BBC rejects complaints about Baga Chipz’s Belgrano joke on ‘Drag Race UK’
The Beeb’s standards unit has rejected viewer complaints after the drag queen joked about the sinking of the Argentinian ship.
By Tim Heap
Baga Chipz’s take on Margaret Thatcher for RuPaul’s Drag Race UK’s Snatch Game episode last autumn saw her being crowned joint winner of the challenge – but not everyone appreciated some of her jokes, it seems.
Two viewers complained to the BBC after the queen, real name Leo Loren, was asked to suggest a Spice Girl name for Michelle Visage while impersonating the former British prime minister.
Answering “Belgrano Spice” – a reference to the Argentinian warship that was sunk by British forces during the Falklands War in 1982, killing 323 – Baga added: “Like the ship, she likes to go down.”
The BBC’s executive complaints unit says they investigated the complaints, but decided not to uphold them on the basis that the show’s audience “would’ve understood that the comment was not intended to be taken seriously”.
A spokesman for the BBC told The Times that Drag Race – which is currently airing its 12th season in the US – has a “long tradition of tackling adult themes”.
Watch the offending comment below, around the 15 second mark: