Michelle Visage responds to Drag Race UK season 5 casting backlash: ‘That’s the way the cookie crumbles’
Michelle Visage has responded to criticism of the Drag Race UK season five casting choices. (Getty Images)
RuPaul’s Drag Race judge Michelle Visage has responded to criticism over the lack of queens on Drag Race UK season five from anywhere other than England.
Drag Race UK is set to grace our screens again very soon, and the sickening lineup of season five queens has already been Ruvealed. .
Some fans were saddened, however, to note a lack of Scottish, Northern Irish and Welsh queens battling it out for the crown, with this year’s cast entirely made up of drag performers with hometowns in England.
Even even Drag Race UK alumni have pointed out the lack of UK diversity, with Northern Irish season one queen Blu Hydrangea posting on on X (formerly Twitter): “Love the UK5 cast, but 5 seasons with only two Irish queens,” punctuated with unhappy face emojis.
Visage has now addressed the controversy, telling Digital Spy that the show simply didn’t receive enough – or good enough – audition tapes from Welsh, Scottish and Northern Irish queens.
“You ask them!” she said when asked about the lack of season five queens from UK countries other than England. “They have to audition. You can’t pick from the sky.
“If they don’t audition, or if they’re not on the level they need to be quite yet but I do believe they’ll all get there, that’s the way the cookie crumbles,” RuPaul’s 55-year-old bestie continued.
“But we’d love to represent all of the UK. Regional drag is everywhere. It’s all about the audition.”
Fans have taken to social media to voice their disappointment at the dearth of Welsh, Scottish and Northern Irish queens in the upcoming season, with one remarking: “Maybe they’ll remember to cast Irish and Scottish queens again one day.”
Another fan commented: “Did they just forget that the rest of the UK existed then?”, while a third asked: “Has Wales, Scotland and Ireland ran out of drag queens then?”
Despite the criticism, Visage seems confident that the fifth season of Drag Race UK will still be well-loved. “This series [is] gonna knock your socks off,” she said.
Drag Race UK season five premieres on BBC Three, BBC iPlayer and WOW Presents on Thursday 28 September.
