indefinitely suspended because of the
COVID-19 pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...
.
In June 2020, Visage confirmed that the show would return once government guidelines were lifted.
Visage said: "It's gonna happen but we just can't do it in quarantine. So once the guidelines are lifted then we'll have more information but we are excited to get underway."
On 29 October 2020, during an interview on ''
Lorraine
Lorraine, also , ; ; Lorrain: ''Louréne''; Lorraine Franconian: ''Lottringe''; ; ; is a cultural and historical region in Eastern France, now located in the administrative region of Grand Est. Its name stems from the medieval kingdom of ...
'', Carr revealed that production had begun again and he was due to resume filming the second series of the show within two weeks.
Carr revealed that RuPaul and Visage who go through the application auditions to choose which queens will make it onto the show, had more than double the applicants than the first series.
Carr also revealed that he never knows who he is going to be on the show with, as it is so secretive and when he turns up to judge the show, he does not know which queens are still in the competition and who will be the guest judges.
He said of his excitement of filming the show; "They've already filmed the first one. I can't wait. I'm going to be like that kid in that Alton Towers advert saying, One more sleep!"
During an interview on judge Norton's show, ''
The Graham Norton Show
''The Graham Norton Show'' is a British comedy chat show presented by Graham Norton. It was initially broadcast on BBC Two, from 22 February 2007, before moving to BBC One in October 2009. It currently airs on Friday evenings, with Norton ...
'',
Dawn French
Dawn Roma French (born 11 October 1957) is a British actress, comedian and writer. She is known for writing and starring on the BBC sketch comedy series '' French and Saunders'' (1987–2007) with her best friend and comedy partner Jennifer Sa ...
revealed herself to be the first guest judge of the series.
French revealed that the panel had now been changed to a socially distanced panel, and each of the judges had to sit at their own smaller panel, as opposed to the usual sitting together.
French further revealed that the BBC had originally asked her to be a full-time judge for the first series, however she had to decline because she did not live in London and would mean a lot of travelling for her.
In November 2020, BBC revealed that series two would air in early 2021.
A spokesperson for the BBC said, "Our lips are still sealed with regards to the incoming queens, and extra special celebrity judges, BUT we can tell you that the second series will be even bigger than the first, with twelve queens battling it out for the title of the UK's Next Drag Superstar over ten weeks."
There will be 12 queens competing for the title of "UK's Next Drag Superstar", over 10 episodes.
RuPaul revealed he was "Looking forward to better days! I'm happy to announce the triumphant return of ''RuPaul's Drag Race UK''. Early in 2021, season two will arrive with all the hope, joy, laughter and glitter you've come to expect from our brilliant queens. We're also currently casting season three with the best and the brightest Great Britain has to offer. We feel honored that you've embraced our little show, and our only wish is that we can offer a smile at a time when we can all use it the most."
It was announced on 15 December 2020, that the second series would premier on 14 January 2021.
Gemma Collins was revealed to be a panellist on the
Snatch Game
Snatch Game is a comedy challenge recurring across the ''Drag Race'' television franchise and a fixture of the reality competition series. Since the second season of the original American ''RuPaul's Drag Race'' series in 2010, the challenge ha ...
episode. Unlike Series 1, four queens made it to the finale with
Lawrence Chaney
Lawrence Chaney (born Lawrence Maidment; 16 October 1996) is a British Glasgow-based drag queen. They are best known for winning the RuPaul's Drag Race UK (series 2), second series of ''RuPaul's Drag Race UK'', becoming the first Scottish drag q ...
being crowned the winner, and
Bimini Bon-Boulash
Thomas George Graeme Hibbitts (born 12 May 1993), better known by the stage name Bimini Bon-Boulash or Bimini, is an English drag queen, author, recording artist and model based in East London, and born in Great Yarmouth, England. They are be ...
and
Tayce
Tayce Szura-Radix (stage name Tayce; born 28 May 1994) is a Welsh drag queen, rapper and model from Newport, Wales. She is best known for competing in the second series of '' RuPaul's Drag Race UK'', in which she placed joint runner-up.
Care ...
as runners-up.
Fenton Bailey and Randy Barbato,
World of Wonder Co-Founders and Executive Producers, revealed that 2021 would have two series of ''RuPaul's Drag Race UK''. Stating: "Sashay away 2020. 2021 is just around the corner, and with it not one but two seasons of ''RuPaul's Drag Race UK''. We are thrilled to be doing our part to make 2021 much betta!"
