‘RuPaul’s Drag Race UK’ Season 4, Episode 9 recap: ‘A political-themed roast, it’s very camp’

RuPaul’s Drag Race UK seems to have settled into a set pattern of challenges. This is true of other Drag Race franchises as well, but the formula on the British series is remarkably rigid. If you compare this season’s set of challenges to UK Season 2 and 3, the only major variance is in what kind of late-season look task we see: an unconventional materials design task, a timed ball, a makeover. Otherwise, you can expect a late-game acting task, a Snatch Game mid-season, a two-look premiere challenge, and so on.

The near-ending comedy challenge is no different. Last season, we got the Pearly Gates Roast; before that, we got a stand-up challenge themed around love. I don’t love a late-game stand-up challenge, mostly because it’s a very specific skill to test as the last hurdle in the competition. (This was also an issue in All Stars 5.) But there’s no reason for a queen to be unprepared for it at this point—the queens themselves make this point as they rattle off all the challenges they’ve been through. This kind of task is to be expected.

Which is why it’s frustrating that, for as strong as this crop of queens has been all season, they mostly swing-and-miss during this roast challenge. Danny Beard does as well as you’d expect, and Jonbers Blonde actually surprises with her best performance of the season. But Cheddar Gorgeous falters with an overly serious character, while Pixie Polite can’t summon up the comedic chops that gave her the win in the Reading Is Fundamental mini-challenge.

Most disappointing of all, however, is Black Peppa, who counts herself out before the challenge even begins. She’s got a panel ready to love her, some great coaching through her set, and a comeback narrative waiting to happen. Unfortunately, she’s just convinced herself she’s no good at comedy challenges, and that proves to be her downfall. But the question then becomes: will she be able to survive a fourth lip sync, and make it into the finale over Pixie?

The roast this season is loosely inspired by politics, being called a “General Erection Roast.” Perhaps because nothing could quite match the lunacy of current British politics, the queens largely skirt around this theme beyond some vague political messaging. This is really just a standard roast in a politician’s suit, and it makes the challenge feel a bit generic compared to other versions we’ve seen in the past.

As the survivors of last week’s lip sync, Peppa and Jonbers get to choose the performance order. The only queen who makes a specific request among the others is Cheddar, who asks to be put near the start of the lineup. Her argument is that as someone with a dry sense of humour, she shouldn’t be the one closing the show. Peppa and Jonbers promptly ignore this and put Cheddar in the final slot.

The resulting kerfuffle is nothing compared to the legendary Ellie Diamond versus Lawrence Chaney battle of old, but Cheddar doesn’t just swallow her objections. She makes it clear that she doesn’t understand why Peppa and Jonbers—particularly Jonbers—would choose this, and repeatedly presses them for an explanation. She ultimately accepts the placement and does her best with the spot, but when she falters, she brings it back up in Mini-Untucked as a reason for her disappointing performance.

I actually agree with Cheddar here, and I don’t fault her for being upset. She has a very specific sense of humour, and she knows what she’d need to be successful with it. Now, granted, after hearing the set, I’m not sure anything would’ve helped Cheddar. She lacks jokes, and her audience is desperate for a pure laugh. But Cheddar deserves the chance to do the set on her own terms, particularly if none of the other queens are passionate about where in the order they want to go. It strikes me as passively strategic on Jonbers’s and Peppa’s part, and I’d rather they own their gameplay if they’re going to make moves like that.

Jonbers actually gives herself a pretty terrible spot, following Danny in second position. Theoretically, this should’ve gone terribly for JB, since Danny absolutely smashes her set. (My favourite of her jokes: “Now, Jonbers Blonde! I thought the Troubles in Ireland ended in the ’90s, but it’s clear from looking at her face that they have only just begun!”) But Jonbers has two major tools on her side: she’s got the character of a drunkard to rely on, and she has really solid jokes.

The latter may not seem like an “advantage” as much as it is “necessary for a comedy challenge,” but these tasks are filled with queens who rely more on characterization or charm to get through than on writing traditional sets. The first-ever roast winner, Coco Montrese, used this strategy to great effect in Season 5. But from Jonbers’s first jab at Danny—“Nothing in life should be hard, except for dicks. And Danny’s a dick!”—it’s clear that Jonbers is prepared for this.

What she does with her drunk persona is buttress her weak points. Any time a joke doesn’t quite land, she can toss off an “I’m drunk!” and get laughs. Is it the best roast we’ve ever seen? No, but it’s a really effective one. I admire how well Jonbers takes the challenge as a problem to solve and doesn’t just get the right answer, but has several right answers. It’s a really remarkable performance, and I’d personally give her the win for it.

