The Cost of
The Crown 

Smith introduced Daniella Queen to the world when they were 18 years old, unleashing their young drag persona on a small stage in a gay bar in Bournemouth called DYMK – an abbreviation for Does Your Mother Know? And Smith’s Mum does know. She might be a person of few words, but she knows Smith has always shine the best when they were on stage since they were a theatre kid. So, when 17-year-old Smith turned to her and said that they wanted to do drag, she only said four words: “Get in the car.”  

“She took me to loads of different shops just so she could buy me my first makeup kit, my first wig, my first dress and my first heels. I worship my Mum. She has been my biggest supporter. She pays for my drag, she’ll drive me across the country if I need to... I’m so glad to have at least one parent who really supports what I do and has my back from the very get go,” says Smith, with eyes brimming with overwhelming gratitude.  

But then, the pandemic hits. Smith had to cultivate and refine Daniella from the front yard of their home. They were lip-syncing and dancing in with luxe makeup, glittering dress, striking wig and eight-inch heels, all live-streamed with the neighbours watching. One of them put a degrading post about their 'activities’ on the neighbours’ Facebook group, which Smith claimed was ‘hilarious’.

It was a long time until they finally landed a paid gig. Whilst the pandemic effect is still lingering, the cost of living crisis threw a spanner in the works of Daniella's career.  

“End of last year, I was meant to do a gig in Manchester. It was for this really big company that I literally was super psyched for. Two or three days before the show, they cancelled because the cost of living affected everyone, and they couldn’t buy tickets. And we’re still waiting to reorganise the show and it’s been five months now. It really, really hurts because I was so excited,” Smith says with a mournful look. 

No performance, no money. Smith and their drag sisters had to wrestle with the crisis as more places are turning down, halting or reducing drag performances. Smith and their Mum now live solely from government benefits. After leaving her ‘emotionally harmful’ husband, Smith’s Mum worked as a bus driver, but then her lungs deteriorated. Smith knew they had to wiggle their way to escalate Daniella’s look and stage act.  

“I’m starting to work with cheaper fabrics or unconventional materials for my makeup, outfits and jewellery. I remember I made an entire necklace out of quality wrappers, and I used some sort of metallic foil. I use them to create different colours and it creates this stained-glass effect, like the ones in church. Bellissima, bellissima!”  

Only recently, Smith secured gig at Walkabout that will get them £150 per performance. They also landed a monthly gig at Be At One that will pay them around £250-£300. But how much does Daniella ‘worth’?   

For a dance performance, Daniella would wear her fringe outfits that vary from £40 to £120. Wigs are £70, but if it was her styled wigs then it would be £150. There will be at least £300 worth of makeup that goes on her face every time from all sorts of different brands.   

“I’d say all in all, when you’re seeing me performing, you’re seeing at least £500 worth of drag on my body. If we were talking about my whole wardrobe, I spent at least over £10,000 in my entire four years of doing drag.”  

The rising cost of living has been a real challenge for experienced drag queens as well. Le Fil, a seventh-place finisher from last year's Drag Race UK, says that drag shows are now less in demand, in which gigs are becoming fewer and less well-paid. He mentions that as a drag artist, all expenses come out of the same money pot, including costumes, photography, graphics, and transport.   

Bailey J Mills, says that although they prefer the entertainment factor of drag to the look, they face pressure to provide for their soon-to-be-born child. They say that their bookings have slowed down and that they have had to limit the number of gigs they take in London because of transport costs.  

The answer to what prompts these performers to have queen-sized budget for their appearances, lies in the mounting public expectations fuelled by the widespread fame of RuPaul's Drag Race. 

"We’re looking for Great Britain’s Next Superstar,
don’t waste my time. I don’t wanna see any f*cking H&M!"  

RuPaul’s sudden burst was aired on 11 February 2021 and instantly went viral. It was all because Joe Black, a drag queen from Brighton, wore a belted pink velvet dress from H&M on the runway challenge. Some viewers found it amusing and made memes out of the situation. But the rest of the audience, the other contestants and of course Joe Black himself, felt like RuPaul’s comment was ‘insensitive’ and solidifies the notion that queens are not doing drag ‘properly’ if they are wearing something simple and affordable. Especially in times when the show was shot.  

The season two of RuPaul Drag Race UK was filmed in March 2020 and was halted due to the pandemic lockdown. The production took a hiatus for a period of seven months and drag queens couldn't work as much because of the restrictions, which ended up with a bunch of drag spots shutting down and shows being cancelled. Joe Black admitted in an interview that during the seven-month break, he was unsure if he could return to the competition, He had to sell many of his wardrobe in order to make ends meet, turned to hosting online events, and borrowing costumes for the runway appearances.  

This just hammers home the point that for a drag queen to be pretty, especially RuPaul kind of pretty, is pricey. Quite demanding, considering that the winner of the UK Drag Race didn't even win any cash prize. All they received for their hard-fought victory was the title of 'UK's Next Drag Superstar', a chance to feature in their own digital series crafted by the makers of RuPaul's Drag Race, a sceptre and a crown. The cost of the crown, just getting steeper and steeper.  

