The latest episode of RuPaul’s Drag Race UK bid farewell to Kate Butch, marking the end of her journey after the Makeover Week challenge. The comedic queen was easily a fan-favourite due to her brilliant timing and unforgettable jokes – she certainly will be missed in the remaining episodes. This leaves DeDeLicious, Ginger Johnson, Michael Marouli, and Tomara Thomas as the final four contenders, advancing to the semi-final round.
The makeover challenge involved the queens transforming volunteers from the UK’s oldest LGBTQ+ helpline into members of their drag families. While Michael Marouli impressed the judges with a stunning makeover of the oldest volunteer – bringing forth a heartfelt moment as well as an ode to the lives lost during the AIDS epidemic in the ’80s, Kate Butch and DeDeLicious struggled to create resemblances that satisfied RuPaul, Michelle Visage, Graham Norton, and designer Daphne Guinness.
In the lip sync battle set to “This Hell” by Rina Sawayama, Kate struggled to outperform this year’s lip-sync assassin, DeDeLicious. Unfortunately, Kate was asked to sashay away although she left the stage with a humorous quip, “You can’t fire me, I quit,” before she added, “F**k, too slow!”
Reflecting on her time in the Werk Room, Kate expressed her disappointment at being eliminated but also praised the supportive and encouraging atmosphere among the queens: “I’m gutted to be eliminated! I’ve loved getting to know all of the queens. They have been so encouraging, helpful. I’ve loved every second.”
Kate Butch will sorely be missed, especially as last week saw her take home the win, and finally grab her first RuPeter badge. Her comedic timing was next-level allowing her to make Kate Bush super wild during the snatch game and we certainly won’t be forgetting Holedark anytime soon – WOW Presents Plus really needs to commission a comedy-drama starring Kate Butch and Ginger Johnson. Her confessionals were some of the best from this year’s series and she continually improved her make-up skills week-on-week, much to Michelle Visage’s delight. Let’s also not forget she was responsible for Michelle Visage’s iconic critique: “She really does have an affinity for doing a reveal to mediocre.”
Looking ahead, the top four queens brace themselves for the next challenge: a comedic roast that will test their ability to make RuPaul laugh. It also looks like the eliminated queens return, right on time for this roast – trust Kate Butch to go home right before the week she would’ve excelled at. This challenge takes inspiration from the BBC’s reboot of Gladiators and will feature Alan Carr mentoring the queens on their comedic roasting skills. Joining the judging panel alongside RuPaul, Michelle Visage, and Alan Carr, will be special guest star Aisling Bea.
As fans eagerly await the next episode, they can dive deeper into series 5 by tuning into the companion Drag Race after-show, “The After Shave”, with Danny Beard, available on BBC Three and the iPlayer now.
Don’t miss a moment of the fierce competition on RuPaul’s Drag Race UK Series 5, airing on BBC Three and iPlayer in the UK and streaming on WOW Presents Plus in the US, apart from Canada where viewers can tune in on Crave.
You can follow all your favourite queens from this new series of RuPaul’s Drag Race UK across all social media by checking out our article here.
