Drag queens

Femme (noun): “an LGBTQ+ person whose gender expression is considered to be feminine”. Femme (film): a brilliant, brutal British story of a drag queen’s thirst for revenge. We speak to stars Nathan Stewart-Jarrett and George Mackay.

From Bugs Bunny’s ringlet wigs to Pleakley from Lilo and Stitch’s iconic fuck-ass bob, for many, cartoons are an early introduction to gender variance – and no one bats an eyelid.

“Blobby is absolutely queer in a ‘fuck the boundaries, destroy the system, embrace anarchy, live authentically on your own terms’ way.”

Masks off, heels on, struts at the ready: Australia’s drag shows are back. RuPaul’s Drag Race Down Under, however, is raising a few eyebrows.

Drag queen Linda Simpson was front and centre during the mid-’80s nightlife boom, snapping away at subversive figures like RuPaul, Leigh Bowery and Keith Haring. Now, these photographs have been immortalised in her debut book, The Drag Explosion.