RuPaul's Drag Race UK series 1
| RuPaul's Drag Race UK | |
|---|---|
| Series 1 | |
| File:RuPauls-Drag-Race-UK-S1.jpeg Promotional poster for series one | |
| Hosted by | RuPaul |
| Judges | |
| No. of contestants | 10 |
| Winner | The Vivienne |
| Runner-up | Divina de Campo |
| No. of episodes | 8 |
| Release | |
| Original network | BBC Three (UK) WOW Presents Plus (International) |
| Original release | 3 October – 21 November 2019 |
| Series chronology | |
The first series of RuPaul's Drag Race UK began airing on 3 October 2019 on the BBC Three section of BBC iPlayer and WOW Presents Plus's WOW Presents Plus streaming service.[1] It ran for eight episodes.
The winner of first series of RuPaul's Drag Race UK was The Vivienne, with Divina de Campo as the runner-up.[2][3]
The song "Break Up (Bye Bye)", which was featured in the fifth episode, was released as a single and reached number 35 on the UK Singles Chart.[4] It also peaked at number 44 on the Billboard Hot Dance/Electronic Songs chart in the US.[5]
Contestants
Ages, names, and cities stated are at time of filming.
| Contestant | Age | Hometown | Outcome |
|---|---|---|---|
| The Vivienne | 26 | Liverpool, England | Winner |
| Divina de Campo | 35 | Brighouse, England | Runner-up |
| Baga Chipz | 29 | East London, England | 3rd place |
| Cheryl Hole | 25 | Chelmsford, England | 4th place |
| Blu Hydrangea | 23 | Belfast, Northern Ireland | 5th place |
| Crystal | 34 | East London, England | 6th place |
| Sum Ting Wong | 30 | Birmingham, England | 7th place |
| Vinegar Strokes | 34 | North London, England | 8th place |
| Scaredy Kat | 19 | Cricklade, England | 9th place |
| Gothy Kendoll | 21 | Leicester, England | 10th place |
Contestant progress
Legend:
The Vivienne won RuPaul's Drag Race UK series 1.
Divina de Campo was the runner-up.
WIN indicates that the contestant won the challenge.
SAFE indicates that the contestant was declared safe by the judges.
BTM (Bottom) indicates that the contestant was up for elimination.
ELIM (Eliminated) indicates that the contestant was eliminated.
Guest indicates that the contestant returned as a guest.
| Contestant | Episode | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1[7] | 2[8] | 3[9] | 4[10] | 5[11] | 6[12] | 7[13] | 8[14] | |
| The Vivienne | WIN | SAFE | SAFE | WIN | BTM | WIN | SAFE | Winner |
| Divina de Campo | SAFE | SAFE | WIN | SAFE | WIN | SAFE | WIN | Runner-up |
| Baga Chipz | SAFE | WIN | SAFE | WIN | WIN | SAFE | BTM | Eliminated |
| Cheryl Hole | SAFE | SAFE | SAFE | SAFE | SAFE | BTM | ELIM | Guest |
| Blu Hydrangea | SAFE | BTM | SAFE | SAFE | WIN | ELIM | Guest | |
| Crystal | SAFE | SAFE | SAFE | BTM | ELIM | Guest | ||
| Sum Ting Wong | SAFE | SAFE | BTM | ELIM | Guest | |||
| Vinegar Strokes | BTM | SAFE | ELIM | Guest | ||||
| Scaredy Kat | SAFE | ELIM | Guest | |||||
| Gothy Kendoll | ELIM | Guest | ||||||
Lip syncs
Legend:
The contestant won the Lip Sync for the Crown and was declared the winner of the season.
The contestant was eliminated after their first time in the bottom.
The contestant was eliminated after their second time in the bottom.
| Episode | Contestants | Song | Eliminated | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1[7] | Gothy Kendoll | vs. | Vinegar Strokes | "New Rules" (Dua Lipa) |
Gothy Kendoll |
| 2[8] | Blu Hydrangea | vs. | Scaredy Kat | "Venus" (Bananarama) |
Scaredy Kat |
| 3[9] | Sum Ting Wong | vs. | Vinegar Strokes | "Would I Lie to You?" (Eurythmics) |
Vinegar Strokes |
| 4[10] | Crystal | vs. | Sum Ting Wong | "Spice Up Your Life" (Spice Girls) |
Sum Ting Wong |
| 5[11] | Crystal | vs. | The Vivienne | "Power" (Little Mix) |
Crystal |
| 6[12] | Blu Hydrangea | vs. | Cheryl Hole | "Call My Name (Wideboys Remix)" (Cheryl) |
Blu Hydrangea |
| 7[13] | Baga Chipz | vs. | Cheryl Hole | "Tears Dry on Their Own" (Amy Winehouse) |
Cheryl Hole |
| Episode | Contestants | Song | Winner | ||
| 8[14] | Divina de Campo | vs. | The Vivienne | "I'm Your Man" (Wham!) |
The Vivienne |
Guest judges
Listed in chronological order:
- Andrew Garfield, actor
- Maisie Williams, actress, internet entrepreneur
- Twiggy, model, actress, and singer
- Geri Halliwell, singer, songwriter, author, actress, fashion designer, model and television personality
- Jade Thirlwall, singer, songwriter
- Cheryl, singer, television personality, dancer, and author[15]
- Michaela Coel, actress, singer[16]
Special guests
Guests who appeared in episodes, but did not judge on the main stage.
