Millions gasped as Dancing on Ice star The Vivienne took a dramatic tumble during her solo skate on Sunday night’s show, leaving her fearing she would be knocked out of the competition.
But the 30-year-old – the first drag queen to appear on the programme – got back on her feet and glided into this weekend’s final.
It’s not the first time she has picked herself up in the face of adversity.
Six years ago, she made a make-or-break move to Gran Canaria after getting hooked on drugs while working in Liverpool’s club scene.
Medics feared she could die from her addiction to ketamine after she was hospitalised three times in a month. It left The Vivienne, who is called James Lee Williams out of drag, vowing to change.
“Some guys I knew from Gran Canaria... asked me to do a gig in Pride,” recalled The Vivienne.
“I did it, I was there for a week and I felt like myself and I hadn’t touched anything for a week.”
Kevin Kirby, manager of Liverpool venue Superstar Boudoir, says he was aware of The Vivienne’s drug problems while she was one of his top DJs, but adds it never affected her work.
Kevin, 52, was sad when his pal, who he calls Viv, decided to move abroad. He says: “She said she was going there to sort herself out. I told her I didn’t want her to go, but I respected the reasons why she was going.
“She had to leave the scene at the time when she did otherwise she wouldn’t have been where she is now.
“She took a massive pay cut to go over there, was able to sort herself out and there’s been no stopping her since.”
On RuPaul’s Drag Race UK, the reality show The Vivienne won in 2019, she said she had been clean for two years, but described ketamine, which causes hallucinations and can lead to chronic bladder problems, as her “breakfast, lunch and dinner” while in the throes of her addiction.
She added: “I could have three bags of it just putting my face on. I did it on and off for four years. I was getting evicted from apartments, I had no money.”
The Vivienne sought help from an NHS centre in Liverpool. But it was the 2017 move to Gran Canaria and meeting future husband David Ludford that fully changed her life.
After arriving on the Spanish island, The Vivienne took a job at Sparkles Show Bar in Las Palmas, quickly becoming one of its top drag queens.
Show team manager Tony Oliver, 52, says: “She wanted to have a break from Liverpool because she wanted to get away from the drugs, so asked if she could come out for a year and work with us.
“She really mucked in and was fabulous. She did hosting and all the customers loved her. The Vivienne was born to be on the stage.”
It was at Sparkles that The Vivienne, who also did a comedy act, doing impressions, met David. The venue’s now-owner Brandon Davis, who was a waiter with David, says The Vivienne’s Dancing On Ice exploits are a surprise.
“She wasn’t much of a dancer” says Brandon, 25, with a laugh. “Her and David were so much fun to be around. It was sad when they left.” When David and The Vivienne married in London in 2019, the wedding cake was designed by Bake Off and Strictly star John Whaite.
Born in Colwyn Bay, North Wales, The Vivienne attended the prestigious Rydal Penrhos School, where fees cost up to £16,200 a year.
She recalled: “I came out quite early. Humour was my defence at school. I wasn’t bullied, because I was the funny kid.
“I’d turn up with a Louis Vuitton bag. Often my accessories would be confiscated. It wasn’t all bad. I was outside the headmaster’s office and another teacher told me I looked fabulous.”
The Vivienne wanted to be a lawyer but changed tack after developing make-up skills.
She left school at 16, moving to Liverpool to work on the make-up counter in Debenhams.
The Vivienne, named after designer Vivienne Westwood, then found her calling, saying: “I saw some drag queens at a club and was stunned. I knew immediately that was what I wanted to do.” At first, she performed Cher impressions under her real name James.
Then, while working on bar doors – being paid £30 and a bottle of alcopop a night – she got her break performing lip sync tracks and comedy routines on stage.
Kevin says: “There was always something that made me think, ‘She’s going to go on to bigger and better things’.”
The dark years followed before The Vivienne’s escape to Gran Canaria.
After her next big step on Drag Race in 2019, she has appeared on shows such as The Great British Sewing Bee.
Tony says: “We were so proud of her. She set the bar high and has done so much for UK drag.”
The Vivienne’s friends describe her as remaining very humble. Tony says: “She’s been back to Gran Canaria a few times to see everyone and she’s lovely.”
Kevin says: “Even now she comes in to see us whenever she’s in Liverpool and it’s just the same Viv.”
On The Vivienne’s feats on Dancing On Ice, where she is partnered with pro skater Colin Grafton, Kevin adds: “She’s proved drag isn’t just putting lippie on. It’s proper entertainment. I think Viv can win. We’ll all be cheering her on.”
* The Dancing On Ice final – also featuring TOWIE star Joey Essex with Vanessa Bauer, and Olympic gymnast Nile Wilson with Olivia Smart – is on Sunday at 6.30pm on ITV1 and ITVX.
