The third series of international spin off RuPaul’s Drag Race UK vs The World concluded with drama, splendour, and jubilation as RuPaul declared Gawdland their winner.
And so Gawdland, from Drag Race Thailand, is the proud recipient of the much coveted title of Queen of the Mothertucking World, and a cash prize of £50,000.
Finalists Fontana (Sweden), Gawdland (Thailand), Kate Butch (United Kingdom) and Mariah Balenciaga (USA) were the last four queens standing, and the tension was palpable in tonight’s highly anticipated finale as the final remaining glamazons entered the Drag Race arena for one last time.
Over the past eight weeks, RuPaul’s Drag Race UK Vs the World has captivated audiences worldwide as ten standout queens from Drag Race franchises around the world battled it out for Mama Ru’s final seal of approval. Alliances were formed, friendships were forged, cultural lessons were learned, team GB Olympians received the makeover of their lives, world class drag was showcased and everyone got their Ru-demption moment (in spite of the Chippy tea curveballs). Period.
In the grand finale the whole cast were reunited for a Ru-union chaired by the inimitable Michelle Visage. As grievances were aired, and fuming queens vented, the reunion was at times tense, fiery, and awkward, and immensely watchable. Thankfully, sun overcame shade, and bestie status was restored when the queens voted for Mexico’s Serena Morena as the Miss Congeniality of the season.
After the Ru-union, the four hopeful finalists entered the Drag Race mainstage for the Ultimate Lip Sync Smackdown – a series of fierce lip sync battles for the win.
A spin of the Lip Sync Smackdown wheel landed on Mariah Balenciaga’s name, awarding the American queen the power to decide who she would face in the first round of the lip sync smackdown.
Mariah chose to lip sync against Gawdland and after a valiant performance, RuPaul declared Gawdland the winner, sending them through to the final round. And so as it was written, the Ballroom beauty, Mariah Balenciaga sashayed away from the finale.
Next, Kate Butch faced Fontana in a high energy lip sync, with RuPaul declaring Kate Butch as the winner. And so for the Brazilian-Swedish belle, it was not Fontana’s time.
The final lip sync for the crown saw Gawdland and Kate Butch battling it out for the win.
After an electrifying performance, RuPaul announced Gawdland as the winner of RuPaul’s Drag Race UK vs The World and so Kate Butch bowed out of proceedings, and Tia Kofi, the reigning queen of the Mothertucking World handed over the crown and sceptre to the jubilant Gawdland and freshly titled winner.
Thai drag star Gawdland first rose to prominence as a finalist on Drag Race Thailand, and since her energetic entrance into RuPaul’s Drag Race UK Vs the World, Gawdland has proven to be a formidable racer.
Throughout the competition, Gawdland continued to impress RuPaul and the judges with her stunning looks and undeniable stage presence. Rising to every challenge, Gawdland found herself in the top two of the Talent Competition and secured two RuPeter badges – winning the sewing challenge as well as the notoriously difficult Snatch Game.
Week after week Gawdland proved her charisma, uniqueness, nerve and talent was plentiful winning RuPaul’s final seal of approval as the winner of series three of RuPaul’s Drag Race UK vs the World and the next Queen of the MotherTucking World.
All episodes of RuPaul’s Drag Race UK vs The World are now available on iPlayer.
RuPaul’s Drag Race UK vs The World is a World of Wonder production for BBC Three and BBC iPlayer commissioned by Fiona Campbell, Interim Director of Unscripted and Kalpna Patel-Knight, Head of Entertainment at the BBC. The Executive Producers for World of Wonder are Fenton Bailey, Randy Barbato, Tom Campbell, RuPaul Charles, Bruce McCoy, Matt Green, and Johnni Javier and the BBC Commissioning Editor is Ruby Kuraishe.
EL
