When the celebrity guest judges for RuPaul’s Drag Race UK were announced, there was one name that was sure to send thrills through the drag queens.

Geri Horner (nee Halliwell, aka Ginger Spice) was announced to be joining RuPaul, Michelle Visage and Alan Carr to judge Snatch Game – the most eagerly anticipated episode of any series of Drag Race – and I could hardly wait. A Spice Girl judging drag queens spouting filth while impersonating celebrities? Nothing could be further up my street.

But when it came to it, Geri was less Ginger Spice, more flat lemonade or dry toast, as she winced and balked her way through judging.

Now 47, Geri didn’t seem to understand the jokes Mama Ru was telling (‘Geri, the eye is the window to the hole. That’s not a happy hole’) and groaned ‘oh no’ as one queen, Sum Ting Wong, inserted a clearly fake syringe into her mouth to symbolise plastic surgery.

The Look At Me singer then looked horrified as another queen, Crystal, gave an angle-grinding performance on stage, and praised a non-filthy impersonation of Margaret Thatcher, saying: ‘You had the balance of that British sensibility about you. A little bit Carry On, but you don’t have to be filthy.’

Perhaps the most shocking moment was when Divina De Campo did a fairly tame impersonation of Victoria Beckham, mocking her for ‘not being a***d’ to join the Spice Girls reunion tour – with Geri wincing and saying it was ‘a little bit’ too savage.

Yep, Geri Halliwell is long gone, people. It’s the end of an era.

Geri Halliwell was born to be a popstar. In 1995, she burst onto the scene with the Spice Girls, with flame-coloured hair, a skimpy wardrobe and platform boots as she essentially talked her way through the hits of the soon-to-be biggest girl group in the world.

She didn’t need to be the best singer – apparently, she attempted to skip the first audition because she knew she wouldn’t get through – because she had the star quality. Out of all the Spice Girls, Geri embodied her persona – Ginger Spice – the most. She was fiery, she was feminist, she was gobby.

All of the Spice Girls’ most iconic moments were down to Geri. She was the one who kissed Prince Charles and patted his bum at a concert for the Princes’ Trust. Geri was the one wearing Union Jack tea towel as a dress at the 1997 Brit Awards – which was voted the best Brits moment of 30 years of the show. She made her solo debut with a video that saw Ginger Spice being buried in a funeral. Geri was the epitome of a hell-raising popstar.

And that’s why I was so crushed as I tuned into RuPaul’s Drag Race UK to find that that woman – the popstar who emerged from a pair of gigantic parting legs at the Brits, dancing on a pole, surrounded by shirtless men before ripping off her own top – is gone, to be replaced by a bit of a prude.

This isn’t the first time we’ve been given reason to doubt the Ginger Spice persona. In 2007, Geri dismissed being a feminist, telling the Guardian: ‘For me, feminism is bra-burning lesbianism. It’s very unglamorous… We need to see a celebration of our femininity and softness.’

In 2013, she hailed Margaret Thatcher as ‘the First Lady of Girl Power’. And the Spice Girls reunion tour saw her ditch her fashions of old for a ballgown.

Now, I know that time has passed. Geri is now 47, is married to Christian Horner and has two children. I didn’t expect her be dancing on top of the Drag Race panel table in a tea towel and thigh-high boots. But I did expect some of the Ginger Spice sass to remain.

Geri hasn’t abandoned her popstar life and retreated into a life of solitude – her last solo single was released two years ago and she was one of the driving forces behind the Spice Girls reunion. I had assumed that any one of the Spice Girls, one of the campest acts ever, would see an array of boundary-pushing drag queens as their cup of tea – even Victoria brought the drag Spice Girls to fashion week.

But Geri forgot that she was one of the leading ladies in pushing boundaries in fashion, performance and attitude in the entertainment industry not that long ago.

