Tucked review – moving tale of a dying drag queen
Derren Nesbitt is terrific as an ageing club performer who rescues a young singer from homophobic attackers
An ageing drag queen gets a diagnosis of terminal cancer and makes a new friend in this touching, unexpectedly funny end-of-life drama set in Brighton, with a terrific performance by 83-year-old Derren Nesbitt. It must have taken real guts for him to let the camera in so close, following him naked into the shower and under the harsh lights.
Nesbitt plays Jack Collins, who initially looks like retired brickie. But, under a towering beehive wig, Jack becomes Jackie, the main attraction at a drag club, performing mildly offensive un-PC comedy routines that go down a storm with the millennial audience. Jack’s diagnosis comes after he collapses on stage. But the show must go on and, a few nights later, he rescues a young singer, Faith (Jordan Stephens, one half of hip-hop duo Rizzle Kicks), from homophobic attackers.