Ella, Kitty and Krystal tell us all about life in the top three of Drag Race UK

‘I didn’t really think about Ella being in the final’

2 years ago

After what has felt like the quickest, fastest few months in the Earth’s history, season three of Drag Race UK has finally come to its finale episode. Tonight, RuPaul will crown the winner of season three – and after a slew of double saves, double eliminations, dangerous knee slides and storm offs the top three has emerged as Ella Vaday, Kitty Scott-Claus and Krystal Versace. All three queens are so different in style and vibe, but uniquely strong so it really does still feel like it could be anyone’s game. But what do the Drag Race UK top three have to say about their life changing experience?

The Tab sat down with Ella, Kitty and Krystal and got right into it on making the top three of season three of RuPaul’s Drag Race UK.

Congratulations on making it to the final and becoming the Drag Race UK top three! How does it feel to have got here and what has it been like watching your journeys?

Ella: It’s amazing to be in the final. It’s just so nice to watch it back finally after so long, it’s been like eight months now and because my wins come quite late in the season I’ve been like “Come on! Hurry UP!”
Krystal: I love it. Obviously, we’ve known each other the longest and we all got on so well. By the end we were more chilled out and just having fun. It’s really nice watching it back and relive how we were feeling in that moment.
Kitty: We had the most fun filming it. It was the most incredible experience, and being with these two incredible queens. It feels wonderful to be up here and I couldn’t have asked for a better group of queens to be cast on season three with.

You’ve all had such a big reaction on social media, have you got any flirty messages?

Kitty: A lady never kisses and tells but… OF COURSE. The daddies love me. They can’t get enough and you always know what they’re after. I got one the other day like “Hi Kitty, nice to meet you,” and I thought: you don’t even follow me, so it’s not nice to meet me. Buy the girl a drink first darling, and don’t send the nudey rudeys without consent because consent is sexy!
Ella: I’ve had so many, but I’m very happy with my boyfriend of 10 years. It has been a shock to get to the age of 32 and have all these men after me because it’s something I’ve never been used to my whole life. It’s very charming, but not really of interest.
Krystal: Same with me. I don’t really look much into it.
Kitty: You big fat liar! You liar! She loves it! Get everyone to slide in her DMs, she cannot get enough!
Krystal: Naughty!

Via BBC

Have any celebs messaged you and said they’re a big fan?

Kitty: I’ve had Lisa Scott-Lee from Steps and that actually made my life. I had Dawn French the other day and I messaged her back saying “Oh my god, it’s a rich man’s Kathy Burke!”
Ella: I had Conchita Wurst the other day. Quite a lot of the Drag Race girls have been really supportive, all the American lot.
Krystal: I don’t really pay attention to a lot of it, you get so many messages and so many followers and I can’t keep up with it.
Kitty: Yeah, I got Adele the other day. Adele slid into my DMs the other day.
Ella: The Queen of England slid into mine. She messaged me. She said I was wonderful.
Kitty: I had Cilla Black the other week after Snatch Game. That was a nice one to get.

On the first day of filming, who were you looking round the room and seeing in the final?

Krystal: I definitely saw Kitty. I didn’t really think about Ella being in the final, I think she definitely surprised a lot of us in the best way. I saw Victoria in the final.
Kitty: I think we were cast with such a strong group of girls, I remember looking around and thinking it could go any way. It could be Charity Kase in the final, or Veronica. Veronica was incredible on season two, she was such a force to be reckoned with.
Ella: A lot of the girls I hadn’t met in real life, so you could only judge it off their Instagrams. I thought Charity because of that massive following she had, I thought Victoria being so different and being the first cisgender female queen I thought she was going to bring something really fresh.

Walking into the finale, how did you feel on that morning?

Kitty: Just another day in the office, isn’t it!
Ella: I’d actually injured my back the night before, so I was really sad and in pain! I was also really emotional that it was the last day because it was a right old slog and we’d got right through to the end. It took real determination from all of us, Vanity as well, going through those final episodes after a few weeks of really hard work. So I was just very proud and overwhelmed.
Kitty: I remember feeling really emotional. We’d had the most incredible time and we couldn’t talk about it for months and months and months. I’d met amazing people, got to speak to Baby Spice and now I have to pretend that nothing happened! Literally all the emotions wrapped up in one.
Krystal: It was crazy. I remember sitting on my own when we were about to go on the main stage for the last time and having a look at everything and thinking “soak it up, soak it up, soak it up”. It was so special. Everyone was really positive and I was just proud of us, because it was tough.
Kitty: I remember looking at the printed out runway order and thinking it was so weird on the last day when it was just us three. There’d been nine other queens who’d come and gone and we’re still here.
Ella: I remember looking at Kitty about to cry before the final runway and it was that realisation that we’d got as far as we could go. This is it.

