Ginger Johnson says her new BBC series is a perfect encapsulation of what resides in her “great big head”.
Following her win on RuPaul’s Drag Race UK last year, the Northern comedian has unleashed a camp six-part series, Ginger’s House, in which she invites familiar faces over to kiki and – as an “incredibly lazy” person – assist her with household chores.
Featuring appearances from queens such as Tia Kofi, Kate Butch, Cara Melle, Danny Beard and Miss Naomi Carter, Ginger describes the series as “half-sitcom, half-chat show” due to its hybrid scripted and unscripted format.
“Each episode is scripted by me, and there are certain gags, ideas and visual jokes that I wanted to include within it, but the guests at my house had no idea what they were walking into,” Ginger tells GAY TIMES.
“They knew they were coming around to Ginger’s house for a cup of tea, then we’d improv through story beats I had written. It was a moving, natural thing, and that was because I wanted to get the real personalities of the guests in.
“That’s partly why they’re not in drag, I want people to see how they interact with Ginger in mad scenarios.”
The aforementioned scenarios include the death of Ginger’s hamster Samantha Mumba (named after the ‘Always Come Back To Your Love’ icon of the same name), preparing horses for a competition, picking out the perfect new nose and unblocking a toilet.
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“If you cracked open my great big head and had a look inside, you would find a semi-detached house of drag queens doing the most ridiculous things,” says Ginger, who was heavily inspired by The Mrs. Merton Show, Pee-wee’s Playhouse and Sesame Street.
“There’s also those elements of classic British sitcom that I, as a human and a performer, grew up on. And there’s a brightly coloured cartoon element to Ginger that looks like she’s been coloured in by a five-year-old. So, there’s an element of bizarre!”
One of Ginger’s aims with the show was to allow her audience to discover more about her character, particularly as most fans only know her brand of comedy from the confines of a reality competition series.
“[Drag Race UK is a] very different place to be,” she says. “Ginger’s House is more chill. I wanted it to feel like people are going to their favourite auntie’s house. I just love talking to and playing with other people, and that’s what it was like on set.
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“It was just everybody constantly trying to make each other laugh. And it was important for me to bring other people in because, I might have won Drag Race, but you’ve got to share the wealth. It makes it a more exciting experience for everybody.”
In addition to the series, Ginger will be embarking on a second leg of the Angels of the North Tour alongside her Drag Race UK finalists (and Northern besties) Michael Marouli and Tomara Thomas.
Between December and January, she will also star in TuckShop’s all-drag line-up of Peter Pan.
Ginger’s House airs every Thursday in the UK on BBC Three and BBC iPlayer and in international territories on WOW Presents Plus.
The first four episodes, featuring Cara Melle, Kate Butch, Miss Naomi Carter, Danny Beard and Tia Kofi, are available to stream now.
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