W E LC OM E TO G U I S E
GUISE celebrates art, individuality, freedom of expression and creativitiy in all forms. Our goal is to explore an array of subjects in a unique visual way, with each issue focusing on a particular theme. This, our first, is the Transformative Issue. We explore how a number of individuals transform themselves through make up and fashion, people who are transforming the society we live in through their work and some of our favourite transformations from the big screen. Each physical copy also includes a limited edition print of a piece of artwork from the issue, but it’s luck of the draw, so you never know what you’ll get. It’s hidden in the back, if you can’t wait. Go on, take a look, but don’t forget to enjoy the rest of the issue first...
ON SCREEN STARS - pg. 10 Memorable transformations from the big screen INTRODUCING: LAVERNE COX - pg. 18 Why you should know the Orange Is The New Black star UNISEX COUTURE -pg. 20 The world of designer Rad Hourani DUDE LOOKS LIKE A LADY - pg. 24 Designer Marc Jacobs drags it up in his womenswear collection DEBATE: THE PEOPLE VS. JARED LETO - pg. 30 How the star’s Oscar win caused backlash online SPOTLIGHT ON: JEAN PAUL GAULTIER - pg. 40 20 reasons why we’re mad for the designer WHO DO YOU THINK YOU ARE? - pg. 44 A series showcasing individuals who are constantly transforming themselves THIS IS NOT RUPAUL’S BEST FRIEND RACE - pg. 56 Drag Race this ain’t - a new docu-soap following some of the best queens on London’s drag scene
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S TA R S
The whole premise of acting is transforming into someone you’re not, stepping outside your comfort zone to portray a variety of wonderful characters. Here we show some of our favourites from the world of film, and if you’re as obsessed as us, there’s a small chance you may recognise them...
Illustrations Faye McArthur
John Cameron Mitchell in Hedwig and The Angry Inch
Willem Dafoe in The Boondock Saints
Guy Pearce, Terrance Stamp and Hugo Weaving in The Adventures of Priscilla: Queen of the Desert
Cillian Murphy in Breakfast on Pluto
INTRODUCING:
L AV E R E N E C O X Last summer, Netflix debuted a show called Orange Is The New Black, which proved to be immensly popular with the online community. One star in particular caught our eye: Laverne Cox. Here’s why you should know about this talented woman already.
Words and illustration Faye McArthur
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nless you’ve been living on another planet for the past year, you’ve probably heard about Orange Is The New Black, an original TV show airing exclusively on Netflix set in a women’s prison and featuring an all female lead cast. It’s become wildly popular all over the world, especially with the online tumblr ‘fandoms’ and with season two airing this summer, we’re as excited as ever for more hilarious prison antics.
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hen TIME announced the readers’ poll for the annual list, which featured numerous candidates from the world of business, politics and arts, an online campaign of sorts began to ensure that Cox would be included as one of the most influential people in the world today. Sure enough, the votes poured in, and an overwhelming 91.5% of respondents said ‘yes’, she should be included in the final list. Disappointingly, when TIME unveiled the list, Cox’s name was nowhere to be seen, sparking outrage from fans online, which resulted in the hashtag, #whereisLaverneCox trending on Twitter. However, TIME failed to provide comment as to why Cox had been snubbed from the list, despite the astounding support.
The show’s popularity may have something to do with the array of women that are represented through numerous talented actresses. Even in this day and age, there is still a lot left to be desired with TV shows and films in terms of writing great characters who portray a variety ethnic backgrounds or genders, but this is something that OITNB is doing, and doing a damn good job of it too. One character who proves to be a popular fan-favourite is Sophia, a transgender woman who has been locked up for credit card fraud and is the hairdresser for the inmates, played by Laverne Cox. What makes this all even more unique is that Laverne herself is transgender, which incidentally makes her the first trans woman of colour to star in a leading role on mainstream television.
As with all lists and polls of this nature, the idea of who and what constitutes as influential is all subjective and, ultimately, left up to the organisers of said polls. Still, this should not discount the achievements and talent of the people who did make the list, but it is important that the media recognise the work that individuals like Laverne are doing and the influence it is having on people around the world. For example, Cox is currently producing an MTV documentary which will the the stories of trans teenagers, something which will continue to bring issues to a wider audience in the hope of challenging the violence and discrimination many trans people face on a daily basis.