Casting for the third series opened on 2 November 2020.
One of the queens confirmed to compete is
Veronica Green, who was promised an open invitation to return to the show after having to leave Series 2 due to a positive COVID-19 diagnosis. The series began airing on 23 September, and concluded on 25 November 2021.
Ella Vaday,
Kitty Scott-Claus and
Krystal Versace made it to the final episode, with Krystal Versace winning the third series. It was the last series to aired on BBC One as BBC Three block before the return of BBC Three as a television channel. In October 2021, BBC Three announced the opening for the casting of the fourth series. Casting closed on 10 November 2021. Series 3 contestant,
Victoria Scone, who had to withdraw from the series announced she would not return to the fourth series despite receiving an open invitation. ''RuPaul's Drag Race UK'' was nominated for two
2022 British Academy Television Awards including, "
Must-See Moment" and "
Best Reality and Constructed Factual Series".
Series 1 contestants
Blu Hydrangea,
Baga Chipz and
Cheryl Hole partook in the spin-off series ''
RuPaul's Drag Race: UK vs the World'' in 2022, which relaunched
BBC Three
BBC Three is a British free-to-air Public service broadcasting in the United Kingdom, public broadcast television channel owned and operated by the BBC. It was first launched on 9 February 2003 with programmes for a 16 to 34-year-old target aud ...
as a
television channel on 1 February 2022.
The series was filmed in March 2021, in
Manchester
Manchester () is a city and the metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, England. It had an estimated population of in . Greater Manchester is the third-most populous metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, with a population of 2.92&nbs ...
at the same location as the third series of the show.
In this series, the two best performing queens of the challenge must "Lip Sync for the World", with the winner of the lip sync earning a golden "RuPeter Badge" and choosing which one of the bottom queens to eliminate. Blu Hydrangea emerged as the winner from the series, with ''
RuPaul's Drag Race
''RuPaul's Drag Race'' is an American reality competition television series, the first in the Drag Race (franchise), ''Drag Race'' franchise, produced by World of Wonder (company), World of Wonder for Logo TV (season 1–8), WOW Presents Plus, ...
''
Season 10 and
''All Stars'' Season 4 contestant
Mo Heart as the runner-up. The series premiered with impressive viewing figures drawing in 1 million live viewers.
Series 4–present (2022–present): BBC Three
On 27 October 2021, it was announced via the show's official
Instagram
Instagram is an American photo sharing, photo and Short-form content, short-form video sharing social networking service owned by Meta Platforms. It allows users to upload media that can be edited with Social media camera filter, filters, be ...
page that casting for Series 4 was now open.
The deadline and casting close date was 10 November 2021.
''
Sex Education
Sex education, also known as sexual education, sexuality education or sex ed, is the instruction of issues relating to human sexuality, including human sexual anatomy, Human sexual activity, sexual activity, sexual reproduction, safe sex, birth ...
'' star
Hannah Waddingham was the first celebrity guest judge revealed to appear on the fourth series.
Waddingham revealed she would be featured as a guest judge on the show during an episode of ''
Jimmy Kimmel Live!
''Jimmy Kimmel Live!'', sometimes shortened to ''JKL'', is an American late-night talk show, created and hosted by Jimmy Kimmel, and broadcast on ABC. The nightly hour-long show tapes and is based out of the Hollywood Masonic Temple in Hollywo ...
'' which RuPaul was the celebrity guest host.
Waddingham disclosed; "I'm a guest judge on ''RuPaul's Drag Race UK''. I mean, I was giddy as all hell about that. Michelle
isagewill tell you, I was like: 'Can't believe I'm here'".
Judge
Graham Norton
Graham William Walker (born 4 April 1963), known professionally as Graham Norton, is an Irish comedian, broadcaster, actor, and writer. He is a five-time BAFTA TV Award winner for the comedy chat show ''The Graham Norton Show'' (2007–present) ...
revealed in an interview with ''
Gay Times
''Gay Times'' (stylized in all caps), also known as ''GAY TIMES Magazine'' and as ''GT'', is a UK-based LGBTQ+ magazine established in 1984. Originally a magazine for gay and bisexual men, the company began including content for the LGBTQ+ comm ...
'' that the competitors that appeared on the fourth series were "some of the best queens we’ve ever seen".
Norton said because the series was a post-
COVID-19
Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2. In January 2020, the disease spread worldwide, resulting in the COVID-19 pandemic.
