Bloolips — Drag Punk Cabaret (London, 1970s–1980s)
Formed in London in the late 1970s, Bloolips was a radical, genre-defying drag troupe that fused punk, cabaret, political satire, and gender anarchy into something entirely new. Performing in clubs, theaters, and alternative art spaces, they rejected traditional female impersonation in favor of grotesque beauty, surreal costumes, and confrontational humor—drag as protest, drag as performance art, drag as weapon.
At a time when homosexuality had only recently been decriminalized in the UK, Bloolips pushed visibility further, using camp and chaos to challenge norms around gender, sexuality, and respectability. Their shows mixed Weimar decadence, glam rock, Brechtian theater, and downtown New York energy, influencing later generations of drag artists, club kids, and queer performers who saw drag not just as illusion, but as transformation and resistance.
