A new batch of queens from across the UK are set to battle it out in the hope of hearing RuPaul's magical words: "Condragulations, you're a winner, baby". The UK edition of Drag Race has been putting hopeful contestants through their paces for seven years - plenty of time for a new wave of talent raised on the hit reality show to emerge. Now "Generation Ru" are ready to compete for the crown and £25,000 cash prize.
Series eight contestant Mocha, 26, tells BBC Newsbeat she considers herself part of this new cohort. "My drag has always been inspired by Drag Race because that's why I started," the Essex-born queen says. "I think watching Drag Race made me realise that all of these things that I grew up wanting to do - like be a fashion designer, be a singer, like be a dancer, do makeup - it's actually all these things combined and I can be all of them at once." Mocha, who describes herself as a "fashion clown" and musical theatre lover, says it has taken her nearly a decade to get to this stage but feels it is the "right time".
And while watching the show has influenced her style and given her a something to work towards, she says the process isn't for those who just want to get on TV. "Drag is hard and you've got to love it, you've got to have a passion for it," she says. "Drag Race is the extra-special prize you get at the end, but it's not the main goal in that way." London-based queen and fellow contestant Flesh agrees she is "100% Generation Ru".
"I found drag through queens who had featured in the American franchise," the 26-year-old says. "And from the first season of the UK franchise I was hooked, I was a fan. "It has always really been my blueprint.“ She has also developed her "supermodel of Soho" style alongside her best friend Bones, the reigning Drag Race UK Superstar.
Flesh says she was "so happy" for her drag sister when she won, but it also made her "terrified" to compete this year as she focused on proving herself. Almost 100 queens have lip-synced their way through Drag Race UK's challenges, but there are fans who worry whether the British scene can support more series of the annual show. Series eight's youngest contestant, Naya Thorn, who was 23 when she was chosen for the show, feels there are new queens cropping up all over the UK.
But she admits the show would benefit if more "seasoned and colourful characters" from across the scene got involved. However, she says, cost-of-living pressures are putting a strain on queens trying to make it. Naya, from Dudley, West Midlands, says the expense of preparing for the show almost led her to drop-out, and she wouldn't have been TV-ready without her support network at home.
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