The symptoms of COVID‑19 can vary but often include fever ...
season, the queens had a lot more freedom.
Norton said, "It was very hard for the
eason threequeens in COVID because they weren't making any money and lots of the dressmakers had stopped working. I think it was really hard during COVID, so this is definitely a post-COVID season and it's great. You can look forward to it. You don't need to worry!"
BBC's chief executive's confirmed that the fourth season will be part of the autumn schedule, likely to begin airing in September.
Mel B
Melanie Janine Brown, Order of the British Empire, MBE (born 29 May 1975), commonly known as Mel B or Melanie B, is an English singer, songwriter, television personality, and actress. She rose to fame in the mid 1990s as a member of the Pop mus ...
was revealed to be a guest judge on the series.
Alison Hammond and
Tess Daly
Helen Elizabeth "Tess" Daly (born 29 March 1969) is an English television presenter and former model. Since 2004, she has co-presented the BBC One dancing competition show '' Strictly Come Dancing''.
Early life
Helen Elizabeth Daly was born o ...
were also confirmed to be making a cameo appearance.
On 30 August 2022, BBC revealed a teaser of the show with the slogan "Bring it to the RUNW4Y".
The following day, BBC confirmed the celebrity guest judges for the season would include:
Dame Joanna Lumley,
Boy George
George Alan O'Dowd (born 14 June 1961), known professionally as Boy George, is an English singer-songwriter and DJ who rose to fame as the lead singer of the pop band Culture Club. He began his solo career in 1987. Boy George grew up in Eltham a ...
,
Leomie Anderson,
Olly Alexander
Oliver Alexander Thornton (born 15 July 1990) is an English singer, actor and List of LGBTQ rights activists, LGBTQ activist who rose to prominence as the lead singer of the English pop band Years & Years, who achieved two No. 1 albums on the U ...
,
FKA Twigs
Tahliah Debrett Barnett (born 16 January 1988), known professionally as FKA Twigs (stylized as FKA twigs), is an English singer, songwriter, record producer, actor, and dancer. She was a backup dancer for numerous musicians, and made her musica ...
,
Lorraine Pascale and Hammond
would in fact feature as a celebrity guest judge and not feature as a cameo appearance.
Giovanni Pernice was announced as the shows resident choreographer for the season.
Aisling Bea will also make a cameo appearance during the comedy challenge.
Lumley stated: "It thrills me to be a part of ''RuPaul's Drag Race UK''. The show is astounding at every level, and I loved it from the very start. RuPaul is the definition of what it is to be fabulous, and the show is packed with mad creativity, humour, and drop-dead glamour."
Whereas Boy George stated: "''Drag Race'' is such a phenomena and it has unleashed intense creativity and debate. RuPaul has made the concept of drag into a household name! I'm part of the drag daisy chain. Every nice drag queen is my sister and the rest are second cousins! It was a lot of fun being part of the show."
It was later revealed that Daly and
AJ Odudu
Onatejiro "AJ" Odudu (born 12 February 1988) is a British television presenter. She co-presents the ITV2 reality shows '' Big Brother'' (since 2023) and ''Celebrity Big Brother'' (since 2024) alongside Will Best, and previously the spin-off sh ...
would feature during the
Snatch Game
Snatch Game is a comedy challenge recurring across the ''Drag Race'' television franchise and a fixture of the reality competition series. Since the second season of the original American ''RuPaul's Drag Race'' series in 2010, the challenge ha ...
episode.
The BBC subsequently revealed the premiere date for
fourth series would be 22 September 2022.
By September 2022, ''Drag Race UK'' has recorded 51 million stream requests in the United Kingdom, becoming one of the network's most successful shows. On 2 September 2022, BBC announced the renewal of the show for a fifth series and casting was open, and would remain open for two weeks until 16 September.
The competitors for the fourth series were revealed on 7 September 2022 on social media. The cast also featured
Dakota Schiffer, the first openly
transgender
A transgender (often shortened to trans) person has a gender identity different from that typically associated with the sex they were sex assignment, assigned at birth.
