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Broadcast on June 25 at 11:30 pm on France 2

France became the fifth European country to import shows from the United States, after the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Spain and Italy. RuPaul’s Drag Race, A program still little known here but which is a real institution in the Atlantic, its 14 seasons have won 52 awards including 25 Emmy Awards!

The concept is simple enough: A dozen drag queens compete at a rate of one elimination per week to be the best. To win, they must face challenges that highlight the diversity of their artistic talents: singing, dancing, fashion, stand-up… they must also surprise them during a parade on an imposed theme. The two who end up on a discount must compete on playback, “Lip Sync,” to save their spot. To evaluate them, France TV formed its jury with Niki Doll, the only French woman to participate in the American version, as well as two personalities familiar from fashion and LGBT+ circles, host Daphne Burki and singer Kiddie Smile. At three o’clock, they have to decide between candidates with multiple profiles and universes. Coming from France and elsewhere (Tunisia, Mexico), they can be men, but also trans women or non-binary people. France has yet to follow the British example by including a cisgender woman (a big point of debate with RuPaul). In any case, we applaud this initiative by the French public service to highlight this little-known or despised world of drag queens. A weeping and yet rich art. Thus we explore this terra incognito with the first episode airing on France 2 on the day of the Paris Independence March. The rest of France TV will be available online on Slush, unfortunately inaccessible from Belgium. Small consolation: The Belgian version of the show may soon see the light of day via the somewhat secretive streaming service WOW Presents Plus.