The fifth series of RuPaul's Drag Race UK began airing on BBC Three on 28 September 2023. RuPaul returned to his role as main host and head judge, and was again joined on the judging panel by Michelle Visage, Alan Carr and Graham Norton, all of whom returned for their respective fifth series. The series began filming in Pinewood Studios in January 2023. The cast for the fifth series was announced on 11 September 2023 on social media.

Production On 2 September 2022, prior to the beginning of the fourth series, it was announced via the shows social media pages that casting for the fifth series was now open. Applications remained open for two weeks until closing on 16 September 2022.

The fifth series of the show began filming in January 2023. Carol Vorderman was revealed to be appearing in a celebrity cameo in the fifth series of the show. Sophie Ellis-Bextor was subsequently spotted arriving to film the show. Sinitta was previously reported to have been signed as a guest judge for the fifth series, with a source stating: "Sinitta is one of the most exciting signings in the show's history. She's a bona fide gay icon and loves outrageous outfits, so she's perfect for Drag Race". Prior to the series, the show came under scrutiny for the contestants not receiving any cash prize compared to the other Drag Race franchises. Willam, who was a contestant on the fourth season of the American version, commented: "They need to pay the girls a prize. That is thousands and thousands and thousands of pounds worth of outfits and hair. Some of these girls are coming out in the red." Danny Beard, who won the previous series, said that they "could have bought a house", with the money spent preparing for RuPaul's Drag Race UK. On 30 August 2023, the BBC revealed the line up of guest judges and special guests for the fifth series including: Vorderman, Ellis-Bextor, Yasmin Finney, Suranne Jones, Kristen McMenamy, Karen Hauer, Aisling Bea, who appeared as a special guest in the previous series, Joel Dommett, Edward Enninful, Alexandra Burke, Cush Jumbo and Daphne Guinness who previously served as a guest judge on the seventh season of the American version spin-off RuPaul's Drag Race All Stars.

On 12 September 2023 an aftershow, named The After Shave with Danny Beard, was announced. In this series, the equivalent version of the American Whatcha Packin', features series 4 winner Danny Beard and guest, typically a former contestant from British adaptation, discussing the recently aired episode, besides interviewing the most recently eliminated queen about their run on the show.

It has been reported that an eleventh contestant was initially cast on the season, but was disqualified during filming due to alleged misconduct. The contestant was edited out of episodes prior to her disqualification, and was not included in either the cast announcement or any other promotional material relating to the series.

Contestants

Ages, names, and cities stated are at time of filming.

+Contestants of RuPaul's Drag Race UK series 5 and their backgrounds Contestant Age Hometown Outcome Ginger Johnson 34 Lanchester, England Winner Michael Marouli 39 Newcastle upon Tyne, England Runner-up Tomara Thomas 25 Hartlepool, England 3rd place DeDeLicious 20 Royal Tunbridge Wells, England 4th place Kate Butch 26 Buxton, England 5th place Cara Melle 26 London, England 6th place Vicki Vivacious 36 Redruth, England 7th place Banksie 23 Manchester, England 8th place Miss Naomi Carter 23 Doncaster, England 9th place Alexis Saint-Pete 28 London, England 10th place

Contestant progress

Lip syncs Legend:

Episode Top contestants Song Winner 1 Cara Melle vs. Vicki Vivacious "Ooh Aah... Just a Little Bit"(Gina G) Vicki Vivacious Episode Bottom contestants Song Eliminated 2 Alexis Saint-Pete vs. Miss Naomi Carter "Hot in It"(Tiësto, Charli XCX) Alexis Saint-Pete Episode Top contestants Song Winner 3 Cara Melle vs. Tomara Thomas "Remember"(Becky Hill, David Guetta) Cara Melle Episode Bottom contestants Song Eliminated 4 Cara Melle vs. Miss Naomi Carter "The Only Way Is Up"(Yazz) Miss Naomi Carter 5 Banksie vs. DeDeLicious "I Dreamed a Dream"(Susan Boyle) Banksie 6 DeDeLicious vs. Vicki Vivacious "Heartbreak on Hold"(Alexandra Burke) Vicki Vivacious 7 Cara Melle vs. Michael Marouli "Touch Me (I Want Your Body)"(Samantha Fox) Cara Melle 8 DeDeLicious vs. Kate Butch "This Hell"(Rina Sawayama) Kate Butch 9 DeDeLicious vs. Tomara Thomas "Little Bird"(Annie Lennox) DeDeLicious Episode Final contestants Song Winner 10 Ginger Johnson vs. Michael Marouli "A Little Respect"(Erasure) Ginger Johnson

Guest judges Listed in chronological order:

Kristen McMenamy, model Yasmin Finney, actress Sophie Ellis-Bextor, singer-songwriter Suranne Jones, actress Cush Jumbo, actress and writer Alexandra Burke, singer-songwriter and actress Joel Dommett, comedian, television presenter and actor Daphne Guinness, designer, actor, producer and musician Aisling Bea, comedian, actress and writer

Special guests Guests who appeared in episodes, but did not judge on the main stage.

Episode 1 Blu Hydrangea, contestant from RuPaul's Drag Race UK Series 1, and winner of UK vs. the World Series 1 Jimbo, contestant from Canada's Drag Race Season 1 and UK vs. the World Series 1, and winner of All Stars 8 Lady Camden, runner-up of RuPaul's Drag Race Season 14 Nicky Doll, contestant from RuPaul's Drag Race Season 12, and host of Drag Race France Pangina Heals, co-host of Drag Race Thailand, and contestant from UK vs. the World Series 1 Silky Nutmeg Ganache, contestant from RuPaul's Drag Race Season 11 and All Stars 6, and runner-up of Canada vs. the World Season 1 Sminty Drop, contestant from RuPaul's Drag Race UK Series 4

Episode 2 Edward Enninful, editor and stylist

Episode 3 Ian Masterson, record producer and songwriter

Episode 4 Raven, runner-up on both RuPaul's Drag Race Season 2 and All Stars 1

Episode 5 Dane Chaflin, director and vocal coach Karen Hauer, professional ballroom dancer and choreographer

Episode 6 Carol Vorderman, broadcaster and media personality

Episode 10 Claudimar Neto, dancer and choreographer Danny Beard, winner of RuPaul's Drag Race UK Series 4

Episodes

References