LIFE’S A DRAG

BY SEAN MCKEE

@Trudyscrumptious82

RuPaul’s Drag Race UK sashays its way onto our screens every Thursday, we get another look at what the UK’s fabulous drag community has to offer. Except for one notable absence. This series is serving us our first featured Scottish queens in Lawrence Chaney and Ellie Diamond. We even have representation for Wales with Newport-born Tayce. But we have zero queens from the smallest part of the nation: Northern Ireland.

Despite the huge popularity of season 1 top five contestant (and unofficial miss congeniality IMO) Blu Hydrangea, we didn’t get a queen from the region this time around. Didn’t the producers want to follow up on the hard-fought-for legalisation of same sex marriage in Northern Ireland, which was extended there shortly after the series wrapped up, and was central to Blu’s story? (SPOILER: she discussed how she wouldn’t marry her bf until it was made law and equality was achieved).

One other perspective some of our NI queens could provide is how they managed to do their gigs as gender bending entertainers during one of the darkest periods of recent British history. No, not the Cameron years, or even the Thatcher years. Not Blair taking us to Iraq. Or the three economic crashes in as many decades that we’ve had to endure. I’m referring to the 30-year ethnopolitical conflict that dominated Northern Ireland until the turn of the century, affectionately known as ‘The Troubles’. These troubles were the cause of over 3,500 deaths; 52% of which were civilians. During these dark times, it wasn’t safe to walk down some streets; it depended on where you were from, who was your family, and what your name was. Now, imagine throwing a loud and proud queer into the mix - safe to say it wasn’t OK to stand out at all, never mind be gay.

QUEENS OF ‘THE TROUBLES’ Trudy Scrumptious, one of the province’s leading queer entertainers recalls: “Definitely in the early years it wasn’t safe to be anywhere never mind gay or flamboyantly dressed, so it was important to be careful and stick with where and who you know...alas incidents did happen but strangely never in drag ... I obviously stunned them into submission with all my eleganza!”.

These days, the celebrations far outweigh the bad times: “Pride will always be a special place; to watch everyone in my community get celebrated for who they are will always be an overwhelming, memorable experience”.

Having just entered her 22nd year of performing as Trudy, she has one particular queer icon above the rest: “I love Kenneth Williams, he was truly authentic to himself and yet such an individual. It must not have been easy for him and yet he made so many others happy, that’s magic to me!”.

As a host of everything from cabaret to karaoke, and even throwing herself her own comedy roast, Trudy is seen as a matriarch to her peers on the

local scene: “I love our queer community here in Northern Ireland, as a post conflict country we have managed to create a scene with such a respect for diversity and it’s still growing stronger despite political oppression”.

Another queen who remembers tougher times, and definitely stood up and made sure she was noticed, is the legendary Titti Von Tramp. She shot to international fame when Belfast got its first permanent gay club, Kremlin. Photographed standing atop a police land rover after a bomb scare, Titti looks every bit the statuesque leggy legend we still know her as today: “Picture it; me in a leather bikini... A bomb scare and several land rovers...I just climbed on top of one of the land rovers and started dancing on the roof entertaining the evacuees…Very Dame Vera Lynn. Those pictures went around the world; ‘It’s a bum scare’ and ‘It’s a bum alert’ were a few of my favourite headlines in the papers”.

Her drag career has taken to her to gigs in Ibiza, Switzerland and two drag specials of The Weakest Link. These days, you can find her walking the cobbles of Belfast’s flourishing queer quarter, reeling punters in via her omnipresent megaphone. Despite her 33 years of experience, the living legend has still yet to spawn any mini mes - or drag daughters: “I have no Drag children. As it says in the bible ‘No womb in the Inn’, plus I don’t think social services or RSPCA would let me”. It’s not all about remembering the past in NI; in fact, the future of drag has never looked more exciting. One of the queers taking the night scene into the 21st Century is self-described ‘annoyingly stunning’ The Only Sassie. As mother of the Haus of Only (a collective of artists and performers based in Belfast) Sassie has drawn inspiration from herself when creating the perfect club night: “Basically I created a night that I wanted to go to, and there was space for that to exist in a way that I hadn’t seen before. As a regular performing queen at ones of Belfast clubs I realised I had so much more to give and to do which led to the formation of my own nights. So I picked up my heels and took a dander down the road and created the now legendary queer night Harland & Poof with fellow queer and DJ JP McGuckin. Harland & Poof is a queer safe space and monthly club night... Everyone deserves a space where they truly feel like they can let go and be themselves without any judgement. Our policy is if you’re dead on you can stay if you’re an asshole out da F***. The night gives space for all types of performers to bring it to the floor for some truly sickening performances and if you aren’t there for the floor show the disco and house

soundtrack will bring you nothing but aural pleasure.” One of the only known drag families in the region, Sassie heads up the Haus alongside ‘1st born and right-hand bitch’ The Only Nina, The Only Mail Mary, Iva Snatch, The Only Sean Henry & Bob Zombie. “The Haus, just like Kelly & Ozzy, are currently going through changes and will be back with a bang soon.”