Not only that, she hasn’t just lost that Ginger edge – she seemed to have lost all sense of humour when it came to judging the queens on the campest show on TV.

As a child of the 90s, the Spice Girls are peak pop for me. Having never been to see them as a kid, I was overjoyed to watch them at the reunion tour, and was transported back to an age of true girl power at Wembley thanks to Baby, Scary, Sporty and Ginger. I believed that the nostalgia was keeping the Spice Girls alive, and that their personas, like friendship, would never end.

But it seems that the Ginger we all loved now only exists through YouTube clips.

As the old saying goes, you should never meet your heroes – or watch them be themselves on a drag show.

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Drag Race star Katya Zamolodchikova (or, as your dad just calls her, Katya) has thrown some serious shade RuPaul’s way in a new interview.

The star, who appeared on season seven of RuPaul’s Drag Race and the second season of All Stars, was asked about her personal experiences with the reality show’s titular host, and certainly had something interesting to say.

‘Don’t meet your heroes,’ Katya said. ‘There’s a great saying “expectations are premeditated resentments.”‘

The drag performer also touched on entering the world of Drag Race for the first time in the show’s seventh season.

She described entering the workroom for her introduction as ‘the worst moment of my life.’

‘I was like, “I made a mistake,”‘ Katya remembers in a conversation with YouTube host Joseph Shepherd. ‘I wasn’t prepared to be judged on that level.’

Fans of the show will remember that during its series seven, Katya eventually ended up placing in seventh place, before returning in style for All Stars 2 and finishing as runner-up.

RuPaul herself, though, only seems to be going from strength to strength. The Supermodel of the World star is currently hosting the inaugural series of Drag Race UK.

Last week’s episode saw two impressions blow everyone away; The Vivienne’s Donald Trump and Baga Chipz as Margaret Thatcher.

We get where Katya’s coming from, though – if Geri Horner’s lackluster appearence on the judging panel is anything to go by, you should never meet your heroes.

RuPaul’s Drag Race UK airs every Thursday at 8pm on BBC iPlayer.

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Get ready Drag Race fans because the ultimate fantasy queen, Harry Styles, is down for an appearance on the famous reality show.

Slay!

The former One Direction star has revealed that he has considered a stint on a RuPaul’s Drag Race celebrity edition, telling Fleur East, Greg and James on Hits Radio Breakfast: ‘Yeah! Why not?’

RuPaul’s Celebrity Drag Race will air in 2020 and is a four-episode spin-off of RuPaul’s Drag Race featuring 12 celebrities who will be mentored by former contestants of the series.

The winner will not only take the crown but also a cheque for charity of their choice.

Harry has some history with drag, comfortably wearing a blonde wig in 2013 while on a night out with pals, while at the 2019 Met Gala he wore make up and pearl earrings, paired with black suit trousers, a sheer pussybow blouse and heels.

https://www.instagram.com/p/hXAwyIjCer/?utm_source=ig_embed

Harry recently sent everyone into meltdown by dropping some highly-anticipated new music completely out of the blue with his single Lights Up, and he said: ‘For me it’s a very uplifting song.

‘And I think in places it’s kind of dark. But to me, it’s very liberating… It’s about self-reflection and self-discovery and just, like freedom.

‘It feels like very free to me. Things that I’ve been trying to process and I guess wrestle with a little bit over the last couple years. It’s kind of like just accepting all of those things.

‘It’s a very positive song to me.’

He also revealed that although his family are proud of his success, his grandfather is more impressed that he is actually still working.

Typical grandad.

‘I’m happy to be back. I was ready to put some music out,’ he said.

‘I’m excited to be working again. Actually, when I put the song out, I got a text from my mum who’d played it to my grandfather, who said, “Yeah, he likes it. He’s just happy you’re still working!”.’

Listen to Hits Radio Breakfast with Fleur East, Greg and James, weekdays from 6am.

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There has been some pretty glorious shade thrown over the years by the queens in the long and illustrious history of RuPaul’s Drag Race.