The opposite of ''transgender'' is ''cisgender'', which describes perso ...
contestant to compete in the British version of the show. RuPaul was absent during the seventh episode of the fourth series, therefore Visage took place as main judge and host, whilst
Raven
A raven is any of several large-bodied passerine bird species in the genus '' Corvus''. These species do not form a single taxonomic group within the genus. There is no consistent distinction between crows and ravens; the two names are assigne ...
took Visage's spot on the judging panel. It subsequently made it the first episode RuPaul had missed from across all the ''
Drag Race universe'' hosted by RuPaul himself. Coincidentally, it made Raven the first former ''Drag Race'' contestant to judge on a RuPaul fronted franchise.
On 23 September 2022, the BBC reported that Series 2 contestant,
Cherry Valentine, had died at the age of 28. Cherry Valentine's family released the following statement: "It is with the most heart wrenching and deepest sadness to inform you that our George – Cherry Valentine – has tragically passed away. This will come as a profound shock to most people & we understand there is no easy way for this to be announced. As his family, we are still processing his death and our lives will never be the same. We understand how much he is loved and how many lives he has inspired and touched. All we ask is for your patience and your prayers in this time. We love you Georgie 30 November 1993 – 18 September 2022." Subsequently, the second episode from Series 4 was dedicated to Cherry Valentine in their memory on 29 September 2022.
Cheddar Gorgeous,
Danny Beard,
Black Peppa and
Jonbers Blonde made the finale on 24 November 2022, with Danny Beard winning the competition.
The fifth series of the show began filming in January 2023.
Carol Vorderman was revealed to be the first guest judge for the fifth series of the show.
A producer of the show said: "Everyone at ''Drag Race UK'' has wanted to have
ordermanon the panel for years, so they're over the moon that they have finally made it happen.
heis a household name and very popular with the public. And, crucially, she's a massive fan of the show and gets what it's all about."
Sophie Ellis-Bextor
Sophie Michelle Ellis-Bextor (born 10 April 1979) is an English singer and songwriter. She first came to prominence in the late 1990s as the lead vocalist of the indie rock band Theaudience. After the group disbanded, Ellis-Bextor went solo and ...
has reportedly been seen arriving to film the show.
Sinitta was also reported to have been signed as a guest judge for the fifth season, production stating: "Sinitta is one of the most exciting signings in the show's history. She's a bona fide gay icon and loves outrageous outfits, so she's perfect for ''Drag Race''.
In 2023, the show came under scrutiny for the contestants not receiving any cash prize compared to the other
''Drag Race'' franchises.
Willam Belli
Willam Belli (, born June 30, 1982), mononymously known as Willam, is an American drag queen, actor, singer-songwriter, reality television personality, author, and YouTuber. Willam came to prominence as a contestant on the RuPaul's Drag Race sea ...
, contestant on the
fourth season of the
American version, commented: "They need to pay the girls a prize. That is thousands and thousands and thousands of pounds worth of outfits and hair. Some of these girls are coming out in the red."
The winner of Series 4, Danny Beard, commented that they "could have bought a house", with the money spent preparing for ''RuPaul's Drag Race UK''.
On 30 August 2023, BBC revealed the guest judges and special guests for Series 5, including Vorderman, Ellis-Bextor,
Yasmin Finney,
Suranne Jones,
Kristen McMenamy,
Karen Hauer,
Aisling Bea, who appeared as a special guest in the previous series,
Joel Dommett
Joel Patrick Dommett (born 8 June 1985) is an English comedian, television presenter and actor. After beginning his career as an actor, and appearing in various television shows including '' Casualty'' and '' Skins'', he embarked on stand-up com ...
,
Alexandra Burke
Alexandra Imelda Cecelia Ewen Burke (born 25 August 1988) is an English singer, songwriter and actress. She won the fifth series of the talent television show ''The X Factor'' in 2008. Following the show, she was signed to Syco Music and releas ...
,
Cush Jumbo,
Edward Enninful
Edward Kobina Enninful (born 22 February 1972) is a Ghanaian-born British editor and stylist who was editor-in-chief of British Vogue, British ''Vogue'' and European editorial director of Condé Nast.
He was appointed fashion director of the ...
,
and
Daphne Guinness,
who previously served as a guest judge on the
seventh season of ''
RuPaul's Drag Race All Stars
''RuPaul's Drag Race All Stars'' is an American reality competition spin off edition of the original ''RuPaul's Drag Race'', which is produced by World of Wonder, for Logo TV and later VH1. The show premiered on October 22, 2012, on Logo TV, ...
''.
It was announced in September 2023, that the show had been renewed for a sixth season.
Ginger Johnson won the fifth series on 30 November 2023, with
Michael Marouli as the runner-up, and
Tomara Thomas in third place.