Episode 3
- Raven, runner-up of both RuPaul's Drag Race season 2 and All Stars 1
Episode 4
- Stacey Dooley, investigative journalist
- Lorraine Kelly, TV presenter
Episode 5
- MNEK, singer
Episode 6
- Katya, top 5 from RuPaul's Drag Race season 7 and runner-up of All Stars 2
Episode 8
- AJ and Curtis Pritchard, ballroom dancers
Episodes
| No. overall | No. in series | Title | Original release date |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | "The Royal Queens" | 3 October 2019 |
| 2 | 2 | "Downton Draggy" | 10 October 2019 |
| 3 | 3 | "Posh on a Penny" | 17 October 2019 |
| 4 | 4 | "Snatch Game" | 24 October 2019 |
| 5 | 5 | "Girl Groups Battle Royale" | 31 October 2019 |
| 6 | 6 | "Thirsty Werk" | 7 November 2019 |
| 7 | 7 | "Family That Drags Together" | 14 November 2019 |
| 8 | 8 | "Grand Finale" | 21 November 2019 |
Reception
The series received very positive reviews from critics, with The Guardian describing the series as having "saved RuPaul's Drag Race" as the recent seasons have had a less than positive reception.[17] In their review of the series, iNews awarded the series "five stars" and described it as a "roaring success", despite criticising its omission of a stand-up comedy challenge.[18]
In a more critical review, Vulture stated in its review of the finale that although the season "may have hit some true highs... it couldn’t save Drag Race from its worst impulses".[19]
References
- ^ "'Graham Norton and Alan Carr confirmed as celebrity judges for RuPaul's Drag Race UK – series to air on BBC Three in 2019". BBC. Archived from the original on 22 July 2019. Retrieved 8 December 2019.
- ^ "HuffPost is now a part of Verizon Media". consent.yahoo.com. Retrieved 4 June 2020.
- ^ Welsh, Daniel (10 March 2020). "RuPaul's Drag Race UK: Scaredy Kat Takes On 'Bedroom Queen' Critics". HuffPost UK. Archived from the original on 4 June 2020. Retrieved 4 June 2020.
- ^ "CAST OF RUPAUL's DRAG RACE UK | full Official Chart History | Official Charts Company". Archived from the original on 8 November 2019. Retrieved 8 November 2019.
- ^ "EDM Music & Dance Songs Chart – November 16, 2019". Billboard. Archived from the original on 15 November 2019. Retrieved 15 November 2019.
- ^ "RuPaul's Drag Race UK: Meet the queens for the first UK series". BBC News. BBC. 21 August 2019. Archived from the original on 8 October 2019. Retrieved 6 November 2019.
- ^ a b "The Royal Queens". RuPaul's Drag Race UK. Season 1. Episode 1. 3 October 2019. BBC iPlayer / WOW Presents Plus.
- ^ a b "Downton Draggy". RuPaul's Drag Race UK. Season 1. Episode 2. 10 October 2019. BBC iPlayer / WOW Presents Plus.
- ^ a b "Posh on a Penny". RuPaul's Drag Race UK. Season 1. Episode 3. 17 October 2019. BBC iPlayer / WOW Presents Plus.
- ^ a b "Snatch Game". RuPaul's Drag Race UK. Season 1. Episode 4. 24 October 2019. BBC iPlayer / WOW Presents Plus.
- ^ a b "Girl Groups Battle Royale". RuPaul's Drag Race UK. Season 1. Episode 5. 31 October 2019. BBC iPlayer / WOW Presents Plus.
- ^ a b "Thirsty Werk". RuPaul's Drag Race UK. Season 1. Episode 6. 7 November 2019. BBC iPlayer / WOW Presents Plus.
- ^ a b "The Family That Slays Together". RuPaul's Drag Race UK. Season 1. Episode 7. 14 November 2019. BBC iPlayer / WOW Presents Plus.
- ^ a b "Grand Finale". RuPaul's Drag Race UK. Season 1. Episode 8. 21 November 2019. BBC iPlayer / WOW Presents Plus.
- ^ "Episode 6". BBC. Archived from the original on 28 October 2019. Retrieved 28 October 2019.
- ^ "Episode 7". BBC. Archived from the original on 5 November 2019. Retrieved 5 November 2019.
- ^ Bromwich, Kathryn (22 November 2019). "Fierce competition: how a Brit makeover saved RuPaul's Drag Race". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 22 November 2019. Retrieved 22 November 2019.
- ^ Baker, Emily (21 November 2019). "RuPaul's Drag Race UK's first series was outstanding — all thanks to the queens". iNews.
- ^ Curto, Justin (21 November 2019). "RuPaul's Drag Race U.K. Finale Recap: The Queen of England". Vulture. Archived from the original on 22 November 2019. Retrieved 22 November 2019.