With a number of accolades to her name including the Dorian ‘Rising Star’ award, a GLAAD award and a spot in OUT magazine’s “OUT 100” list, Cox is proving to be a powerful advocate for the LGBT community. Aside from her acting career, she is also a sought after speaker and has spoken at numerous universities, colleges and events across the US to discuss gender issues and how we as a society can move past gender expectations to live more authentically. However, as with every act of positivity, Laverne’s work hasn’t been without controversy, namely a recent snub from the TIME 100 list.
So, as you spend hours watching the new season of Orange Is The New Black without stopping (we sure as hell will), take a minute to consider some of the wider issues that the show tackles. If this TV show is the one that opens your eyes to social issues, it wouldn’t be the worst thing in the world. And keep a look out for more from Laverne Cox, as we only predict bigger and better things from her. 19
UNISEX Welcome to the world of designer Rad Hourani, a place where clothing has no boundaries, comes from nowhere, but belongs everywhere. As the first unisex designer ever invited by La Chambre Syndicale de La Haute Couture in Paris to show a couture collection, Hourani is breaking the rules and making new ones instead.
Words: Faye McArthur Photography: Rad Hourani
C OUT URE
“[The clothes] EXUDE THE ESSENCE OF TIMELESS STYLE, DRAWN ON A MONOCHROMATIC AND GRAPHICAL CANVAS. PALETTE OF BLACKS AND SHADES OF TIMELESS COLORS. SOPHISTICATED UNISEX MODERN CLASSICS FOR ANTI-CONFORMIST INDIVIDUALS.” - RAD HOURANI
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ince 2007, Rad Hourani has been designing collections which have been showcased at various fashion events, specifically his Rad Hourani label and RAD by Rad Hourani ready to wear collection, which have been presented in Paris and New York, respectively. Last year, Hourani became the first designer invited by La Chambre Syndicale de La Haute Couture to design and present a completely unisex collection at the couture shows in Paris. It’s clear to see why he was chosen; what makes Hourani’s clothing so unique is that it has always been designed as unisex, an aspected which is relatively unheard of. Sure, some designers may feature a unisex garment or two within a collection here and there, but none have made it their ‘thing’ like Hourani. And no one does it as brilliantly.
time, any where and, crucially, by anyone.
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s if blurring the lines between gender through the clothing itself wasn’t enough, the way Hourani designs each collection challenges the fashion calendar itself - seasonal stereotypes are blended into one another and with a monochromatic colour palette, each collection displays a timeless feel. But the only real way to differentiate one collection from the next, is to look to the numerical order in which they were produced. And as the sole designer of the clothing, he focuses on producing garments that cater to physical comfort rather than pieces that are aesthetically pleasing. Could this potentially be the way more designers work in the future? Going against what’s considered the ‘norm’ and defying the idea of seasonal trends? Certainly in Hourani’s world this method is working. Keep both eyes on this one.
His collections focus on the same unisex signature, the silhouette and style which can be produced by a variety of fabrics, and the garments always maintain a casual fit, an aspect which is important to Hourani as it means the clothing can be worn any
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DUDE
LO O KS L I K E A L A DY
Designer Marc Jacobs drags it up in some of his own creations from collections past, showing the ladies how he works it.
Photography: Patrick Demarchelier
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D E B AT E :
T h e p eo p l e vs . J a r e d L e to How the Dallas Buyers Club star’s Oscar win resulted in a furious backlash from the transgender community.
Words and illustration Faye McArthur
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T
he 2014 Awards season had some of the fiercest competition in recent years with films such as 12 Years a Slave, American Hustle and Gravity all winning big, but one of the most talked about films of this season was Dallas Buyers Club. With A-Lister Matthew McConaughey as Ron Woodruff, the film gained media attention early on due to McConaughey’s shocking weight loss to play the HIV patient, but it was supporting actor Jared Leto who caused quite a stir – especially online. After taking six years away from acting to focus on touring the world with the multi-platinum selling rock band Thirty Seconds To Mars, Leto made a spectacular return to the big screen by donning skirts, wigs, heels and lipstick to play Rayon, a transgender woman dying of AIDs. The role saw Leto win an impressive number of awards from various film critics around the world, not to mention walking away with the Best Supporting Actor award from the Golden Globes and Academy Awards – made even more remarkable by the fact that this is
the first time Leto has been awarded for any of his acting work, despite featuring in acclaimed films such as Fight Club and Requiem For a Dream.
