Drag queen Scarlet Diamonte, also known as host of Strictly Inverness Brian Elrick, says LGBTQ+ community will not be silenced by detractors
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The notion of drag as a form or element of entertainment has been around since ancient times.
In Ancient Greece, the English renaissance and Japanese kabuki theatre, it was commonplace to have men playing women's roles – and dressing accordingly.
That continued through Shakespearian times, and the 20th century saw drag featured on film since the beginning of cinema, including in children's movies like Mrs Doubtfire and Mulan, while entertainers Dame Edna and Lily Savage became household names on television.
More recently, drag went through a boom of interest and popularity due to the success of RuPaul's Drag Race, inspiring a whole new generation of drag artists.
Someone who has performed several shows in and around the Highlands is Scarlet Diamonte – also known as the host of Strictly Inverness, Brian Elrick, who initially began working with Highland Hopsice through the art form.
"The first time I ever came to Inverness was to do panto at Eden Court," Elrick recalled.
"I came back a couple of times, and it was through that I became good friends with Sally Robinson at the TFX Academy, and I think she was approached to get people to do some events with the Hospice, and that was it.
"I did drag at Hospice Ball. I think that shocked quite a few people, but that was the whole point of it. The Hospice Ball were stuck getting in the same people, and they wanted to mix it up a wee bit, so I was trying to break down the stigma.
"Over the years I've done lots of different events in drag in the Highlands, including the Pride event in Inverness.
"To be fair, it was quite early on in my drag career when I first performed up in the Highlands, so I was pretty petrified of all my gigs back then.
"To me, it was no different – I just took it as it came. I've always sung live, so I used to think if I was getting no response I could just sing my songs and go. If you're more comedy based or lip-sync based that would be a much harder thing to navigate.
"I remember it actually being quite a positive reaction, but don't for one minute thing I haven't come up against plenty of challenges.
"Over the years I've still seen quite a lot of stigma, but I definitely think it's getting more inclusive.
"The Gunsmiths has started to get quite a good reputation for being open to everyone. It was a huge part of the Pride events for a few years, and I did drag there quite regularly without ever having much trouble.
"There will always be one person who makes comments, but the security team always dealt with it.
"It's really important when you're a person in that moment of power to send a message to the community that you have to stand up for yourself when someone tries to put you down in any way.
"Any progress is better than no progress. You see how big the Pride event is getting and those sorts of things, the people in that community are definitely coming out fighting now – they will not be silenced anymore, and I think that's only a good thing."
As an actor and performer, Elrick has developed a thick skin to deal with incidents as Scarlet Diamonte – which usually means a quick-witted rebuttal to put someone in their place.
Elrick can see evidence of the same approach in younger drag queens breaking on to the scene in Inverness, and he can see big things in some of their futures.
"There are so many younger generations coming through, even in the Highlands, where you can see some of these younger drag queens who really aren't messing around," Elrick added.
"I think some of them will go on to do some good stuff – whether that's RuPaul or other careers.
"That's amazing to see, and a few of them have commented that I have really helped them which is great. That's what you want, to inspire people.
"If that's what they want to do and who they want to be, they are allowed to be that person.
"I definitely think Holly Chic is someone to watch, she's doing quite a lot.
"She's from Inverness but she's also doing stuff in Glasgow, so I think she's using all the right avenues and channels to build a profile for herself. That's definitely someone who could be prominent in time."
