Drag Race UK icons perform sensational tribute to ‘brightest light’ The Vivienne

The Vivienne will always be remembered as a trailblazing star, and to reflect this, they were posthumously given the Metro Pride icon award and five RuPaul’s Drag Race legends then performed a special tribute.

The star’s talent knew no bounds, which when coincided with their charitable nature made them an unstoppable force for good. Their groundbreaking contribution to drag, queer visibility, and advocacy is the legacy they leave behind, and it has been deservingly recognised at our debut ceremony.

A sister to many people in the drag community, The Vivienne, who died aged 32 in January, did all they could to ensure when they were winning, everyone was winning. Baga Chipz, Cheryl The Queen, Danny Beard, Tia Kofi and Michael Marouli are five people who know this even more than most.

They each became very close to The Vivienne, real name James Lee Williams, over the years in dressing rooms, on TV sets, at airports, and through a few chaotic WhatsApp group chats. When asked to contribute to the evening, it was an easy yes for them all.

The group honoured The Vivienne with a special routine at The Grand Connaught Rooms in London, choreographed by Cheryl, 31, to one of The Vivienne’s favourite songs, You Spin Me Round (Like a Record) by Dead or Alive.

They each expressed their love for The Vivienne, who they describe as ‘the brightest light that almost blinded everyone’, through the epic show.

‘We’re all energy-saving lightbulbs but she was a true filament,’ stated Michael during preparations for the big moment.

After being introduced by host Rylan Clark, they dazzled the room with their beautiful tribute.

Perfectly in sync, they span around together as the chorus encourages, and each person lip-synced perfectly to the lyrics. We’d expect nothing less!

They encouraged the audience to clap in support, and everyone happily obliged.

At the crescendo of the tune, the group made their way through the audience and even climbed onto chairs, which led to many delighted reactions and enthusiastic dancing from the guests.

The routine ended with the queens blowing kisses at the audience as a picture of The Vivienne was displayed prominently behind them.

The intention of the tribute was also made clear with a compilation of The Vivienne’s best moments played on a big screen just before their friends appeared.

Earlier in the night, The Vivienne’s father Lee Williams and sister accepted the icon award on their loved one’s behalf. As they stepped onto the stage, a standing ovation from the crowd ensued.

‘James loved being a part of the entertainment world and I know he would have been happy. I know he would have absolutely loved tonight’s events,’ Lee shared in a moving speech.

Becoming emotional, he continued: ‘When he was nominated for the Metro award for rising star last year he was honoured and made up to be here. While it is extremely bittersweet to be here tonight without him, being under this roof meant the world to him.

‘Thank you to everyone for your huge love and support to James.’

Explaining exactly why The Vivienne was chosen, Rylan, 36, said: ‘The Vivienne as we know was a true force of nature in the drag world, breaking barriers and inspiring so many of us with their talent, wit and heart. They were a true icon and the legacy will live on in everything that they did.’

The Vivienne’s publicist Simon Jones also shared what made their friend so special. He became emotional as he spoke about their talent, and was later comforted by kind Rylan.

Simon was back on stage later in the evening to accept the LGBT+ trailblazer award, which was presented to him by Girls Aloud stars Nicola Roberts and Kimberley Walsh, and he sweetly dedicated his win to The Vivienne.

‘Viv was the absolute definition of a trailblazer and her light will shine on us forever,’ he stated.

Michael, 41, told Metro why taking part in the tribute was an obvious decision: ‘It’s so important that we honour her because she paved the way – no one’s done it like her.

‘She was moving in spaces that drag queens weren’t able to move in for a long time, and now all of us, in some way, are moving in those spaces. She didn’t just do it first, she did it first professionally, so we could jump in.’

The Vivienne was the first winner of RuPaul’s Drag Race UK in 2019 and became a TV regular with appearances on Dancing On Ice, Emmerdale, Celebrity Mastermind and Celebrity Hunted. They also starred as the Wicked Witch of the West in a touring production of Wicked.

Danny, 32, completely agreed with Michael’s sentiments, and said that their hard work ‘opened doors’.

‘She ran so that we could walk. She was a born entertainer and it’s why so many of us looked up to her.

‘The Vivienne was the first person in my life who cared about it so much and wanted to take it to the next level.’

Although the room was filled with incredible stars including GK Barry and Mutya Buena, the person they really wanted to see was The Vivienne.

Michael wishes that The Vivienne was still here to see the ‘outpouring of love’ they’ve received from so many people. ‘I would have loved for her to have been able to just see that for five minutes. Nobody feels like they have that,’ they said.

When the group are reunited, rather than be sombre, they spend their time talking about the good memories, and whenever possible, laughing. They are all resolute that this is exactly what The Vivienne would want them to do.

‘Although we’re together because it’s a sad time we’re cracking jokes and having lots of laughs. That’s what we do best, and that’s what The Viv did best. It’s what she would have wanted,’ stated Danny.

‘Even though she was professional, she does take the p**s,’ Baga, 35, added in her usual no-nonsense terms.