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owever, the majority of the negative backlash towards Leto began to surface after he and the film began receiving praise from film critics and moviegoers alike. Most notably, he was heckled at the Santa Barbara film festival in February by an audience member who accused him of ‘trans-misogyny’ and didn’t “deserve an award for portraying a trans-woman, because [he is] a man.” To this, Leto replied, “So you would hold a role against someone who happened to be gay or lesbian – they can’t play a straight part?” before inviting the individual to continue the conversation privately after the Q&A. This sparked discussions online about the issue of trans actors being unable to play trans roles due to the roles being given to cisgender actors, but also the definition of acting as a whole.
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hile the subject of trans actors being given equal opportunity is important, the beauty of acting is that it allows people to portray characters that are so far removed from who they are in the real world. In which case, if trans actors were only chosen for trans roles it could lead to the actor being typecast in such roles which would prevent them from showing the full range of their talent. In this case, what some found problematic is that Rayon was not an accurate portrayal of a transgender woman, however, it was Leto who chose to play the character in this way as opposed to how the role had originally been written – a man who enjoyed dressing in drag. By doing this, Leto avoided putting another clichéd stereotype on screen; instead creating a character that was gentle, empathetic, passionate and funny, though some argued that Rayon was there for comedic effect, like other trans characters seen in Hollywood. What a lot of people seem to be missing, however, is that the focus of Dallas Buyers Club wasn’t Rayon being transgender,
rather the battle she and McConaughey’s Ron Woodruff faced trying to live their lives in the midst of the HIV AIDs crisis. Yes, her character may have been written as a way to force the homophobic Woodruff to open his eyes a little to accepting members of the LGBT community, but the interactions between Ron and Rayon are what gives the film its heart and soul. Their scenes together are indeed humorous, entertaining and at times, they’re downright heart breaking, an aspect that reflects the time period in which the film is set and shows a small part of the devastating and tragic loss of life as a result of AIDs in 1985.
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uch of the online debate about the problems with Rayon’s character seemed to arise from issues that are currently being delt with in 2014, such as the correct pronoun use in reference to someone who is transgender. In Dallas Buyers Club, Rayon is referred to as ‘he’, despite this Leto stated in interviews that he saw Rayon as someone who wanted to live their life as a woman, and as such, would always use ‘her/she’ when discussing the
“The focus of Dallas Buyers Club wasn’t Rayon being transgender, rather the battle she and McConaughey’s Ron Woodruff faced trying to live their lives in the midst of the AIDs crisis ... Their scenes together are humorous and at times, downright heartbreaking.”
the character. Yet people could not understand why Rayon did not correct other characters to use her preferred pronoun. When rewatching the film, the majority of times Rayon is referred to as ‘he’, she is not onscreen, the only instance where she is present happens when she and Ron are in the grocery store and Ron, notso-politely, tells his friend TJ to “shake his [Rayon’s] hand.” It’s easy to see why people would be upset or irritated by such issues, but it must be noted that, within the context of the film, people weren’t as progressive in 1985 in regards to gender issues and acceptance as we are today.
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here is still plenty of work to be done, of course, but writers Craig Borten and Melissa Wallack set out to create a film that tells the story of one man who is blindsided by a positive HIV diagnosis and given thirty days to live, but against all odds, goes on to live for another seven years. The twenty-year struggle they faced to get the film onscreen is a remarkable feat in itself, and the determination to tell this particular story is clear. Perhaps they had considered showing Rayon’s struggle with her identity more in the film; maybe it wasn’t relevant to the story they wanted to tell. Maybe they considered the idea that a wider audience wouldn’t ‘get it’. Although, judging by the vast accolades the film has received since it’s US release in November last year, they created something powerful that connected with people in a unique way. The scene with Rayon and her father alone is devastating enough to bring a lump to the throat of even the most cold-hearted of moviegoers, and showcases the pain of being disowned by a family member simply for being who you are. Another reason why people seemed to have an issue with Leto’s character is that Rayon doesn’t ‘fit’ the idea of what people think a transgender woman ‘should’ look like in 2014. This is something which trans actress/acting coach Calpernia Addams, (who met with Leto prior to filming to assist in answering questions about being transgender), pointed out in an Op-ed letter that she
posted online days after the Oscars, defending his role in Dallas Buyers Club and discussing some of the disputes surrounding the film. She noted that part of the reason why many people hate Rayon is because “she isn’t beautiful, she isn’t passable, she isn’t gender-binary, she isn’t 2014 political”, which goes back to the argument that she is a representation of an uncomfortable and difficult time period that many would like to forget. In 1985, Rayon would not have had access to the variety of treatments available to trans people today, an important factor that those who did not live through this particular time period seem to forget.
