BBC comedy Smoggie Queens, which was inspired by the success of RuPaul’s Drag Race, is coming back for another season.
Hat Trick Productions’ show created by and starring comedian Phil Dunning follows a group of people in the LGBTQ+ community as they navigate love, life and their pride for Middlesborough, a town that feels neglected in its own little corner of the UK.
Season 1 starred Dunning as Dickie alongside Mark Benton, Alexandra Mardell, Patsy Lowe and Elijah Young, with guests including Peaky Blinders star Charlotte Riley and RuPaul’s Drag Race judge Michelle Visage. No word yet on whether Riley or Visage will return. The first season consolidated to around 600,000 viewers per ep at the back-end of last year.
Season 2 “promises to bring more slapstick and silly laughs, with some excellent one liners from Dickie (Dunning), and a copious amount of joy for viewers,” according to the BBC.
The show is a textbook example of the sort of show the corporation is looking to do more of, representing underrepresented communities in parts of the UK that don’t always get their fair share.
Speaking to Deadline just before sales launched at MIPCOM, Dunning said a decade ago a series about drag queens in the north east of England may have struggled to get a greenlight, but shows like RuPaul’s Drag Race have cleared a path.
Jon Petrie, BBC Director of Comedy, said of the recommission: “Smoggie Queens is back—along with the wigs, the big laughs, and the brilliantly chaotic energy that made us fall in love with Dickie and the gang. This show is something special.”
Hat Trick boss Jimmy Mulville added: “We all need a feel-good, laugh out loud show to watch, so thank God Smoggie Queens is coming back.”
Smoggie Queens is sold by Hat Trick International. The series was commissioned by Petrie. The producer is Chris Jones (Kate & Koji). The commissioning editor for the BBC is Gregor Sharp.
By Max Goldbart
DEADLINE
March 24, 2025 8:00am