Via BBC

Were there any scenes that didn’t make it into the show that you were disappointed that didn’t make it into the final edit?

Krystal: The drama with Scarlett! I was really gutted that they didn’t leave a lot of that in because that was more heated when filming than they showed. I said a lot more and there was a heated argument. I love Scarlett now, but at the time it was tense and watching it back it would have been such good TV. I literally sat there and went “I’m not buying it.” Apparently I kept saying it over and over again? I was over it. I was pissed off.
Ella: There was a moment for me when Vanity wasn’t going to lip sync against Elektra, and I was like “Vanity, you need to do it. You’ve got to show them what you’ve got!” I think a lot of the stuff I said in the early episodes got lost, so I come across as though I’m really quiet. In the sewing challenge I helped so many girls thread their machines but I think because they portrayed me as struggling it didn’t make the edit. I think I came across a lot quieter than I actually was.
Kitty: A lot of my favourite moments were bits that wouldn’t even be on camera, like holding hands waiting to go on the runway. I remember there was one episode I was holding hands with Vanity and I said “I’m so pleased your here.” All those little moments that you forget, because we are human at the end of the day. We’re going through this incredible experience and only these 11 other people are going to share that exact same memory.
Ella: I cried in episode two when Vanity was saying she missed her husband, and I missed my boyfriend, so we sat and cried like two old ladies.
Kitty: I cried but didn’t have a boyfriend. No one misses me. I’m alone!
Krystal: I can’t cry, I’ve had too much botox.

Now you’ve watched the season back, is there anything you regret or wish you’d done differently before making the top three of Drag Race UK?

Kitty: I would wear less shoulder pads because apparently they’re quite controversial. Not everyone likes a structured shoulder. Sorry!
Ella: The thing is, we prepared for this in a really hard time in a national lockdown during a pandemic. For me, there’s definitely things I would have done differently in terms of costumes, wigs but I literally had to do what was available to me. There’s things I’d change but I don’t have regrets because in that situation it was all I could manage and afford.
Krystal: I agree. We all did our best with what we had. I don’t regret anything that was said on the show because sometimes beautiful conversation came out of it.
Kitty: She wanna blame it on the edit!

Via BBC

What was everyone’s favourite runway look of the season? From the other queens and yourself?

Ella: I loved Kitty’s goddess look!
Kitty: Mine was Scarlett Harlett’s lettuce runway. That was just fashion to me. That was just *chef’s kiss*.
Krystal: I liked Vanity’s orange look.
Ella: Which one!?
Kitty: Yeah, you’ve got to be specific!
Krystal: I’ll let you choose! I loved my cat and my Cruella looks.
Kitty: I loved my Titanic look, and my Baby Spice.
Ella: I just loved my Oompah Loompah look too, I think it was really fun.

The Drag Race UK top three song this year is a Christmas song for the first time ever – how was it to work on that?

Krystal: It was so fun.
Ella: Yeah, it’s so epic, you’re gonna love it. Move over Bublé and Mariah, that’s what I say!

You’ve all now got such a great platform from the show – what do you want to do with it?

Ella: I think on the show you’ve got to see so much more than I’ve been able to show before. In theatre, I’ve done comedic shows before but I’d love to do some presenting, more TV, acting, dramas, radio, everything. I’m going to try and take on the world.
Kitty: We’ve been given the most incredible platform and I just want to take every opportunity that’s thrown at me. I’m going to take it with open arms. I’m coming for Tess Daly’s gig. I’m going to be the new Tess. Singles. Books. Makeup. The world is my oyster. And you’re a big slice of lemon that you’re going to squeeze all over me!
Krystal: My dream has always been to tour the world. I want to join the girls up in LA and just take on the world

Special thanks to Imogen Reid and Aoife Kilbane from the BBC. Featured image courtesy of BBC.

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