Author: Sam Dowler

We LOVE Drag Race and all it represents but it has to be said that RuPaul’s Drag Race UK season 3 has been met with something of a mixed reception. The early exits of trailblazer Victoria Sponge and returning queen Veronica Green, the somewhat lacklustre performances and the absence of older queens has left audiences feeling a bit underwhelmed. 

Today BBC Three announced a casting call for season 4 as the juggernaut rolls on with no sign of stopping… or even slowing down. We aren’t even a halfway through season 3 so it begs the question, are we getting to some sort of saturation point? With so many iterations, is the franchise in danger of burning out with all the best queens having already been snapped up? 

With whisperings backstage that the fast turnaround of the filming process had taken its toll on the cast and crew, it’s not surprising that this series has lost a little of its lustre. Without time to recoup from gruelling tasks and multiple lewks to create and serve in record time, its bound to take it out of any queen, let alone ones that haven’t been able to perform or hone their skills for 18 months during the pandemic. 

Drag, as we know, is an art and whilst it’s amazing to give younger queens (two teenagers included) the opportunity, nothing beats cold hard graft and experience. Of course, it’s relatively early days and the season may yet come into its own, but an after incredibly strong first two seasons, this series has a lot to live up to.

As the applications come flooding in, we hope that when casting season 4 they look to some more seasoned performers to mix it up a bit and prove that age ain’t nothing but a number!

Sam Dowler is co-host on the UK’s premier Drag Race podcast United Queendom including episode recaps, saucy banter and so much more.