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ddams also raises the issue that Leto’s acceptance speeches “left something to be desired when … speaking well on the issues facing his character”, however, acknowledging that it is “rare to be a gifted artist and a great political speaker”, which would happen in a perfect world – but we’re not there yet. Perhaps it is a case of people expecting too much too soon, as we’re all well aware that change doesn’t happen overnight. The fact that this role even exists at all is a huge step forward, and, as a result of Leto’s superb acting skills, it has been rewarded with pretty much every supporting actor award going, bringing a variety of very relevant issues such as HIV AIDs and transgender rights to light as a result. Rayon may not be a perfect character, but she is a unique, entertaining, artistic interpretation of a tragic time period for countless people. and that will polarize opinion. The film and Leto’s role in it has sparked a worthy discussion for people to be having, that trans actors need to be given equal opportunity, but let’s not dismiss the fact that good and important representation can come from non trans actors. Rather, use it as a vehicle to further progress how minorities are portrayed in film and continue along the path to equality.
SPOTLIGHT ON:
JEAN
PA U L
G A U LT I E R
Twenty reasons why we love the designer, and how he changed the fashion industry.
1. He changed gender conventions. Jean Paul Gaultier never
believed that garments and fabrics had a gender in the first place, so when he designed the collection Une garde robe pour deux (‘A wardrobe for two’), he turned things around, gave his men long hair and his women short hair, made them swap clothes, and showed the world that masculinity and femininity come from within.  2. He objectified men. If Richard Gere and American Gigolo changed the way Hollywood looked at men, Jean Paul Gaultier and Et Dieu Créa L’Homme, the designer’s spring/ summer 85 collection, did the same for fashion. If Gaultier hadn’t applied female values to men, effectively making them sex symbols for one and all – like their female counterparts, who were looked at by both men and women – fashion and culture wouldn’t be what it is today.
3. He invented the cone bra. Madonna first called upon Jean Paul Gaultier in 1989 to design the costumes for her Blond Ambition Tour, whose displays of sexuality and religion got her banned from several venues. The most iconic part of the show saw Madonna simulate an orgasm on a bed to an Arabesque version of Like a Virgin, dressed in Gaultier’s pink satin cone bra corset alongside male dancers in even pointier Gaultier cone bras.
4. He put men in skirts. Punk had already been a thing for ten
years, but for a fashion industry that was still very bourgeois by the mid-80s, Jean Paul Gaultier’s men in skirts for spring/ summer 85 was something of a shocker. We can only imagine the designer’s epic eye-roll at the world when Kanye West got pretty much the same reaction for wearing a Givenchy skirt more than 25 years later.
5. He brought religion into fashion. Jean Paul Gaultier captures,
questions and celebrates the norms of society, and while he changed sex in fashion, his bravest moves were religiously charged. On the Blond Ambition Tour, Madonna threw herself around a catholic church set singing Oh Father in a tailored Gaultier coat, rubbing a cross against her crotch. And in the autumn of 1993, the designer showed a collection entitled Chic Rabbis as an ode to Hasidic costume before Jean-Marie Périer shot him as the Pope in 1994.
6. He turned underwear into outerwear. Before Jean Paul
Gaultier put a bra on the catwalk in the early 80s, lingerie was still your unmentionables as far as fashion was concerned. While Thierry Mugler had been making corset dresses since the 70s, no one thought of turning things around in the underwear/outerwear department to the extent that Gaultier did until Gaultier did it. If it weren’t for him, Rihanna would be seriously overdressed!
7. He made sailors chic. Seamen all over the world owe their sex
appeal to Jean Paul Gaultier, who glamorised and sexualised them to the point of immortalisation with his hunky sailors in their Breton striped jumpers and dixie cup hats. Gaultier always wore the characteristically French stripe as a child and made it one of his trademarks as a designer, more often than not with two other French trademarks: the red paisley cravat and the beret.
8. He created the flacon of them all. Not to undermine the
classic simplicity of perfume bottles like No. 5 or Elizabeth Taylor’s White Diamonds, but when Jean Paul Gaultier launched Classique in 1993, he changed the flacon game forever. The EDP – as it was originally known – was shaped like a curvaceous woman’s torso and echoed the light salmony pink
colour of Madonna’s famous Gaultier corset. Over the years, the flacon has received countless makeovers. It has a male counterpart in the muscular Le Male.