The sixth series was announced in September 2023 via the official
Twitter
Twitter, officially known as X since 2023, is an American microblogging and social networking service. It is one of the world's largest social media platforms and one of the most-visited websites. Users can share short text messages, image ...
account, with filming beginning in January 2024. In August 2024, it was announced that the show would return in September, with the series being commissioned for 12 episodes unlike the 10 episodes the previous five series had been commissioned for.
Later that month, the BBC revealed the promotional poster for the series featuring RuPaul, as well as the list of guest judges, which included
AJ Odudu
Onatejiro "AJ" Odudu (born 12 February 1988) is a British television presenter. She co-presents the ITV2 reality shows '' Big Brother'' (since 2023) and ''Celebrity Big Brother'' (since 2024) alongside Will Best, and previously the spin-off sh ...
,
Alison Goldfrapp
Alison Elizabeth Margaret Goldfrapp (born 13 May 1966) is an English musician and record producer, known as the vocalist of English electronic music duo Goldfrapp.
Early life and education
Alison Elizabeth Margaret Goldfrapp was born on 13 Ma ...
,
Amanda Holden
Amanda Louise Holden (born 16 February 1971) is an English media personality, actress and singer. Since 2007, she has been a judge on the television talent competition show '' Britain's Got Talent'' on ITV. She also co-hosts the national ''H ...
,
Beverley Knight
Beverley Knight (born Beverley Anne Smith, 22 March 1973) is an English singer, songwriter, actress and radio personality. She released her first album, ''The B-Funk'', in 1995. Heavily influenced by American soul music icons such as Sam Cooke ...
,
Claire Richards,
Mabel,
Siobhán McSweeney
Siobhán McSweeney (born 27 December 1979) is an Irish actress and presenter. She is best known for her role as Sister Michael in the teen sitcom ''Derry Girls'' which earned her a British Academy of Film and Television Arts, BAFTA British Acad ...
and
Simon Le Bon, as well as
Kristen McMenamy, who served as a guest judge on the first episode of the previous series.
Alexandra Burke
Alexandra Imelda Cecelia Ewen Burke (born 25 August 1988) is an English singer, songwriter and actress. She won the fifth series of the talent television show ''The X Factor'' in 2008. Following the show, she was signed to Syco Music and releas ...
, who served as a guest judge during the fifth series, was also announced to return as a vocal coach for the sixth series, as well as Claudimar Neto returning as a choreographer.
Girls Aloud
Girls Aloud are a British-Irish pop music, pop girl group that was created through the ITV (TV network), ITV talent show ''Popstars: The Rivals'' in 2002. The line up consisted of members Cheryl (singer), Cheryl, Nadine Coyle, Sarah Harding, N ...
and
The Saturdays
The Saturdays are an English-Irish girl group based in London, England. The group formed during the summer of 2007 and has been on hiatus since 2014. The lineup consists of Frankie Bridge, Una Healy, Rochelle Humes, Mollie King, and Vanessa Whi ...
dancer, former
S Club 8
S Club 8 (originally S Club Juniors) were a spin off of the British pop music, pop group S Club, S Club 7. The children were all in their early teens or younger when they were chosen from thousands of hopefuls on the television series ''S Club ...
member
Aaron Renfree was revealed to have a guest position within the series, helping the queens during a girl-group challenge.
Kyran Thrax,
La Voix
''La Voix'' () is a francophone Canada, Canadian reality television, reality talent show as part of the international television series franchise ''The Voice (franchise), The Voice'', based on the original The Voice of Holland, Dutch version o ...
,
Marmalade
Marmalade (from the Portuguese ''marmelada'') is a fruit preserves, fruit preserve made from the juice and peel of citrus fruits boiled with sugar and water. The well-known version is made from bitter orange. It also has been made from lemons ...
and
Rileasa Slaves made the finale on 28 November 2024, with Kyran Thrax winning the competition. In October 2024, the show was renewed for a seventh series.
On 5 January 2025, it was reported that the first winner of ''RuPaul's Drag Race UK'',
The Vivienne, had died at the age of 32. The Vivienne's publicist released the following statement: "It is with immense sadness that we let you know our beloved James Lee Williams - The Vivienne, has passed this weekend. James was an incredibly loved, warm-hearted and amazing person. Their family are heartbroken at the loss of their son, brother and uncle. They are so proud of the wonderful things James achieved in their life and career. We will not be releasing any further details. We please ask that James's family are given the time and privacy they now need to process and grieve." The death of The Vivienne marks the first winner of the ''Drag Race'' franchise to pass away.
