Drag Race UK winner Ginger Johnson says dropping show ‘affects representation’

Drag Race UK winner Ginger Johnson has said the BBC dropping the series will “affect representation”.

Based on the American TV series of the same name, RuPaul’s Drag Race UK premiered in 2019 and saw drag queens compete in challenges to impress a panel of judges, including RuPaul, Michelle Visage, Graham Norton and Alan Carr.

However, after eight seasons, this week the BBC announced it was axing the show due to “significant financial pressures”.

Now Johnson – real name Donald Marshall – has commented on the impact of the show being dropped by the national broadcaster.

Ginger Johnson has said the BBC dropping Drag Race UK will ‘affect representation’ (Eivind Hansen)

“I’m feeling two ways about it. I’m immensely grateful that it has happened and that we have had Drag Race UK and that it’s been on the BBC, and I think the impact that it has had on the culture and on the art form will last for a very, very, very long time,” she said.

“But at the same time, it is quite sad that that representation isn’t going to be there in the mainstream in British culture any more.”

Produced by World of Wonder, the news of the BBC dropping the show came days after the eighth season premiered on BBC Three.

Although the series will continue on WOW Presents Plus, Johnson said it was “not quite the same as being on a national broadcaster on people’s TV’s”.

The Drag Race UK season 5 winner continued: “I’m trying to feel positive about it because you know drag always finds a way. It’s not like UK drag is going to suddenly disappear just because Drag Race isn’t there any more, but I feel like it is going to be harder for performers to access a broader audience, and it is going to limit how people find drag and bring new fans to the art form, that that is going to get harder now, because it was such a huge platform.”

Johnson said that “underneath all the glitter and the sequins and the fabulous costumes and performances”, the “real magic” of the show was the opportunity it gave for queer people to “tell their own stories”.

“To have that on the BBC in people’s living rooms up and down the country is so powerful,” she said.

Ginger Johnson (Kate Bones)

She added: “I know that if that kind of representation had been around when I was that age, I might not have struggled with a lot of the feelings of shame and isolation seeing my place in the world and in society.”

Reflecting on how Drag Race UK “gave an opportunity to spotlight the the unique eccentricities of British drag”, Johnson added it had been “really exciting to see British culture brought through in that way” with the local version.

Other performers who appeared on the show included La Voix, Danny Beard, Baga Chipz and the late The Vivienne.

Although Johnson admitted she did not think she “had a hope of winning” her season – doing so “completely changed my life”.

“Up until that point, I’d been performing in little basement bars and small theatres but being on Drag Race opened my work up to an international audience, not just a broader UK audience. Since then, I’ve toured the world, and I went on to go on Celebrity Master Chef, which I also won. That’s becoming a habit of mine. So, it really has transformed my work and my life.”

Although Johnson was concerned the BBC dropping the show would “limit the opportunities” of younger up-and-coming drag performers, she encouraged people to still show their support.

“Certainly the biggest way that you can support your favourite performer and the art form in general is to go out and see live drag out there in the world, and there is so much of it happening in bars, nightclubs and theatres up and down the country,” she said.

“My advice to people that love drag and want to continue to support it is to get out there in the real world and experience it. You know, it might not be quite as comfortable as sitting on your sofa and watching Drag Race, but you’ll certainly get a deeper and richer understanding of the art form by doing that, and you’re able to support the artists that are putting absolutely everything they have into making performance for people.”

Johnson is also currently touring her show Show Pony across the UK. She described it as focusing on reconnecting with her childhood imaginary friend – a pony.

“It was little bit of childhood innocence that I sort of naturally lost along the way through my life,  and now that I’m sort of approaching 40, and the world is a bit of a scary and serious place at the moment, I’m trying to reconnect with a little bit of that childhood joy and wonder to see if it can get me through the times that we’re currently living in, and I’m hoping that I can do the same for the audience at the same time.”

Tickets for the show are available from www.gingerjohnson.co.uk