PSA: RuPaul's Drag Race UK Kicks Off Tonight And Here's What To Expect

Today is HUGE for British fans of RuPaul's Drag Race as the drag queen extravaganza premieres for its first UK season... tonight.

YAAAAAS.

Yes, the first episode of the debut season will be premiering on BBC Three from 8pm this evening exclusively on iPlayer - so if you haven't already, cancel those work drinks because you are completely, utterly tied up.

The show, which will hit the streaming site every Thursday at the same time for eight weeks, will see Mama Ru return with her sidekick Michelle Visage to scrutinise this year's cohort of Brit queens.

BBC

Joining the judging panel will be our very own Graham Norton and Alan Carr, who will be rotating weekly, along with guest judges including Cheryl, Maisie Williams, Jade Thirlwall, Dame Twiggy, Geri Horner, Michaela Coel and Andrew Garfield.

The queens will need to slay their way through a series of weekly challenges from testing their make-up skills, fashion sense, sewing abilities, comedy, singing, acting and dancing skills.

Plus, there will naturally be a snatch game - which is where the queens hilariously impersonate iconic stars.

In the US, iconic snatch game performances have varied from Beyoncé to Cher, but who will the UK queens choose? Lip sync skills will all be under close scrutiny at this point.

As for the queens themselves, the full line-up was revealed in August, and includes: Baga Chipz, Blu Hydrangea, Crystal, Cheryl Hole, Divina De Campo, Gothy Kendoll, Sum Ting Wong, Scaredy Kat, The Vivienne, Vinegar Strokes.

BBC

As usual, the queens will be tested on the four pillars of the Drag Race mantra: Charisma, Uniqueness, Nerve and Talent. The contestants in the bottom two will be made to lip sync for their position on the show.

When the UK edition of the show was first announced, a spokesperson for the BBC said: "Needless to say, we're delighted that BBC Three will be the home of a new UK version of Drag Race.

"It is one of the biggest entertainment titles in the world and anticipation levels for a UK version have been at feverish levels. With heart, humour and the un-imitable RuPaul, Drag Race. is going to take BBC Three to a whole new level."

We for one are giddy with excitement - anyone else?

Topics: TV and Film, TV Entertainment

Ciara Sheppard

Ciara is a freelance journalist working for Tyla. After graduating from the University of Sussex, Ciara worked as a writer at GLAMOUR Magazine and later as the Assistant Editor of Yahoo Style UK.

@ciarasheppard