Following rave reviews and great fanfare, Drag Race U.K. got off to a spectacular start. The fabulous tickety-boo cabaret show gave the queens a chance to shine and showcased the talent of the kind of cast we have on our hands. Since no one went home, we have a full cast heading into the second week, which we love to see!
Winning the first Rupeter badge of the season was KryranThrax, who came in proudly displaying it on her jacket. The challenge that many queens either love or dread has arrived: design and sewing. Personally, it’s my favourite challenge, as it’s what made me fall in love with Drag Race. The queens are to work in teams to create cohesive outfits as fashion houses. However, that’s not the only thing, as they must create the outfits out of sustainable items from Ru’s upcycled goods. Team Haus Cellar Mcartney consists of La Voix, Charra Tea, and Kiki Snatch, while Haus of Zen includes Lill, Chanel ‘O Connor, and Marmalade. Team Haus of Mirrors is Rileasa Slaves, Saki Yew, and Dita Garbo, and finally, the chaotic team Haus of Cards is Zahirah, Actavia, and Kryan Thrax.
Haus of Mirrors features one confident sewer who takes the lead, helping her teammates—although most have a clear vision and design in their heads. Overall, most groups seem to be navigating the challenge relatively smoothly.
But there’s a shock on the way as Saki Yew enters the Werkroom on crutches. The previous night she slipped in the shower, sustaining injuries. Instead of trying to push through the pain, she made a tough decision to take herself out of the competition. Which is such a shame, as you just know she would have done incredible. A few tears are shed, but alas, the show must go on.
With her out of the competition, her team must now try and keep the cohesion tighter. On the runway this week’s guest judge is one of my personal favourites Kristen Mcmenamy. She’s both iconic and hilarious as she announces she’s just back to say Hi, delivering her comments unfiltered and in a seemingly unintentionally funny manner.
The category is Haute Couture. I would say the looks are impressive, although there are a few outfits that, if you squint or are on a night out, you wouldn’t think they were terrible. For me, Haus of Zen killed it. They looked like they were from the same fashion house, and it was incredibly well-made. Onstage, Chanel happily tells the judges how she created Lill’s outfit as well as her own. Which Ru finds hilarious—calling out her own teammate unprovoked. The shade from this queen in particular I love; it’s so harmless, and the delivery of it you never know if it’s deliberate or said in jest; she’s just fantastic.
The queens in the bottom are Actavia and Kiki Snatch; however, because Saki had to leave, this means that no one will be lip-syncing this week. Hurray! Instead they’ll be a triple lipsync for the win, with the Haus of Zen being declared the winner and letting the chaos commence. This week’s song is another banger from the princess of pop, Kylie Minogue’s Tension. With these sorts of lip syncs, so many people on stage can be disastrous, but it was enjoyable nonetheless. In Untucked, Chanel stated that if Lill wins the badge, she’ll be peeved of—again, was it sarcasm or the truth? Well, production made her statement come true with Lill winning her first Rupeter badge.
Another wonderful episode showing British humour, style, and campiness to the world. Were you happy with who won?
