RuPaul's Drag Race UK
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RuPaul's Drag Race UK
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, World of Wonder and Gallowgate Productions, premiered on 3 October 2019.[1][2] The show is the fourth installment of the Drag Race franchise, and the second fronted by RuPaul. The show documents RuPaul and a panel of judges' search for "the United Kingdom's next drag superstar", the first series 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 and Graham Norton.[3]
The show was critically acclaimed in the UK,[10] with 15.6 million streams during the first season.[10] The show's success is credited for being the driving force behind the BBC bringing back the defunct television channel BBC Three.[11][12] 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 programme's time slot.[13] The show is now recognised as one of the BBC's most popular non-scripted shows.[13] The show's success has also paved way for contestants to break into the music industry, as well as creating drag pop groups: Frock Destroyers and United Kingdolls, with both groups charting on the Official UK Charts.[14][15] Bimini Bon-Boulash 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 in July 2022.[16] A number of contestants from the show have also signed major modelling contracts.[16] 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.[17] 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.[18]
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 Series 1 winner, The Vivienne won in 2015.[21] The Vivienne won a trip to the set of the American version of the show.[21] Production of the show continued but again came to a standstill because TV show producers didn't think anyone would watch it.
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."[23] The show was commissioned by Fiona Campbell, Controller BBC Three and Kate Phillips, Controller, BBC Entertainment. 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.[10] Bailey credits the show as a turning point, because it helped demonstrate