The influence of this is pervasive, shaping the perspective of up-and-coming drag queens like Oliver Thompson, 22, on what they need to do to steal the audience's heart.

Thompson is a newcomer in the Bournemouth queendom. They just started drag four years ago with the stage name Dickie Beaux, and now working their way up along with his drag sister, Smith, doing gigs together in local venues like Walkabout and Be At One. They agreed that RuPaul’s Drag Race has done wonders to the drag world. However, to them, the standard has been elevated so high. They feel the need to buy a costume that worth almost their one month rent whilst working their day job at Co-Op.  

“If you look at up to at least season 6 in the US, they were coming in with like frocks from Primark, you know they were and they looked great! Season 7? Because of the winner, Violet Chachki, Miss Fame and Power, they were all like models! They were all like statues! And they raised the bar so high. I bought a wig last week for St. Patrick’s Day, that m**********r cost me £160 without postage. I had a black and white pinstripe suit that I wore to an event last year and that was £300. I’ve got a costume that literally worth a third of my rent!”  

The seasoned drag queen have a say...

Meanwhile, the landscape of starting drag has transformed over time. In the past, without commercialised influences like RuPaul's Drag Race, queens had to navigate their journey independently, forging their own paths. Drag was less accessible then, and artists perhaps had a ‘purer connection’ to their craft.   

Christopher Garner has been a drag queen for 10 years now. He used to work at Mu Mu in Maidstone, Kent, as a manager, before one Halloween night changed his course, and gave birth to who's later became a legendary drag queen widely recognised by everyone in Maidstone -- The Madame. She would introduce herself with her full name at the beginning of her show at full speed: The Madame bomb badame sticky adam fried fadame ay-kay-ay.  

Garner thinks, younger queens might not know about the expenses they have to pay when they slip into the wonderland. Garner also discusses the over-saturation of the drag market due to the influence of the reality-competition show, which has significant implications for drag queens' professional prospects.  

Bottoms Up, Costs Up  

The cost of living hardships stretched beyond the drag queens to encompass the venues that hosted them, including prominent spots in urban areas like London. One of them is The Glory. The East Ender venue continues to deal with the pandemic's impacts while also facing the cost of living crisis, as co-owner John Nolan remarks.  

 “Everything has been getting more expensive. Because obviously the pandemic caused problems with other companies. They have to pass on some of that debt to their customers. So, everyone started increasing their prices and this obviously was going on. It was like the Brexit effect. Then the pandemic had an effect and they created this new cost of living crisis.”  

The Office for National Statistics (ONS) latest report shows that inflation rose to 4.2% in October 2021, the highest level in ten years, with rising energy prices and supply chain issues contributing to the increase. The report suggests that due to inflation and rising prices, people's ability to purchase goods and services is decreasing.   

In March 2022, a whopping 87% of adults reported that they've been feeling the pinch compared to just 62% back in November 2021 -- which means that they have felt a 25% increase. In addition, around 23% of adults said it was tough to keep up with household expenses. About 43% of adults don't think they'll be able to save money over the next year. Even before the present situation, LGBTQ+ safe spaces and historic nightlife venues have encountered challenges, where in London alone, 73 gay venues shut down from 2006 to 2017, leaving only 53 remaining.  

The pandemic also took its toll on The Karaoke Hole, another drag hot spot in London. The challenges were particularly difficult for David Hunter, who, as the programming and marketing director, was responsible for informing performers of cancelled bookings. After the pandemic, Hunter claimed that there has been a "real bounce back". But Hunter did not deny that the cost of living crisis has inflicted significant repercussions on the drag queens, as he saw an increase in drag queens actively seeking out work at The Karaoke Hole to cover their living expenses.  

"We have a varying pay rate depending on the night, but for Fridays and Saturdays, we increased our pay rate from £150 to £175 for a 3.5-hour hosting set at the start of this year. It's not a huge increase, but it was important for us to show that we understand the cost of living crisis and are committed to paying our performers fairly. We didn't just randomly pick a number; it's what we can afford based on audience spending. For midweek shows, we pay £40 an hour, recognising that we tend to finish earlier and have lower audience attendance."  

Even small towns such as Bath have not been immune to the burden of higher costs of living. With only two other gay bars in Bath, Mandalyns has been a popular spot for students and the local police. However, the financial strains of the pandemic and the current cost of living crisis have forced the bar to reduce their show called Drag Queen Cabaret, causing heartbreak among drag performers.  

“What we've done is we've moved it (drag performance), so it's just once a month now as opposed to twice or three times a month, which helps customers because obviously they can't afford to come out every single week. Likewise, we can't afford to pay drag queens fees every single week. But, by making it once a month, it makes it more special events for people to come out with their friends, etc. And they know when it's going to be,” said Mark Maidment, resident drag queen of Mandalyns. The 49-year-old has been working in the Mandalyns since 2007 and known professionally as Phillupa Bucket.  

In Bournemouth, the surging expenses forced venues to promote free events. For Smith and Thompson, these events are rookie’s gold mine to gain recognition – even contract deals. However, the availability of free events opens the floodgates for anyone to enter their space.