Covid 19 has put a stop to Harland & Poof’s monthly Kiki for now, but that hasn’t stopped Sassie pushing herself creatively: “It really helps my mental health when I’m up to something creative, gives me the good Juju. With covid and loss of work I found myself very much in a slump, feeling a huge amount of writer’s block. The first lockdown brought us out of our shells and on to zoom for live shows and quizzes and that was all well and good - I did a couple then decided it wasn’t for me.”

“With that I got thinking what else I could do, and the idea sprung to mind; why not pick an artist and remake 3 of their music videos using local talent in regards to performers and technical support? I paired up with my good Judy and member of the Haus Of Only Iva Snatch / BigBadLlama to create our first series ‘The Miley Series’ which much to my surprise has went down an absolute storm. I also had the pleasure of collaborating with another local legend Trudy Scrumptious who guest starred in one of the videos Edge Of Midnight. Going into 2021 I have lots of bits in the pipeline, with more exclusive content coming soon!”

As well as this, Sassie has an important message she wants to reiterate: “Support your local queens & performers!! They are the glue holding our glitter covered scene together.” Of course, there’s much more to Northern Ireland than its capital Belfast. It is the main hub for queer arts in the region, but the contributors come from every part. Although she’s now a resident of Belfast city, Rusty Hinges remains a small town country girl at heart: “When I started drag I was living at home with my parents in Banbridge. I used to get ready at home and travel to the gigs. I loved going into shops for a reaction/ attention, but no one seemed to notice. They must of thought I just was a big country gurl!”.

“I first debuted in drag in at the Kremlin Drag Ball in 2009 - I was only 7 years old...I’ve been booked and blessed since the beginning. I’ve DJ’d at A lister parties, been on TV, had my own regular nights in bars and clubs round the city. I’ve even worked for the gypsy community”.

As a host of regular club nights in the queer quarter’s Maverick bar, Rusty has high praise for her fellow NI queens: “I love how diverse it (the drag community) is! I’m quite close with a lot of them. I love my sisters”. When asked about her queer idols, she also looks to the older queens of the scene as her queer idols: “The original queens of Belfast - Titti Von Tramp, Trudy Scrumptious, Tina Leggs, Miss Mae & Twanda”.

Another country queen, hailing from Craigavon, County Armagh, Onya Becks indulges in every type of look imaginable; from cosplay of Disney, turning a Christmas look, or paying homage to her idol - Kylie Minogue: “It depends on my mood. My inspiration comes

@electralacnt @dick_von_dyke

@mistressonyabecks @tittivontramp

@rustyhinges_

@theonlysassie from the fear of the challenge. If I’m afraid to try a look (in case I don’t think I can do it) I go for it. I don’t shy away from leaving my comfort zones. As for practical inspirations I’d say I’m inspired by Disney, horror, cartoons, fantasy. Blu (Hydrangea), Scarlett Mugler and Miz Tasty (fellow Belfast queens) are massive inspirations. Especially Blu, I feel she helped with my confidence at starting to do makeup looks!”

“I started performing in 2012. I did a small-town competition called Lurgan Drag Wars, where I came second, then entered other competitions and started building myself up”.

Having only moved to Belfast recently, Onya had a lot of travelling under her belt to make it to gigs: “Routine wise I preferred getting ready at home for Belfast based gigs, but if it’s down south(Ireland) I normally get ready at the venue. Before I moved up (to Belfast) I got ready at the bars mostly”. Onya has many achievements in her almost 9-year career, but there is one highlight that stands out: “Getting to meet Kylie Minogue! She’s sweet, humble and very professional. She’s exactly how she comes across”. Although she doesn’t see it as an issue now, Onya did find it hard at first to break into the big City scene: “I think at the start not being from Belfast went against me as sometimes I felt like I didn’t belong anywhere, a bit of an outsider. Though now I generally feel comfortable with everyone. I love the Belfast scene! The Queens and performers have literally kept me inspired to push myself further. We’re lucky to have had such icons pave the way for us! I love that we have a good variety, it inspires me to keep trying new things...I never want to stop trying to improve and better myself!”.

FIGHTING FOR RIGHTS With a burgeoning community comes an ever-increasing spotlight, particularly those who are disagreeable. Some commentators in NI are unafraid to be anti-LGBTQ+ and use pride and other occasions to speak up against the ‘impact’ a visible queer community will have on mainstream society. From former Mayor of Belfast Sammy Wilson’s comments: “I don’t care if [gays] are ratepayers. As far as I am concerned, they are perverts”, to Ian Paisley Jr stating he was ‘repulsed’ bey lesbianism, there has always been a public representative never afraid to project their outright homophobia.

