International drag icon, RuPaul, is back in Blighty with his cult competitive reality show. Rooted in camp, British pop culture, and famed for its unpredictability, Drag Race UK fans will be delighted with a rambunctious new cast, and a competition with even more twists, more laughs and more sass.
So start your engines, and control your excitement as a fresh new set of amazing drag queens compete to be crowned the UK’s Next Drag Race Superstar in one the world’s most unpredictable, glamorous, and fiercely entertaining races.
About to embark on its sixth season, the multiple award-winning flagship BBC Three show is highly anticipated every autumn by its huge young and ardent fanbase. The competition sees hopeful drag queens compete across ten weeks in a variety of spicy challenges and iconic games designed to test their drag mettle, with the winner of the week being awarded a coveted RuPeter badge, and the bottoms of the week facing a lip sync for their life and the risk of elimination.
RuPaul, affectionately known as Mama Ru, leads an esteemed judging panel that includes regular judges, Michelle Visage, Alan Carr, Graham Norton and a bevy of celebrity guest judges, who this year range from Mabel to Simon Le Bon!
Together, they deliberate the fate of the queens but it is queen of queens, Mama Ru, who has the final word on who shantays or sashays away from the competition.
Handpicked by RuPaul, this year’s cast of twelve gorgeous drag queens represent a heady mix of charisma, uniqueness, nerve, talent, and accents with queens from across the Nations coming together in a bid to be crowned the UK’s Next Drag Race Superstar.
We caught up with Chanel O’Conor, 25, from Scotland…
Pronouns out of drag: He/Him
Pronouns in drag: She/Her
Tell us about yourself!
Hello! My name is Chanel O’Conor, I’m 25 and I’m originally from the Isle of Bute in Scotland.
We hear you’re a talented seamstress?
I make all of my own clothes, and I’ve created looks for other queens too. In fact, a lot of my work has already featured on the show as I’ve made outfits for Drag Race UK series two winner Lawrence Chaney and for various other queens. I’m so proud of that, but it’s now time for me. I want to show off all of my creations ON ME – and I want to win!
Why drag?
I discovered drag as a child watching comedy specials that starred iconic drag characters such as Lily Savage and Dame Edna. From watching these legends, I became obsessed and fell completely in love with drag. Growing up, I used to escape the island for a drama class on the mainland every Saturday, which is where I discovered my true love for experimenting with character creation. From that, I took a drag show to the Edinburgh Fringe and it just snowballed from there – I’ve now been doing drag for eight years!
How did you create the persona of Chanel?
I created the character of Chanel O’Conor as a way for me to ‘play pretend’ in a world I could never be in – being rich, being famous and being a natural ginger. I mixed my love for powerful women and fabulous fashions to create a baby version of Chanel O’Conor – someone who is pure luxury, Austrian royalty twice removed and sips champagne in her private submarine in Lake Como!
What are you most excited for?
I’m so excited to meet Ru and cannot wait to see her up close and see her fabulous outfits. I feel like I’m going to learn so much from Ru – she is an icon!
Are there any challenges you are worried about?
I am so nervous for any dance challenges. I’m not typically a dancer. I’m a ‘stand by the bar, buy a drink on my husband’s credit card and be politely escorted to the VIP area’ kind of dancer!
What would it mean to you to win the competition?
I’ve worked so hard and put so much effort into my drag that to win the Drag Race UK crown would be truly incredible. To bring it home for Scotland, one more time would be amazing. Give me the crown baby!
You must be logged in to post a comment.