9. He gave punk a makeover. Jean Paul Gaultier founded his
house in 1976, the same year as The Clash was formed and just a year after the Sex Pistols got together, possibly making him France’s first punk. Where Vivienne Westwood merged her punk with British heritage, Jean Paul Gaultier glammed up his studs and tartan and made them French and fabulous the way he’d do it to so many other things over the decades. And for autumn/winter 14, the punk of Paris sent grey-haired punks down his catwalk, proving that you’re never too old to rebel.
10. He gave Martin Margiela and Nicholas Ghesquière jobs. Jean
Paul Gaultier’s legacy isn’t just about cone bras and gender revolutions. If it weren’t for the platinum prince, Martin Margiela – who served his first full-time job at Gaultier between 1985 and 1987, and later preceded his old boss as Creative Director at Hermès – and Nicholas Ghesquière, who was Gaultier’s assistant from 1990 to 1992, wouldn’t have kicked off their careers the way they did.
11. He created the fashion fan. Jean Paul Gaultier brought
an uncompromisingly youthful spirit to a 70s and 80s fashion industry, which was decidedly grown-up, effectively inviting in young people and creating a fan base of Gaultier Groupies, which was fashion’s first real experience with diehard fanboys and girls, who practically camped out in front of his shows. This, in turn, created the fashion week circus we know today. Anna Dello Russo basically owes Gaultier her life.
12. He changed conventional beauty. Uninspired by the largely
Scandinavian and German models, who ruled the catwalks in the 80s, early on in his career Jean Paul Gaultier ran an ad the French newspaper Libération: “Non‐conformist designer seeks unusual models – the conventionally pretty need not apply.” By casting women like Farida Khelfa, Rossy de Palma, Crystal Renn, and Carmen Dell’Orefice, he broke down the barriers of conventional beauty and changed the face of modelling.
13. He gave new life to haute couture. Jean Paul Gaultier
didn’t venture into haute couture until 1997 – twenty years after founding his house – but when he did, it was like a riot in the old halls of fashion’s finest craft. The new couturier sent out androgynous men in sharp tailoring and make-up to spontaneous applause in the rows. More recent couture shows include the ‘decades show’ where Catherine Deneuvre announced each look number live, the Amy Winehouse tribute show, and this season’s show, which Dita von Teese closed.
14. He was the first Paris designer to commission Stephen Jones. Well, alongside Thierry Mugler, who called upon Jones that same season. It was 1984, and Gaultier loved working with Jones so much that he didn’t just commission him for a second season, but made sure that Jones received a separate credit for the hats as opposed to the Gaultier studio taking credit for them. Overnight, Stephen Jones was an international fashion star.
15. He took designer stardom to another level. Before other
designers went through makeovers and became more famous than Ajax, Jean Paul Gaultier recorded a single with Tony Mansfield (‘How To Do That’), co-hosted a TV show (we’ll get to that), posed for various photographers, engaged in countless design collaborations, and cultivated one of fashion’s most recognisable signature looks. No-no-notorious!
16. He gave Coco Rocha a chance to dance. Jean Paul Gaultier
didn’t just pioneer a new age of model looks (see entry 11), he also gave models a chance to do what they’re best at. His autumn/ winter 07 show was famously opened by a river-dancing Coco Rocha, who wowed editors with her secret talent and forever branded herself as one of the most theatrical girls in the industry.
17. He did make-up for men. In some cultures, men have been
wearing make-up for millenniums, but that didn’t make it any less of a milestone in the Western world when Jean Paul Gaultier debuted his Le Beau Male line for men in 2003. With bronzer, kohl, concealer, various nude lipsticks, and a powder, the line marked the first time a high fashion designer had launched makeup for men. It even came with several glossy video tutorials on his website. In 2008 the line was re-launched as ‘Monsieur’.
18. He made Hollywood more fun. Next to dressing Nicole
Kidman the night she won her Oscar for The Hours and Cate Blanchett in her 2000 Oscar number with all the gold chains down the back and arms, Jean Paul Gaultier designed costumes for films including The Cook, the Thief, His Wife, and Her Lover, The City of Lost Children, and The Fifth Element.
19. He put Madonna topless on a catwalk. The year was 1992
and Jean Paul Gaultier was putting on a retrospective runway show in Los Angeles to raise money for AmFar. Madonna got on the catwalk and strutted her stuff, dressed only in the Victorian suspender trousers she’d immortalised on her Blond Ambition Tour. She’d go on to wear Gaultier on her Drowned World, ReInvention, Confessions, Sticky and Sweet, and MDNA tours.
