Kitty Scott-Claus on Global All Stars and why RuPaul ‘favouritism’ claims don’t stack up
Kitty Scott-Claus spills on Global All Stars (World of Wonder)
As RuPaul’s Drag Race UK finalist Kitty Scott-Claus brings British drag to the international stage on Global All Stars, she spills on her Girl Group dreams, addresses “favouritism” from RuPaul and reveals who she wants on Global All Stars 2.
Competing against the likes of Alyssa Edwards (RuPaul’s Drag Race), Kween Kong (Drag Race Down Under) and nine other contestants from Drag Race franchises around the world in the first ever Global All Stars, Drag Race UK finalist Kitty Scott-Claus is, in the words of Roxxxy Andrews, here to make it clear.
Speaking exclusively to PinkNews ahead of episode four of Global All Stars, Kitty, who first competed on Drag Race UK season three, spills on the week’s Girl Group challenge, the hilarious moment she first saw the rest of the cast and why queens that have been judged by RuPaul are actually at a disadvantage.
PinkNews: Kitty! We’re so thrilled you’re back on our TV screens, it’s such a joy to see; what is it like for you?
Kitty Scott-Claus: It’s wild? We filmed it so long ago, and look so different. I’ve been on a health and fitness journey, but it’s wild to watch it back. Because it was so long ago, I forget so much. And so much happened.
Casting it back even further, was there any hesitation saying yes to Global All Stars and dropping back into the Hunger Games arena?
Kitty Scott-Claus: That’s what it feels like. I literally sound like Chad Michaels. Twelve tributes enter, one leaves; I volunteer as tribute!
Making the final on your original season, you’re obviously gonna be asked when you’re going to go back. When are you going to do UK Vs. The World? When are you going to Canada Vs. The World? And phone calls happen, but it was never the right time for me. I was always doing something!
I’m a big believer in fate, and I think everything happens for a reason, and when it’s the right time, it’ll be the right time. So when this came around, I remember just thinking, main character over here, right? It’s me, I’m Miss United Kingdom.
And what were you, Miss United Kingdom, most excited to bring to the global level for British drag?
Kitty Scott-Claus: What separates British drag from the rest of the world is the humour and comedy. I’m hardly gonna sit here and be like ‘It’s the fashion!’ am I? I like a mini dress – arrest me! God forbid a woman has a hobby.
That’s what makes a British drag so unique and so special, and so I was like, this is what I have to bring. And also, if you’re getting Kitty Scott-Claus, you’re gonna bring the lols.
Who were you the most gagged to see in that massive Global All Stars Werk Room?
Kitty Scott-Claus: I feel like it’s the same answer for everyone. I could not believe Alyssa Edwards was there. She’s an icon. It was like, why is she competing? Insane. I was like: ‘What the hell?’
Kween Kong, too. I was a huge fan of her from her season. I hadn’t watched many of the other franchises because every country and its dog has a Drag Race franchise. But it was also knowing that all these girls were finalists. The standards were so high.
As we were talking, I realised that we never got to see when the whole cast met on episode one? So what happened when you met them?
Kitty Scott-Claus: Oh it was so funny: we were in holding rooms, and told that we had to be quiet, because the walls are thin and we would be able to hear who else is here. And they told us we were doing the entrance on the main stage, so it was like: ‘Queens walking, Queens walking. Hard ice, hard ice.”
So I did my runway in my little Beefeater Six: The Musical number in the premiere episode, and the second I walk backstage, everyone’s just standing there. It’s like, oh, it wasn’t even on camera. But I walk backstage and, in my head, I wasn’t meant to see them! So I just like, turned and faced the wall and shut my eyes until a handler told me it was okay! I was like: ‘So why are we doing this whole rigmarole, then?’
As of right now, our next Global All Stars episode is the Girl Group challenge. You slayed the Drag Race UK season three Girl Group challenge, so what can you tease this time round?
Kitty Scott-Claus: I love a Girl Group challenge! This is one of the Drag Race challenge that I’m like, I’ve got to win this challenge. I didn’t get to win it on Drag Race UK season three, but I’ll also say that it’s because we were judged as a group, and someone in my group didn’t know the words to their own lyrics that they wrote themselves…
Let’s go from Girl Group to last episode’s Ball challenge: you were safe, but people have had a lot of things to say online about your placement.
Kitty Scott-Claus: Right! Okay, granted, category one, ‘Boss Lady in Charge’… Not my greatest work! But my thinking was, ‘What does Judi Dench wear in James Bond? A little tweed suit?’ So what did I wear? A little tweed suit! And it was embellished, it was stoned, it was everything.
To be fair, I then walk out and Pythia has got cameras coming out of her head. But the criticism is coming from people who don’t do drag!
And the second look was an Austin Powers fembot. People asking how that was a villain have clearly never seen Austin Powers. They’re giving me too much credit. They think I’m clever enough to come up with concepts myself? No, I have to copy people.
There are also some people claiming that queens like you, Alyssa and Kween, who have been judged by RuPaul before, have got some favouritism going on…
Kitty Scott-Claus: Those people saying that there’s favouritism don’t realise that, by judging us before, the judges and RuPaul know exactly what to look out for. They know our weaknesses, so they’ve already got the jump on us, whereas the other girls, it’s like they’re seeing them fresh.
Last week, Athena really gave it to Tessa in the Werk Room when she called her dress ‘sh*t’, which really made me fall out. Any more big drama to tease?
Kitty Scott-Claus: Oh, there’s more.
Gag. Are you involved?
Kitty Scott-Claus: I couldn’t possibly say. Maybe! But I will say, the first time you do Drag Race, you forget that you’re making a reality show, whereas this time, everyone knows it’s a TV show. Everyone knows we want to make the best TV possible.
One last question. If there’s a Global All Stars 2, who is your UK pick?
Kitty Scott-Claus: I have a few. Tomara Thomas, the femme fatale. The other girls would be like: ‘Where are your teeth?’ Love her so much.
I also think it’s about time we have Tayce back. And, rogue one, but Kate Butch. Love her! Love P!nk!
Catch Kitty Scott-Claus on the all new RuPaul’s Drag Race Global All Stars, available to stream on WOW Presents Plus.
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