Once such individual who put himself at loggerheads with local drag queen Electra La C*nt was former DUP Health minister, Jim Wells. During his time in that role, he continued a ban on blood donations from members of the gay community. Speaking about a Queer Ulster event held in Stormont Parliament Buildings in 2018, he said the event “was tasteless and has brought the Northern Ireland Assembly and Stormont into disrepute. Steps must be taken to prevent a similar type of event taking place in Parliament Buildings again.”

Why did he target Electra specifically? It all comes back

to an iconic outfit she wore at

Belfast Pride 2016, which was finished off with a tiara coated

with dried HIV-infected blood. “Not only did it get people talking about HIV, it educated them on its transmission and that really was the meaning behind what I did. Still to this day, I get people sharing their stories about how they have been made to feel by others and the impact of what I did had upon them which is incredibly humbling and reinforces the reasoning behind it all. There is still a long way to go in eradicating the stigma surrounding HIV, and indeed with the advances in medicine even over the past couple of years we have seen great successes in terms of treatments, and preventative measures too - so it’s brilliant to see” she explains.

“I find anyone that bigoted really rather sad, and he seems to thoroughly enjoy being unpleasant - I really think he owes the gay community a lot for the amount of airtime he gets spouting absolute bile about us! He should be grateful! That said, people like him, in power, are incredibly dangerous and they give credence to the ordinary bloke in the street to roll down his window and shout poof at us, because his elected representative thinks we’re all disgusting and perverted and is given a platform to say such, quite frankly, un-Christian things.”

“Ever since I was 18, and heard what Iris Robinson had said about the gay community being abominations, and the fallout of that was next to nothing, it made me realise that we are on our own and need to do the shouting ourselves to exist in this world. I imagine being gay and being apolitical must be a nice life, as you haven’t had to experience something so against your very existence that you can put your feet up and leave it to someone else to worry about. It’s a privilege that many queer people don’t get to have, because their daily lives are a constant reminder that the world views them as other, and not a part of it. Drag is political, without a doubt.”

As well as highlighting issues around HIV stigma and healthcare, Electra has also spoken up for other issues the community is experiencing. “The failing healthcare system for trans individuals is appalling - the waiting list for an initial consultation is years, and the rhetoric the UK media currently spews against the trans community allows for politicians such as Liz Truss, current Minister for Women and Equalities, to declare that such issues are “fashionable” rather than legal rights. There is this incorrect assumption that people can click their fingers and suddenly have access to all the hormones or hormone blockers they like - the opposite is the case. There was a consultation on the Gender Reformation Act ignored because there were too many trans people who had responded and gave their views. If a government thinks that way - that trans people cannot speak about trans issues, then something is truly flawed in the system. It’s transphobia; and this “debate” over the erasure of women’s rights is manifesting itself into the ugliest of divisive fights, and yet again trans people are being left behind and sometimes failed by their own community.”

Along with her squirrel friend, Drag King Dick Von Dyke, they run QUEERTOPIA, a night designed to nourish and give a platform to alternative queer voices: “We moved from the usual bars and nightclubs and decided that queer people had a voice that should be listened to, in an environment that nourishes something that you can only find on a stage that makes it about the performer and what they have to say. Queertopia is a safer space for developing such art, taking risks, feeling empowered to express your story and tell it through whatever medium suits you. We are forever grateful for the love and support we’ve received over the years, and without all of our brilliant contributing performers we would not be where we are.“

The duo is also involved with the 343, an Artist-Focused, Feminist-led, Queer Arts Space in the East of the City. This space offers them rehearsal space, as well as space for smaller shows, drag queen story time for families, and office space. “I was chair of the 343 for a year but now I am just a volunteer as I’m focusing on solo work. It’s been hard to navigate creativity in the lockdowns, but I think we have had some lovely outcomes and moments as a collective and the future looks exciting too for the space” Dick explains. As a drag king, Dick admits initially people’s reactions weren’t the greatest. “Now people are more accepting. At the start it was fucking grim. Fag hags don’t want to see a drag king they want glitz. But to be fair my drag was more busted at the so...I’ll take ownership of that. He (Dick) is really an exploration of my own gender fluidity and a physicalisation of my own masculinity in a nontoxic way. Citing Hannah Gadsby and Landon Cider as inspirations, Dick isn’t afraid to lend a hand to other looking to break into the local drag scene:” A couple have evolved under my wing but I tend to float in and out as

needed...like a Queer Nanny McPhee.” He is equally as passionate as bestie Electra when it comes to giving queer voices a platform: “Queer is such a complex and forgotten tribe in our mental health services, we need to keep talking about the issues faced in today’s society, especially in NI.”

Drag and queer arts has never been stronger in Northern Ireland, with plenty represented, and so much more left to fight for. If the question of taking part in drag race was put to these queens, I’d safely bet they’d all smash it if given the opportunity...except Titti: “No, I wouldn’t do Drag Race if offered...one split drop and I would be off to Lourdes...These old bones are only good for making a good meat stock for soup”.

Keep your eyes peeled on future series of Drag Race...the Queens of NI are coming!