20. He gave us Eurotrash. If there was ever any doubt that
the man is a genius, please sit down and watch season one of Eurotrash on 4oD. Now. As Antoine de Caunes’ co-host, Jean Paul Gaultier dressed up as various celebrities, interviewed them, and showed hilarious clips from around the world (and particularly Europe) adding his brilliant brand of sarcasm, irony and irresistible French charm to the fabulous spectacle, which pulled in three million viewers every week between 1993 and 1997.
Words: Anders Christian Madsen Illustrations: Faye McArthur
W H O D O YO U T H I N K YO U A R E ? There are many ways to express our identity, and here we highlight just a small number of individuals who are masters of their craft; using mediums like music, make-up and fashion to transform themselves into someone, or something, completely different.
Illustrations: Faye McArthur
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b r i a n
m o l ko
M u sici a n
Kind of buzz that lasts for days, Had some help from insect ways. Comes across all shy and coy, Just another Nancy Boy. Woman man or modern monkey, Just another happy junkie. Fifty pounds, press my button, Going down.
j e f f r e e
s ta r
M u sici a n
Are you ready cause I’mma knock you out, They call me Mr Diva and I’ll put it in your mouth. Hey trick, do you really like my taste? Hey trick, do you really wanna get laid? I’m not Disney, I’m a nasty bitch.
st e l l a ro s e sa i n t c l a i r d esig n e r
Reminiscent of muses and “It girls� from previous eras: Photographed wherever she goes, adored by legions of fans, and a fixture at fabulous and bizarre parties...
L A DY
GAGA
M u sici a n
I can’t help the way I’m feeling, Goddess of Love please take me to your leader. I can’t help but keep on dancing, Goddess of Love... Take me to your planet.
m at h u
a n d e rs e n
Make
up
a rt i st
Make up genius, bearded lady. I am just utterly fascinating... at least that’s what I tell myself.
Just as the fierce competition of RuPaul’s Drag Race is about to come to a close for another season, London Live brings us a new show to fill the void. Drag Queens of London provides an insight into the world of some of our capitals most popular Queens - humour, drunken antics, over the top outfits and drama included. Sounds like a party to us.
Wo r d s : Faye McArthur
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F
orget about the glamourous drag competition happening Stateside for one minute and listen up. London Live brings us a brand new docu-soap Drag Queens of London, which showcases the diversity of London’s drag scene and celebrating some of the most popular and talented queens the city has to offer. There’s no lip syncing for your life on this show, instead we see the men behind the wigs and make-up and hear their stories about what drag means to them. It may not seem like no match for the giant that is RuPaul’s Drag Race on paper, but it certainly makes for entertaining viewing and shows that the drag scene in the UK is just as wild, dynamic and popular as it is in the US.
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he series consists of eight episodes filmed over three months and follows a number of queens as they strive to further their careers and, in some cases, find love. Drag Queens has a cast of colourful characters including Dusty O, one of the most experienced and respected queens on the scene, the outrageous Baga Chipz, Meth, a member of the performance collective The Familyyy Fierce (who is also giving Sharon Needles a run for her money), and androgynous queen Ruby Wednesday. All of the queens on the show are hilariously entertaining and this particular group only begins to scratch the surface on the many different types of drag that are currently grabbing the attention of audiences all over London.
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ome of the drama on the show centres around the reformation of the drag act The Buffalo Girls, and the struggle Meth has to bring US-based trio DWV (Detox, Willam and Vicky Vox, in case you didn’t already know) overseas to perform in a London bar, something which could potentially change her career forever. We also get to hear from friends and family, as well as the queens themselves, to find out what it’s like working with a group of drag queens or being in a relationship with someone who enjoys dressing as a woman. Along with this comes the heartbreaking tales of predjudce from some of the queens’ own relatives, showing us a vulnerability behind all the glitz and glam of the make up and costumes.
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verall, Drag Queens is a lighthearted and entertaining look at what’s currently happening in the UK drag scene and shows just how much talent a small selection of individuals can have. It seems there’s always a focus on the drag world over in the US, but this show is an oppertunity for our home-grown queens to show that they’re just as amazing, if not better, than the rest of them.
Drag Queens of London airs Tuesdays at 10pm on London Live Visit londonlive.com for more info