Much of that shade has been levied by contestants towards their peers on the show, but not even RuPaul has been immune.

There are some Drag Race alumni who have spilt the T on Mama Ru herself, with Katya Zamolodchikova saying ‘Don’t meet your heroes’ on Wednesday when asked about her personal experiences with the hit show’s host.

Because we live for drama, here’s a roundup of other Drag Racers who have thrown shade at RuPaul in the past…

Katya Zamolodchikova

When asked about her time spent with RuPaul, fan-favourite Katya cryptically said: ‘Don’t meet your heroes.

She added: ‘There’s a great saying “expectations are premeditated resentments.”’

Pearl

Another queen from season 7, Pearl famously went through some tension with RuPaul on camera during her stint on the show, famously uttering the words ‘Do I have something on my face’ during a feedback session with Ru.

After her time on the show, Pearl said on Hey Qween that, after expressing her gratitude for the opportunity to be on the show to the host, RuPaul allegedly said that nothing Pearl said mattered unless cameras were rolling.

Pearl added: ‘That broke my spirit. And that is the reason why I had one foot in one foot out the entire time I was on that show.’

Gia Gunn

In a now-deleted tweet, Gia appeared to reference RuPaul when she said last year: ‘Can’t even be in the commercial for your own show… sad.’

She followed this tweet up by writing: ‘I don’t hail to those that don’t do the same in return,’ and later retweeted a fan who wrote: ‘You can enjoy a show and also recognise its problems, and also watch it for more than one person. As for biting the hand that feeds you learn your drag history without Trans women drag today wouldn’t be what it is.’

It was thought at the time that Gia, who is a trans woman, protested by not joining in with other queens who sang ‘Yule love us all, all hail RuPaul’ in the commercial in question because of Ru’s previous comments about trans women.

Ru told The Guardian in 2018 when asked whether he would accept a contestant who had transitioned: ‘Probably not. You can identify as a woman and say you’re transitioning, but it changes once you start changing your body,’ adding ‘It takes on a different thing; it changes the whole concept of what we’re doing.’

Willam Belli

Sass-queen and self-confessed ‘egomaniac’ Willam made a very strong impression on viewers during her time on season 4 before she was kicked off the show for breaking the rules.

Since then, she’s been very outspoken on both the show and its host, with a tweet of hers claiming a range of things, including that contestants were told not to ‘make eye contact or engage in conversation’ with RuPaul, and that a production assistant flirted with her and her fellow contestant Kenya and reportedly ‘grabbed [Willam’s] ass.’

Ok but only cuz you asked @Lesdoggg pic.twitter.com/GmebzeEqwM

— Willam (@willam) June 5, 2018

Later on in the thread, Willam wrote: ‘There’s that time they booked me for All Stars 1 and canceled me 40 hours before filming but AFTER i canceled 3 weeks worth of work in June during pride season. [sic]’

The shade of it all!

Courtney Act

Reality TV veteran Courtney Act appeared on the sixth season of RuPaul’s Drag Race, in which she was a runner-up, after also competing in Australian Idol in 2003.

In an interview with Australian LGBT radio station JOY 949, Courtney said that she did not have a chance to get close with RuPaul during her stint on the show.

She said: ‘RuPaul is there in the room, what you see on TV is all of what you get, there is not anything beyond that.’

When asked if she had a relationship with RuPaul now that she’s off the show, Courtney replied: ‘No’.

She added: ‘I’ve chosen … to focus on that legend of RuPaul, just like with everybody there is the legend and there is the human.’

RuPaul’s Drag Race UK continues Thursdays at 8pm on BBC iPlayer.

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RuPaul’s Drag Race UK delivered its strongest episode to date this week as they were challenge with something us Brits do better than the rest of the world – girl bands.

Creating their own versions of the same song, the two bands that were formed quickly determined their Beyonces from their Latavias… and a couple of poor Michelles just couldn’t quite match up.

