RuPaul's Drag Race UK winner, All Stars 7 queen The Vivienne punched during homophobic assault

Joey Nolfi
·2 min read
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RuPaul's Drag Race UK season 1 winner and All Stars 7 contestant The Vivienne has revealed she was the victim of a homophobic assault in the United Kingdom.

According to several social media posts the 31-year-old shared on Friday, she was punched in the face by a man, who was later arrested.

"Just been attacked in McDonald's, Police on way. Homophobia alive and well folks! First time I've never retaliated in a fight because I'm not gonna punch somebody in front of kids and women," Vivienne tweeted. "Huge thank you to the fantastic staff at @McDonaldsUK Edge Lane who acted fast and removed the idiot from the premises and did everything in their power to make sure I was ok and waited for police with me."

Viv later tweeted about the vitality of speaking out against violence.

"He's been arrested and in custody. Result, it's so important that as a community we report and take action on hate crimes," she tweeted. "Otherwise it continues to happen. Time to set an example!"

In a subsequent Instagram Story, Vivienne shared footage of herself in the immediate aftermath.

"After a homophobic attack at noon, punch to the jaw, man arrested…. Stepped in my Uber to [Kylie Minogue's] PADAM!" Vivienne wrote alongside a video of her enjoying the singer's new song in the backseat of a car. "I'm ok and the police have been amazing."

EW has reached out to The Vivienne and the Merseyside Police for more information.

World of Wonder/VH1 Drag Race grab
World of Wonder/VH1 Drag Race grab

World of Wonder/VH1 The Vivienne on 'RuPaul's Drag Race All Stars 7.'

According to the BBC, a man was detained on suspicion of assault after the alleged incident. "This was a shocking attack which happened in broad daylight in a busy venue," officer Alan Nuttall told the outlet.

After winning the inaugural RuPaul's Drag Race UK season in 2019, The Vivienne joined the franchise's first-ever all-winners edition on Paramount+ in 2022.

In addition to her work on Drag Race, The Vivienne has appeared on several reality projects in the U.K., including The Weakest Link, Celebrity Mastermind, and Dancing on Ice, where she placed third.

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