Contestants
There have been a total of 56 contestants featured in six series of ''RuPaul's Drag Race UK'' so far with
The Vivienne,
Lawrence Chaney
Lawrence Chaney (born Lawrence Maidment; 16 October 1996) is a British Glasgow-based drag queen. They are best known for winning the RuPaul's Drag Race UK (series 2), second series of ''RuPaul's Drag Race UK'', becoming the first Scottish drag q ...
,
Krystal Versace,
Danny Beard,
Ginger Johnson, and
Kyran Thrax being crowned UK's Next Drag Superstar. Contestants have returned to compete on other editions of the
''Drag Race'' franchise, including on ''
Canada's Drag Race: Canada vs. the World'', ''
RuPaul's Drag Race All Stars
''RuPaul's Drag Race All Stars'' is an American reality competition spin off edition of the original ''RuPaul's Drag Race'', which is produced by World of Wonder, for Logo TV and later VH1. The show premiered on October 22, 2012, on Logo TV, ...
'', and ''
RuPaul's Drag Race Global All Stars
''RuPaul's Drag Race Global All Stars'' is a television series, which premiered on August 16, 2024 and ended on October 25, 2024.
On July 15, 2024, the cast was announced, consisting of 12 contestants from various ''Drag Race'' adaptations and ...
''.
''RuPaul's Drag Race: UK vs. the World''
On 21 December 2021,
World of Wonder announced that a spin-off series, ''
RuPaul's Drag Race: UK vs. the World'', would premiere on 1 February 2022, with the
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...
announcing that the series would coincide with the relaunch of
BBC Three
BBC Three is a British free-to-air Public service broadcasting in the United Kingdom, public broadcast television channel owned and operated by the BBC. It was first launched on 9 February 2003 with programmes for a 16 to 34-year-old target aud ...
as a
television channel.
The series features queens from the UK version of the show, along with international queens who have competed in the ''
Drag Race'' franchise around the world.
The cast of the
first series
First most commonly refers to:
* First, the ordinal form of the number 1
First or 1st may also refer to:
Acronyms
* Faint Images of the Radio Sky at Twenty-Centimeters, an astronomical survey carried out by the Very Large Array
* Far Infrared a ...
consisted of
Baga Chipz,
Blu Hydrangea and
Cheryl Hole (all from the
first series
First most commonly refers to:
* First, the ordinal form of the number 1
First or 1st may also refer to:
Acronyms
* Faint Images of the Radio Sky at Twenty-Centimeters, an astronomical survey carried out by the Very Large Array
* Far Infrared a ...
of ''RuPaul's Drag Race UK''),
Mo Heart (from the
tenth season of ''
RuPaul's Drag Race
''RuPaul's Drag Race'' is an American reality competition television series, the first in the Drag Race (franchise), ''Drag Race'' franchise, produced by World of Wonder (company), World of Wonder for Logo TV (season 1–8), WOW Presents Plus, ...
'' and the
fourth season of ''
All Stars'') and
Jujubee (from the
second season of ''RuPaul's Drag Race'' and the
first and
fifth seasons of ''All Stars''),
Jimbo and
Lemon
The lemon (''Citrus'' × ''limon'') is a species of small evergreen tree in the ''Citrus'' genus of the flowering plant family Rutaceae. A true lemon is a hybrid of the citron and the bitter orange. Its origins are uncertain, but some ...
(both from the
first season of ''
Canada's Drag Race''),
Janey Jacké (from the
first season of ''
Drag Race Holland''), and
Pangina Heals (the co-host of ''
Drag Race Thailand''). During the finale on 8 March 2022, Blu Hydrangea was crowned "Queen of the Mothertucking World", winning the opportunity to record a remix of the song "
Champion
A champion (from the late Latin ''campio'') is the victor in a challenge, Competition, contest or competition. There can be a territorial pyramid of championships, e.g. local, regional/provincial/state, national, continental and world champi ...
" with RuPaul, with Mo Heart placing runner-up.
