Culture

Meanwhile, in Australia, politicians are furiously debating Drag Race Down Under in parliament

Feb 17 2021
Written by Maggie Baska

rose jackson australian mp labour party rupaul drag race down under

(Twitter/Rose Jackson)

Australian politician Rose Jackson has gone viral after she raged against the Australia and New Zealand version of Drag Race not being filmed in Sydney.

Drag Race Down Under was announced in January, with RuPaul and Michelle Visage jetting to New Zealand to film the show with drag artists from both Australia and New Zealand.

The Sydney Morning Herald reported the production was moved to New Zealand after Sydney experienced a COVID-19 outbreak, claiming that lingering travel restrictions in Australia prevented filming from taking place there.

Rose Jackson, a Labor Party member of the New South Wales Legislative Council, expressed her anger over the “massive missed opportunity” for Australia. She argued that the New South Wales (NSW) government did nothing to keep production of Drag Race in Australia, and that it was “sickening – and not in a good way”.

So last year @RuPaulsDragRace had to move production of Drag Race Down Under to NZ. Turns out the NSW Govt. did NOTHING to keep production in Sydney! For shame! #dragrace #rupaul #dragracedownunder #NSW #nswpol pic.twitter.com/I58co4IwyB

— Rose Jackson (@RoseBJackson) February 17, 2021

In the video, Jackson argued: “RuPaul’s Drag Race is massively popular.

“It’s not a case of they should have called us – we should have been calling them to say: ‘What can we do to keep this production in Sydney? How can we make this more attractive for you?’

“The make-up artists, the costume designers, the set designers, the lighting designers, the performers, this was their moment to showcase on an international stage what they were doing and the NSW government didn’t even lift a finger to try and to keep the production in Sydney, embed streaming services in Sydney.

“Facts are facts, and this was a massive missed opportunity.

“It’s sickening, and not in a good way, that the NSW government let Drag Race Down Under slip away, and the minister should sashay away and make sure it never happens again.”

Australian politician Rose Jackson reading parliament to filth over Drag Race goes viral.

One iteration of the video, which has been viewed over 22,400 times, was shared on Twitter with the caption “Not [RuPaul’s Drag Race] being a debate point in the literal Australian government, I can’t”.

NOT RPDR BEING A DEBATE POINT IN THE LITERAL AUSTRALIAN GOVERNMENT I CANT pic.twitter.com/psPeYJjmCq— ⋆ immy/aelwyn ⋆ (@aeIwynabernant) February 17, 2021

Another commented: “Gorgeous. Iconic. Where is the judges?”