But I can’t quibble with Danny’s win, her fourth in the competition. She has tied Cheddar for the most RuPeter Badges of the season, and with Cheddar scoring low this week, she also has the undisputed best track record. Heading into the finale on the high of a victory makes Danny the favourite to take home the crown—as she’s been for almost all of this season.

At episode’s end, Pixie, who gets a remarkably harsh edit, but even admits herself that her jokes aren’t landing, and Peppa must face off in the lip sync, set to Queen’s “Another One Bites the Dust.” While Pixie’s lip syncing ability isn’t the strongest in the cast—I personally would’ve sent her home against Dakota Schiffer a couple of weeks ago—she benefits from not having lip synced so many times. This is Peppa’s fourth lip sync, and her performances have been getting progressively sloppier. Will she be able to hold Pixie off and still make it to the finale?

Luckily for Peppa, this lip sync is her tightest since her first, and she dominates the stage. Pixie does her best, but she can’t quite keep up—and that’s before she fully trips at one point. Peppa stays around past her fourth lip sync (a rare feat), and has made it into the finale. Pixie, unfortunately, falls just short of the endgame, ending her run in fifth place.

Next week is our grand finale, and while I think the winner is something of a foregone conclusion, I do think how good the Rumix is could make or break this season’s reputation. It seemed quite popular for its first half, but Dakota’s departure, plus last week’s dismal acting challenge seem to have drained the season of its momentum. Even having the reunion with the eliminated queens this week instead of next is an odd choice; a reminder of what could’ve been while we watch three of the top five struggle with this task. What will we get next week instead?

If Drag Race UK Season 4 can land the plane, I think we’ll look back at it as a fascinating, season-long duel between Danny and Cheddar, featuring some terrific competitors along the way. If the finale falls short of expectations, I think it’ll be remembered as better than Season 3, but that’s about it. But despite some recent disappointments, I do think this top four is more than capable of producing a great final installment. It’s just a matter of putting on the best show they can.

Untucking our final thoughts

✨ Aisling Bea, an Irish comedienne, is the coach for the comedy challenge, and she is terrific. Not only is she sweet and energetic, but her work with the queens is incredibly effective. She knows how to work with each of them in a way that’s both encouraging and actually constructive. Watching her and Danny workshop jokes together is the moment it’s obvious who’s going to win this week. Also loved her cute Irish connection with Jonbers!

✨ Conversely, while Olly Alexander is very cute and game as guest judge (​​“Ru, can I say I have waited Years & Years to be here, and It’s a Sin how good you look!”), he falls into the same trap as nearly every guest judge this season in not being critical enough. I’m not saying these guests need to be jerks, but the lack of any kind of actual critique is making it feel more like a featured celebrity audience member slot. I know we’re in an era of the franchise itself deciding how much it wants to focus on competition versus being a drag showcase, but for the time being, this is still a race for a crown. Guests can be most valuable to the process by, yes, being entertained and encouraging, but also offering the best notes they can.

✨ Kinda sad Baby didn’t appear among the eliminated queens, but it’s in keeping with other comeback opportunities we’ve seen in the past (like Ginny Lemon not getting a chance to return in UK Season 2). Still, she was a major part of the season, so it feels incomplete not having her there.

✨ We get a runway theme I’ve wanted for a long time this week: “Pretty in Punk.” I love punk aesthetics in drag, but they’re rarer than you’d expect on this show. (Remember Raja’s winning punk performance in the Season 3 singing challenge?) Cheddar and Peppa get top marks from me—Cheddar’s is impeccably rendered, but I love Peppa’s silhouette and “over 5,000 studs” even more.

✨ Cackled at the challenge being set at “69 Downing Street.”

✨ Just wanted to note that Ru, resplendent in red, looks amazing this week. One of my favourite looks of his.

✨ I usually save this final bullet point in the semifinal episode to discuss the odds of each queen to win, but let’s be honest: this crown is going to go to Danny Beard. She’s got the track record, the fan support, the Ru adoration—I will be absolutely floored if she loses. Compared to the major battles we’ve seen in previous seasons (Divina de Campo versus The Vivienne! Bimini versus Lawrence Chaney! Ella Vaday versus Krystal Versace!), this feels remarkably settled. All due respect to Cheddar, Jonbers and Peppa, but Danny’s victory feels sewn up.

The finale of RuPaul’s Drag Race UK Season 4 will be available to stream on Thursday, Nov. 24, at 4 p.m. EST on WOW Presents Plus in the U.S. and on Crave in Canada. You can subscribe to our drag newsletter, Wig!, for exclusive Drag Race content delivered straight to your inbox every Tuesday afternoon.