As we all look forward to the launch of Drag Idol 2023 at The Two Brewers on the 23rd of February, QX took a moment to catch up with reigning Drag Idol Champ, Fatt Butcher, to see how her winning year has been.
What’s been the highlight of your year so far as the reigning champ?
It’s been an incredible year (so far. I’ve still got a few months left before someone robs me of my crown). I’ve loved travelling to different venues and meeting audiences all over the country. But if I had to pick my highlight, it would probably be leading the Birmingham Pride Community Vigil last September. Oh, and doing poppers live on National Television.
How did you get started, and what’s the inspiration behind your act?
I’d been working as a singer in the cabaret world for a while, but I didn’t start drag until the start of the pandemic. I’d quit my job just before we went into lockdown. I suddenly had all this time, and many friends who were drag performers suddenly lost their income overnight, so I started hosting a weekly bingo on zoom to raise money for the artists I knew were struggling. It became a bit of a viral hit doing it weekly for nearly a year. Then people asked me to do it in the real world, and my drag career started!
Why did you decide to enter last year?
To be honest, I was being practical – it felt like the best way to get my act out in front of people who book cabaret performers and to try and work more outside my home city of Birmingham. Plus, I’m pretty competitive, and I like winning things!
What was the best and worst thing about competing?
For me, the best part of competing was that it forced me to work on my patter and to really think about what putting an hour’s show together would look like. I think I wrote some of my best jokes and developed material that I still do in my shows now. The worst was how much I had to drink during the process!
Did you make any fabulous chums or frenemies?
Oh absolutely! In this industry, we might talk online, but you don’t get to meet many other performers on the road. So I love meeting kings and queens from different venues all over the country and seeing what they do. I’m still absolutely obsessed with Bonnie Banks from Glasgow – she’s like the love child of the Tasmanian Devil and Susan Boyle – all vocals and chaos! Also, many years ago, I made a lifelong enemy in Flick, and it was a pure delight to beat her in the final.
How did the experience influence who you are now, and would you have done anything differently?
Ultimately it has given me confidence in what I do, and since winning, I feel I’ve come to own my talents a bit more and feel that what I do is good and of quality (it’s really good. Actually, you should come to see my show!) But I wouldn’t have done anything differently. The tough bits were what made it worthwhile. I have a joint condition that impacts my mobility, and I had to walk with a stick for parts of the competition. It would be easy to say that I wish I hadn’t been restricted by that, but actually, it allowed me to celebrate that part of myself and integrate it into the show and let people connect with it.
What are your top tips for this year’s competitors?
Show us what makes you different. Don’t try and copy what you see other performers do – show us who YOU are and let us see the world from your perspective. Don’t get weighed down with gimmicks or props; only use them if they actually serve your act. And Finally – quit drag – no, really – you’re going to have to fight me for this crown!!
Finally – what’s on the horizon for Fatt Butcher?
Hopefully premiering later this year is my original solo musical “Fister Act”, and all being well, you might be seeing a bit more of me from the comfort of your own homes later this year (but that’s all I can say about that for now). Until then, I’m on the road, hopefully in a venue near you, and if you’re near Birmingham, our quarterly Drag Celebration of Musical theatre ‘Send In The Clowns’ is at the Old Join Stock Theatre, and you can join me at MOBILISE; Birmingham’s Accessible Sober Queer Dance Party.
Drag Idol Launch Party, 8 pm at The Two Brewers, 114 Clapham High Street, London SW4 7UJ, United Kingdom.
https://www.the2brewers.com/london/23-02-2023/drag-idol
The launch party is open to all, and applications open the same day on 23rd February 2023 at www.dragidoluk.co.uk where you can find all rules, terms and conditions and information you need to know!
Good luck!