Let’s set this down now: Noone actually did bad this week…it was just some were better than others.

So who fared best as the emotions of the queens began to get the better of them? And who, despite their efforts, had to be sent home?

Here’s how we thought the queens did – from top to bottom…

Divina Di Campo

This episode could’ve entirely been about Divina and we wouldn’t have really minded – this queen gave us everything.

From the talent to do well in the competition, she also gave us some serious herstory over the Section 28 ruling and how inclusive the world is now in comparison to the one she had to fight her way through guns blazing.

Then there was the emotional heart at the episode that, to be frank, Divina gives us every week anyway.

Throw in a stellar runway look and we have ourselves this week’s MVP.

Baga Chipz

After this week’s episode and The Vivienne’s slip from the top spot, it’s Baga that overall is the one to beat in this competition.

Her talking heads remain episode highlights when everything seems to be going bonkers in the workroom, and she somehow manages to tow the bitchy/lovely line like a tightrope walker.

She’s also beginning to show her vulnerable side, which is far more appealing than the bit-too-much gobs***e that she declared herself in.

Now we’re getting a bit more of a balance it’s clear she’s in it to win it, and faking it till she makes it has never looked so fabulous.

Blu Hydrangea

In terms of the competition, Blu is middling her way through the series – and maybe that’s the smart thing to do.

It’s a shame though, because in the work rooms/confessionals she’s really come out of her shell, and while she’s certainly really shady, you have to kind of love her.

She did well and earned her first badge today as part of the Frock Destroyers, but now she needs to stand out on her own merit.

Otherwise she could be one of the next ones to go.

The Vivienne

Someone put a pin in Viv and totally deflated her this week and it was horrible to see because until now, she was pretty much the stand out winner.

Landing in the bottom two was the right thing to do in the context of this one challenge – she fell into the background of her group, and while her Ladies Day look was a stunning one, it didn’t sell it the way the others did.

But her emotional runway breakdown was hard to watch, especially considering she knew that she could’ve been better but she was losing the energy to keep up.

We’re hoping that this brush with an early exit will light the fire to have her claw her way back to the top.

Cheryl Hole

For someone who has only just managed to scrape through to a ‘safe’ ranking by week five of a competition, Cheryl’s lack of humility really stood out this week.

This challenge was made for her and she quite rightly excelled at it – and to be fair to her, she carried her entire group on her back throughout the performance.

But she does not know how to read a room and when Crystal was clearly having a moment, she stole it to talk about herself.

Her know-it-all attitude leading up to the main challenge shows she’s passionate but it also doesn’t mean she’s right, and she scraped through by the skin of her teeth.

She’s not as safe as she thinks she is, and she needs to start being a team player or she could end up coming out worse for wear.

Crystal

Anyone who comes up with a Lee Bowery meets My Fair Lady by route of a BDSM nightclub look for a runway is a winner in our eyes.

But that blonde wig let her down and didn’t fit the outfit, and by her own admission, she can’t sing or dance, so she was pretty screwed from the outset.

If it wasn’t for Cheryl’s choreography getting her through, she would’ve ended up an absolute trainwreck.

Instead we got an OK performance, and on a losing team Cheryl was the right of the three to save.

Crystal’s time may be up but at least she went out with a bang (or with an angle grind to the crotch).

RuPaul’s Drag Race UK continues Thursdays at 8pm on BBC Three.

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Little Mix star Jade Thirlwall couldn’t help but make a slight dig at Simon Cowell on RuPaul’s Drag Race UK.

The singer, who rose to fame on The X Factor, was joined by comedian Graham Norton and Michelle Visage as she was finally enlisted as a celebrity guest judge.

On this week’s show, the remaining queens were split into two teams for a girl group battle – and in true Drag Race style, they had to record and perform their own versions of the same song.