In December 2023, it was announced that ''RuPaul's Drag Race: UK vs. the World'' would be returning for a
second series. The cast was announced at
RuPaul's DragCon UK on 13 January 2024, and consisted of
Gothy Kendoll (
''UK'' series 1),
Tia Kofi (
''UK'' series 2),
Choriza May (
''UK'' series 3),
Jonbers Blonde (
''UK'' series 4),
Scarlet Envy
Scarlet Envy (born February 26, 1992), is the stage name of Jacob James Grady, an American drag queen, reality television personality, singer, and performer who is best known for competing on the RuPaul's Drag Race season 11, eleventh season of '' ...
(
''US'' season 11 and
''All Stars'' 6),
Mayhem Miller (
''US'' season 10 and the
''All Stars'' 5),
Keta Minaj (
''Holland'' season 2),
Hannah Conda (
''Down Under'' season 2),
Marina Summers (
''Philippines'' season 1),
La Grande Dame (
''France'' season 1), and
Arantxa Castilla-La Mancha
Arantxa Castilla-La Mancha is the stage name of Arantxa Méndez García, a Spanish drag queen, podcaster, and trans woman.
Early life
Méndez was born on 1 December 1997 in Badajoz, in the municipality of Extremadura in south-west Spain. She ...
(
''España'' season 1). The series began on 9 February 2024, with the winner receiving a cash prize of £50,000 – the first cash prize to be awarded on a British version of the show. During the finale on 29 March 2024, Tia Kofi was crowned the next "Queen of the Mothertucking World", with Hannah Conda placing runner-up.
Following the success of ''RuPaul's Drag Race: UK vs. the World'', a
Canadian version of the spin-off was announced in June 2022, and the
first season began airing on BBC Three and BBC iPlayer in the United Kingdom on 18 November 2022.
Vanity Milan and
Victoria Scone, both from the
third series
Third or 3rd may refer to:
Numbers
* 3rd, the ordinal form of the cardinal number 3
* , a fraction of one third
* 1⁄60 of a ''second'', i.e., the third in a series of fractional parts in a sexagesimal number system
Places
* 3rd Street (dis ...
of ''RuPaul's Drag Race UK'', represented the United Kingdom in the competition.
Ra'Jah O'Hara, who originally competed in the eleventh season of ''RuPaul's Drag Race'' and the sixth season of ''All Stars'', won the first season on 23 December 2022, with
Silky Nutmeg Ganache placing runner-up. A
second season of ''Canada's Drag Race: Canada vs. the World'' was confirmed in June 2023. The second season began airing on BBC Three and BBC iPlayer on 19 July 2024, with
Cheryl (
''UK'' series 1 and
''UK vs. the World'' series 1) and
Le Fil (
''UK'' series 4) representing the United Kingdom in the competition.
Lemon
The lemon (''Citrus'' × ''limon'') is a species of small evergreen tree in the ''Citrus'' genus of the flowering plant family Rutaceae. A true lemon is a hybrid of the citron and the bitter orange. Its origins are uncertain, but some ...
, who previously competed in the first season of ''Canada's Drag Race'' and the first series of ''RuPaul's Drag Race: UK vs. the World'', won the second season on 23 August 2024, with
Alexis Mateo placing runner-up.
Discography
International broadcasts
The first series was broadcast on the
Logo TV
Logo TV (often shortened to Logo, and stylized as Logo.) is an American basic cable channel owned by Paramount Media Networks, a division of Paramount Global. Launched in 2005, Logo was originally dedicated to lifestyle and entertainment progra ...
network in the US, on
OutTV and
Crave in Canada, on
Vitaya in Belgium, on
DR TV in Denmark, on
Stan in Australia, on
Yes Drama
Yes Drama (styled as yes Drama and formerly called ''yes stars Drama'') is an Israeli television channel carried by the Israeli satellite television provider ''Yes (Israel), yes'', which broadcasts United States, American, England, British, Can ...
in Israel and on
Star+
Star+ (Star Plus; stylized as ST★R+) was a short-lived subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service available in almost all Ibero-American states. The service was owned by The Walt Disney Company through the Disney Entertai ...
in Brazil,
While the second series was broadcast on
Real Time in Italy, under the name "Drag Race UK".
Awards and nominations
References
External links
*
*
*
{{Portal bar, LGBTQ, Television, United Kingdom
2010s British LGBTQ-related reality television series
2019 British television series debuts
2020s British LGBTQ-related reality television series
BBC Three original programming
British LGBTQ-related web series
British non-fiction web series
British television series based on American television series
Television productions suspended due to the COVID-19 pandemic
Television series by World of Wonder (company)
Transgender-related television shows
WOW Presents Plus original programming