Scarlett Harlett issues emotional statement after explosive Drag Race UK confrontation
"I struggle to form true connections in life. It’s lonely sometimes."
Words: Alastair James; pictures: BBC
Scarlett Harlett has said it’s difficult for her to talk about her emotions following her confrontation with the other queens on this week’s episode of RuPaul’s Drag Race UK.
The East London drag queen, 26, received a gut punch on Thursday’s (21 October) show after all the queens were asked by Ru on the main stage who they thought should go home and why. Several singled out the star, much to her dismay.
It followed a bad week for all the queens who, working in two teams, had to create adverts for a new home system, ‘Drag-lexa’. The judges weren’t impressed with either and no one was crowned the winner of the week.
“This went from being the best experience for me to the worst”
Following the judges’ critiques, Ru asked each of the girls, in turn, to name who they would send home. While Scarlett was not the only queen named, she was the one who got the most mentions. Charity Kase and Vanity Milan were also named.
This led to an uncomfortable atmosphere in Untucked, to say the least. As the queens sat down to discuss what was said, Scarlett was asked how she felt to which she replied: “I’m not interested in talking, thanks.”
She took issue with people saying she hadn’t bounced back after last week’s lipsync and being told she was using tiredness as an excuse. Getting increasingly frustrated with the queens she eventually walked off.
In a confessional, she said: “This went from being the best experience for me to the worst in the space of f***ing five minutes,” adding she felt like she’d been singled out and had been since she was a kid.
Coming back into the werkroom, she revealed she had had issues trusting people and felt like her relationships with the queens weren’t real now.
Posting on Instagram yesterday following the show, the queen said: “Quite frankly I’m embarrassed by the way I acted in untucked, but I just want you all to know that talking about my emotions is so hard for me. I constant [sic] put on this persona that I’m a silly camp person all the time that… I just struggle to form true connections in life. It’s lonely sometimes. And that’s why I cherish my relationship with my mum, because she knows the real me and loves me anyway.. and that means so much to me.”
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This week’s episode also featured a conversation between Scarlett and Kitty Scott-Claus about Scarlett’s relationship with her mother. Scarlett revealed their relationship hadn’t always been great and that her mother has a disease called COPD meaning she lives on an oxygen machine.
Scarlett explains that the two used to fight and began making up as they realised her mother was sick. In an emotional scene, Scarlett also reveals that her mother loves her but that as her mother’s condition deteriorates, her love and support is “going to be gone soon”.
Writing about her mother on Instagram, Scarlett said she was “grateful” for her support calling her “my cheerleader. My best friend. But most importantly my heart.”
The episode saw Charity Kase ultimately walk away after lip-syncing against Scarlett.
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