Before the drag queens took to the runway, Jade was asked about how her style of judging would be different from X Factor judge Simon Cowell’s.

‘Jade now you’re a judge, what is going to be the biggest difference in your style of judging to Simon Cowell’s?’ she was asked.

As she laughed, Jade responded simply: ‘Well for starters, Simon has much bigger t**s. It really is true.’

That is not going to go down well Jade.

It’s no secret that Little Mix have voiced their opinions on The X Factor judge in the past, especially after they parted ways with Simon’s record label, Syco last year.

At the time in an interview with The Sun, Perrie said: ‘We’re ready for a new start.

‘Change, especially in the creative industry is always good.’

Leigh-Anne added: ‘We were with Syco for seven years and had an incredible journey but it’s going to be nice to change it up and get a new view on us.

‘We definitely speak our mind now. If we don’t like it, we always say it.’

It followed after Simon revealed his reason for why the label and the band parted ways.

He claimed that it was because of an issue with a songwriting credit with hit Woman Like Me.

RuPaul’s Drag Race UK airs every Thursday at 8pm on BBC iPlayer.

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Guess who’s back in the house?! RuPaul’s Drag Race has been given the green light for season two.

But if you want to take part, you better get your heels on… as you only have a week to apply.

The drag queen extravaganza has been given the green light to return in 2020 after winning over audiences (and even landing in the UK top 10) with the first batch of performers.

We’re halfway through the first series, and it’s clear that the star is the jewel in BBC Three’s crown with a staggering 6.5 million total requests on iPlayer.

‘I want to thank the BBC and all our fans for their overwhelming support of RuPaul’s Drag Race UK,’ RuPaul said of the news.

‘This season’s queens proved that Britain’s Got Charisma Uniqueness Nerve and Talent and I want to see more! Here’s to another season of love, laughter and light!’

The show will return for another eight episode season in the new year, with applications open now for those who think they have what it takes to become UK’s Next Drag Superstar.

If they win, they’ll earn a spot on the Drag Race Hall Of Fame alongside the season one winner, who will be revealed in just three weeks’ time.

Kate Phillips, Controller, Entertainment Commissioning at the BBC said: “The response to the current UK series has been nothing short of dragulous.

‘Our viewers have really taken the show and the amazing queens to their hearts. So I’m delighted that Ru and the gang are going to shantay.  Let the search for the next group of queens begin!’

To apply for the next series of RuPaul’s Drag Race UK sashay to https://get.rupaulsdragraceuk.com/casting/ to get all the information you need.

Applications close on Friday 15 November.

RuPaul’s Drag Race UK airs Thursdays at 8pm on BBC Three.

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RuPaul’s Drag Race’s latest eliminated queen Cheryl Hole is now looking to collab with actual Cheryl after getting on like a house on fire with her on the series.

The 26-year-old Essex queen was given her marching orders on tonight’s episode after facing off in a lip-sync with Baga Chipz to Tears Dry On Their Own by Amy Winehouse.

But leaving the show in the semi-finals is still not the worst thing in the world considering in the show’s run she finally got to meet her idol, Cheryl, who judged her on the runway.

Speaking after leaving the series, Cheryl said: ‘Meeting the real Cheryl was one of those moments that you never think would happen in your life.’

‘Girls Aloud were my childhood and I adored all of them so much, but Cheryl always had a special place in my heart,’ they continued. ‘When I first started drag I was sure I was going to get a cease and desist.

‘To have such an amazing exchange and thank her for the inspiration through my childhood was a moment I will take to the grave.

‘There was a moment not shown where she complimented my teeth, and I told her I used her teeth as a reference picture with my dentist!’

‘We didn’t get to have any more of a chit chat backstage but we have bumped into each other since and she was so sweet!’ Cheryl continued. ‘A true girl after my own heart.

‘I think the fans want a Cheryl X Cheryl collaboration so if you’re reading this Chez – call me!’

