Almost 50 queens from around the country have so far graced the halls of RuPaul’s Drag Race UK’s “werk room” – with 10 more getting ready to start their engines.
In the last four seasons, those queens have served up lip syncs that delivered on emotion, laughs and, of course, plenty of drama.
To commemorate Drag Race UK’s impending fifth season, here’s our definitive ranking of the top 10 lip syncs that the queens of the United Kingdom have turned out on the main stage – from Vanity Milan to Tayce, and Danny Beard to Cheryl Hole...
10. The Vivienne vs. Crystal (season 1)
The inaugural season of Drag Race UK was groundbreaking – but probably not, if we may be so bold, because of its lip syncs. Admittedly, one key exception would be when The Vivienne sent competitor Crystal packing to a modern classic of the girlband genre, Power by Little Mix.
Crystal put up a good fight, but was ultimately bested by the eventual winner of Drag Race’s first season, who gave us pure drag excellence.
From the belter of a bridge to Jesy Nelson’s entire spoken-word section (in front of HRH Jade Thirwall, no less), both queens serve just enough to slide the lip sync in at the bottom of our ranking.
9. Vanity Milan vs. Elektra Fence (season 3)
This performance made the cut because it gave us three phenomenal pieces of Drag Race herstory.
Firstly, it introduced BBC viewers to the talents of Miss Vanity Milan, undoubtedly one of the greatest lip sync assassins to come out of the UK franchise. This lip sync also set the stage for the iconic moment which involved Elektra Fence spinning on her back, leaving Michelle Visage to ponder aloud exactly “what the fuck?” she was watching.
And as if all that wasn’t enough, the whole thing concluded with Elektra’s inspiring – yet somewhat confusing – departure line: “Smash it. Smash the world. And peace.”
8. Tayce vs. A’Whora (season 2)
There’s no question that Tayce is one of the best lip sync performers to come of the entire Drag Race multiverse, so when she was put into the bottom two against fellow competitor (and then-housemate) A’Whora, we knew she’d deliver. And deliver she did.
Made extra-heartbreaking by the pair’s shared history, the emotion of this performance only added to its impact, with the queens performing to each other as much as anyone else.
Bonus points for Tayce’s mug, because it was perfection. A’Whora also did a little knee slide, so that was fun.
7. Tia Kofi vs. Asttina Mandela (season 2)
We don’t think it’s too harsh to say that Tia Kofi isn’t the first queen to come to mind when the phrase “lip sync assassin” is uttered. But matched up with a Dula Peep banger and Astinna Mandela – the performance queen of season two – and it’s another story.
Off the back of a design challenge, the pair gave two very different renditions of Don’t Start Now, with Asttina bringing pure dance excellence to the stage to go stiletto to stiletto with Tia’s more comedic performance, resulting in one stellar (albeit knee-bruising) lip sync.
6. Krystal Versace vs. Vanity Milan (season 3)
The only time we ever saw Krystal Versace lip syncing for her life on her winning season was during the winner’s smackdown with Vanity Milan, the latter of whom had already survived three lip syncs – and she more than held her own.
There were gag-worthy split jumps, dips and deathdrops – from both queens. It’s safe to say that no-one expected Krystal to be able to best Vanity in a lip sync, but a goddess-inspired runway coupled with yet another Dua Lipa banger was a surefire way to land this showdown a spot on the ranking.
5. Danny Beard vs. Cheddar Gorgeous (season 4)
The only finale showdown to make our ranking, eventual winner Danny Beard and runner-up Cheddar Gorgeous’s lip sync to Shirley Bassey’s powerhouse anthem proved that a powerful lip sync doesn’t have to include gimmicks or endless gymnastics.
Danny and Cheddar’s one-on-one was the first time that we’d seen either of the four-challenge-winners take to the stage for a lip sync, so it made sense that it should be for the crown – and they didn’t disappoint. Both oozing with sheer emotion, Cheddar and Danny showed the girls how a power ballad was done.
4. Cheryl Hole vs. Blu Hydrangea (season 1)
The lip sync that cuts a top five down to a final four is always a spectacle, and this showdown between close pals Cheryl Hole and Blu Hydrangea was no exception – especially when viewers realised that Cheryl’s namesake was the guest judge for that week.
Cheryl (the drag queen, not the pop star) gave us more deathdrops and shablams than we could shake a stiletto at – even Blu herself has since acknowledged never really stood a chance, despite putting up a very good fight, given that her opponent was Cheryl, lipsyncing to Cheryl, in front of Cheryl.
3. Dakota Schiffer vs. Baby (season 4)
It seems strange that it took almost four whole seasons of Drag Race UK before a lip sync to a musical theatre banger arrived – but when it did, it was worth the wait.
BFFs Baby and Dakota Schiffer both completely slayed this lip sync – Baby’s infectious stage presence and unparalleled dance ability is matched only by Dakota’s charming take on the tale of Catherine of Aragon. And her fake-out of leaving the stage was pure theatre. Literally.
2. Vanity Milan vs. Scarlett Harlett (season 3)
Vanity Milan and Scarlett Harlett’s lipsync to Scandalous by guest star Alesha Dixon’s band Mis-Teeq was very nearly won by the woman herself, who ad libbed from the judging panel with almost as much enthusiasm and fire as the queens on stage.
Luckily, both Vanity and Scarlett put up one of the best fights DRUK has ever seen. Proving she was not messing about, Vanity launched straight into a costume reveal to allow her to spin and pirouette to the best of her ability, like the true lip sync assassin she is.
Coupled with splits, jumps and Scarlet’s oddly mesmerising “fugly” runway look, this was a battle for the herstory books. Against a lesser queen, Scarlett could have walked it, but there’s no denying this one belonged to Vanity.
1. Tayce vs. Cherry Valentine (season 2)
Neither Tayce nor the late, great Cherry Valentine move around a whole lot or take up much space, during this lip sync. That doesn’t matter, though, because everyone still remembers where they were when this lip sync first aired (and we don’t just mean because it came out at the height of lockdown).
Let’s be honest, Tayce could have won this lip sync for her blood-splattered beat alone, but between her powerful poses and the way she served face straight down the camera... she embodied this song.
This performance is a masterclass in “less is more”, more than earning both Tayce and Cherry the top spot on this lip sync ranking.
Season five of RuPaul’s Drag Race UK launches on BBC Three and BBC iPlayer on Thursday 28 September at 9pm.