Baga exudes joy as she recalls their gossipy rationed cigarette breaks on RuPaul’s Drag Race or the time they hunted for vapes in Australia only to find out they were illegal. She told us with a huge grin that one of their favourite subjects was soap storylines. Baga wishes she could still call her up to talk about the latest twisty episodes. Michael wanted to share their own memory, recalling building a wooden Titanic boat and spray painting it just for a fun sketch.

‘The thing with The Viv as well, she never changed. All the success, all the stardom, she was still down with the working class,’ they said. ‘She was rough as the roads, and liked being laughed at.’

‘I wouldn’t have grown as much without them. I’m a massive Drag Race fan, so I gagged that she even cared that I existed on this planet,’ Tia, 34, contributed to the love-fest.

‘Becoming friends with her gave me a lot of confidence and opportunities. She included me in her world and gave me so much advice, not just with my makeup, but with me as a person inside.

‘The Viv was such a good person. She would auction off her clothes, and give money to the local drag scene,’ Danny shared. The Vivienne worked particularly closely with Sahir, an LGBTQ+ charity based in Liverpool, donating her time and money to the cause.

‘She was always putting us forward for jobs. The Vivienne is such a champion for everyone, never competitive and doesn’t gatekeep opportunities. As a cheerleader by nature, she wants everyone to succeed.’

Each of the five drag stars still often speak about The Vivienne in the present tense, and Cheryl believes the subconscious decision is for an important reason. ‘Her legacy will always live on. Her past will always be our present and future so they will always be,’ they explained.

‘She was such a big part of my life and drag so she always will be,’ Michael continued.

Aside from remembering The Vivienne at the Metro Pride Awards, the group also mingled with people equally passionate about making the world a better place.

The event brought together the most influential and inspiring LGBTQ+ individuals and organisations to honour and celebrate the extraordinary talent, resilience and passion that defines the community. The group agreed that the event was very much needed.

‘In this day and age where you can see everything that’s going on around the world and how it feels like we’re going backwards, it’s so important to have events like this and to have a publication like Metro champion us,’summarised Michael.

‘We’re 100% in saying this community is going nowhere. We’re getting stronger. We’ll stand for that like The Vivienne did.’

Also in attendance at the Metro Pride Awards was Tasha Ghouri, who looked stunning in a glamorous silver dress. It marked her first red carpet since splitting from long-term partner Andrew Le Page.

Tulisa, Oti Mabuse, Ella Morgan and Ashley Roberts also headed out on a rainy Wednesday night to support the worthy cause.

‘I wanted to be here as I’m a big, big, big ally, and I really appreciate that people are being celebrated for who they are. We should be doing more of that to make people feel confident in who they are and who they love,’ shared Dancing on Ice judge Oti.

Married at First Sight star Ella added: ‘I’m a fan of Metro because they always back me and big me up. I love that. The fact that a big publication is doing pride awards is an honour to us as a community because a lot of the time press can be negative when it comes trans, non-binary, gay, or anything like that.

‘I couldn’t miss tonight, hopefully, it is the first of many.’

Rylan said: ‘We’ve celebrated the absolutely incredible achievements of the LGBTQ+ community.

‘It’s been a year of highs and lows, glitter and grit and, honestly, it’s like we’re living in the middle of a Drag Race lip-sync battle.

‘Some countries seem to be going forward, others well, let’s just say they’re still stuck in the bottom two. But regardless, this was a wonderful event about celebrating what we’ve achieved.’

I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here! star GK Barry, 25, won the rising star gong and gave an inspirational speech while collecting the award.

She spoke about feeling accepted by her parents when coming out, and how she’s been getting sweet messages from fans after sharing this story during the jungle last year.

‘People were messaging me saying “You gave me the confidence to come out” or parents messaged me like “I knew how to deal with that same situation because of you”. It just felt really amazing, it feels amazing to be part of the community.’

Broadcaster of the year went to TV personality Robert Rinder, who shared his intention to always use the platform he’s been given for good.

Veteran actor and TV presenter Sir Stephen Fry was given the lifetime achievement award, and popstar Anastacia won the Metro global recognition award, while former editor-in-chief of British Vogue Edward Enninful received the celebrity of the year award.

Among the other winners was singer Will Young, who was presented with the music hero of the year award, he spoke candidly about being advised not to speak about his sexuality twenty years ago.

‘I knew I wanted to be true to myself, and we’ve moved on so much in so many ways in other ways we haven’t,’ he shared. Will, 46, spoke about receiving death threats and hearing horrific things being said about him.

He added: ‘I always felt the support of you guys, the community, and that really kept me going. I’m deeply appreciative. It’s nice to get a chance to say thank you 23 years later.’

Speaking about the evening, executive editor of Metro, Richard Hartley-Parkinson, said: ‘The Metro Pride Awards provide an important platform to recognise those who are making a real difference in the LGBTQ+ community.

‘It was an inspiring night and we were thrilled to honour so many incredible individuals and organisations who continue to fight for equality.

‘Huge congratulations to all the winners and nominees.’

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