Whatever they’ve got planned, Cheryl has said that there’s one thing she’s not up for anytime soon – releasing music, despite being the biggest girlband superfan to make it on the runway.

‘No one needs to be put through the trauma of a Cheryl Hole album- maybe just a single!’ she laughed. ‘But in all seriousness, I’m just gonna get out there and put my heart and soul into every show I do and show you all what I can really do.’

Continuing to tour around the UK, Cheryl has told fans if they want to see her at her best, to get down to the clubs and support the queens there.

‘The show gave a glimpse into the Cheryl Hole experience but you gotta get down to the clubs to see the Hole package,’ she said.

‘I’m gonna work my little Essex behind off and continue to fly the flag for my county and for all my girl groups!’

RuPaul’s Drag Race airs Thursdays at 8pm on BBC Three.

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Michelle Visage has given fans an amazing glimpse to her decades-long friendship with RuPaul with an epic throwback.

The Strictly star wasn’t about to just let her bestie’s birthday pass her by, and so took the opportunity to share a cute moment of them from a cowboy hat.

In a photo dated around the 90s (we’re guessing because of that epic Ginger Spice-style red and blonde hairdo Michelle’s sporting), the pair are still beaming as big as ever.

She wrote next to the photo: ‘HAPPY BIRTHDAY to my ride or die. This world is a better place because of your love and wisdom. Every day I thank God for you.

‘Thank you for all that you have done, for all that you continue to do and for what’s to come. You are magical, Ru and I couldn’t possibly love you more.’

The pair have been pioneers of the LGBTQIA+ movements over the past 20 years together, bringing drag to the mainstream thanks to RuPaul’s Drag Race.

Hey, Ru’s not called Supermodel of the World for nothing!

Turning 59 today, the pair have been working harder than ever as they launch a celebrity version of the series, announcing a second UK series as well as a new All-Star and regular series.

Michelle even paid homage to her community with a performance to Vogue by Madonna on Strictly Come Dancing during the Blackpool special on Saturday night.

Letting her body ‘move to the music’, the star put on her fiercest poses while dressed in a French Revolution style dress alongside Giovanni Pernice.

Results are due to air tonight, with all seven remaining contestants relying on votes in order to keep themselves in the race.

RuPaul’s Drag Race UK continues Thursday at 8pm on BBC iPlayer.

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Netflix has teased a brand new scripted comedy where RuPaul is basically RuPaul but with more sequins and more sass (if that’s even possible).

AJ and The Queen has RuPaul starring as Ruby Red and although we only got a 30 second glimpse, we know we will be sat in front our our computers waiting for its release.

Shantay you stay, Mama Ru, because we want to see what happens.

The series is created by Sex and the City director and writer Michael Patrick King and sees the down-on-her-luck drag queen go on a road trip across the United States to visit every club she can find.

Along the way Ruby finds a young orphan named AJ (played by Izzy G) hiding in her car for a ride.

But, of course, the two form a bond that we never saw coming (we did) and they pledge to spread love and acceptance across the country.

This obviously includes Ruby Red performing great musical numbers.

All those years of lip syncs on RuPaul’s Drag Race has prepared Ru for this moment.

If that isn’t already exciting enough news, RuPaul’s Drag Race UK is coming back for season two.

The drag queen extravaganza has been given the green light to return in 2020 after winning over audiences (and even landing in the UK top 10) with the first batch of performers.

We’re almost done with the first series, and it’s clear that the show is the jewel in BBC Three’s crown with a staggering 6.5 million total requests on iPlayer.

‘I want to thank the BBC and all our fans for their overwhelming support of RuPaul’s Drag Race UK,’ RuPaul said of the news.

‘This season’s queens proved that Britain’s Got Charisma Uniqueness Nerve and Talent and I want to see more! Here’s to another season of love, laughter and light!’

AJ and The Queen is set to land on Netfix on 10 January.

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