Charra Tea is the stage name of James Martin, a Northern Irish drag performer competing on the sixth series of RuPaul's Drag Race UK.
Charra Tea | |
|---|---|
| Born | James Martin Belfast, Northern Ireland |
| Occupation | Drag performer |
| Television | RuPaul's Drag Race UK (series 6) |
Early life
editMartin was born in Belfast.[1] She was first drawn to drag after portraying the role of Mr. Pinky in a production of Hairspray as a teenager while attending Grosvenor Grammar School. She was later inspired to pursue a drag career by the dresses and costumes she saw at the charity shop she volunteered at on Botanic Avenue, Belfast. The shop also provided inspiration for her stage name, as it is a pun on the word "charity". She began experimenting with makeup in October 2018, performed as Charra Tea for the first time in January 2019, and began performing regularly in April of that year.[2] She left Belfast at age 19 to study graphic design at the University of Leeds.[1][2][3]
Career
editMartin is a drag performer who competed as Charra Tea on the sixth series of RuPaul's Drag Race UK.[4][5] She is known as the "Primary Color Princess".[1] Charra Tea was the third contestant to represent Northern Ireland, following Blu Hydrangea and Jonbers Blonde.[1][6]
She has stated her drag inspirations to be Blu Hydrangea, Miz Cracker, Robyn Diamonds and Rusty Hinges.[2] Her drag is inspired by bold colors and her background as an "artsy kid", and enjoys incorporating references to British and Irish pop culture figures such as Gemma Collins, Kim Woodburn, and Nadine Coyle into her performances.[4]
Filmography
edit- RuPaul's Drag Race UK (series 6, 2024)
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ a b c d "RuPaul's Drag Race UK: Belfast drag queen hopes to make NI proud". www.bbc.com. Archived from the original on 2024-09-27. Retrieved 2024-09-29.
- ^ a b c Stu, Thotter (26 May 2020). "Spotlight: Charra Tea". gurlglobal.com. GURL Global. Retrieved September 29, 2024.
- ^ Tea, Charra. "Uni can be a drag… literally!". universityofleeds.medium.com. Medium. Retrieved September 29, 2024.
- ^ a b McLaughlin, Sophie (2024-09-03). "Belfast queen set to compete on Ru Paul's Drag Race UK". Belfast Live. Archived from the original on 2024-09-03. Retrieved 2024-09-29.
- ^ Linehan, Alice (2024-09-04). "Belfast queen among fierce new cast of Drag Race UK Season 6". GCN. Archived from the original on 2024-09-04. Retrieved 2024-09-29.
- ^ "Belfast drag queen hoping to stand out in new series of RuPaul's Drag Race UK". BelfastTelegraph.co.uk. 2024-09-26. ISSN 0307-1235. Archived from the original on 2024-09-27. Retrieved 2024-09-29.