Mum of bullied 12-year-old boy tearfully thanks Ant and Dec for doing drag on prime time TV
The TV duo's performance with the winners of Drag Race UK has touched hearts.
Words: Alastair James; pictures: Twitter/@mummabear0803 and Instagram/@antanddec
A mother whose son has been bullied for being “different” has thanked TV presenters Ant and Dec for dressing up in drag and showing everyone it’s ok to be who they want to be.
Twitter user ‘mummabear0803’ posted the video message following the presenting duo’s programme Saturday Night Takeaway (19 February), which saw Ant McPartlin and Declan Donnelly drag up as the ‘Angels of the North’ – ‘Lady Antoniette’ and ‘Donna Lee’ respectively.
View this post on Instagram
Ant and Dec were joined by RuPaul’s Drag Race UK winners The Vivienne, Lawrence Chaney, and Krystal Versace for an explosive rendition of their new charity single ‘We Werk Together’.
Posting her video message after the show on Saturday ‘mummabear0803’ said: “I just wanted to say a huge thank you. What you’ve done tonight has been amazing. It’s going to be so influential that you dressed up in drag. My son has Tourettes and he’s got anxiety and he likes to be different, he likes to walk nicely, he likes to wear make-up.
She continued: “He’s 12-years-old and he’s been bullied all his life. And what you’ve done tonight is just… amazing. It’s going to show everybody around the world it’s ok to just be who you want to be. And everybody’s got freedoms and everyone’s got rights and everyone deserves respect and kindness.
“And all those kids that are going to go to school [on] Monday and think twice before they bully someone else because of what you’ve done is really truly amazing. I just wanted to thank you from the bottom of my heart,” she added, before blowing a kiss.
❤️ ❤️ https://t.co/irwwHeKH8j
— antanddec (@antanddec) February 20, 2022
The impact of Ant and Dec’s performance was felt elsewhere as well. The author Caitlin Moran shared her thoughts on Twitter as well revealing she had thought drag had gone mainstream until she saw the duo step out.
“[I] thought of all the people who would be watching drag for the 1st time, on ITV prime-time, being done by two lads who would have been at school during Section 28, and it made me a bit tearful,” she went on to say.
I had cheerfully thought “Oh, drag’s gone mainstream,” until I saw this, and thought of all the people who would be watching drag for the 1st time, on ITV prime-time, being done by two lads who would have been at school during Section 28, and it made me a bit tearful. https://t.co/PIpXmG3MU4
— Caitlin Moran (@caitlinmoran) February 20, 2022
‘We Werk Together’ will raise money for the UK food and hunger charity, The Trussell Trust, and is available now. Watch Ant and Dec’s full performance below:
Attitude’s new-look March/April issue is out now.
