Celebrity Lingo is hosted by RuPaul Charles, who is one of the world’s most famous drag performers and the much-loved but tough host of his hit show Drag Race, where he tells contestants to 'Sashay away!' with the flick of a long lacquered nail.
But RuPaul's also been a model, singer and actor, having appeared in shows such as Netflix drama AJ & The Queen and films including The Brady Bunch Movie.
Now he has something else to add to his CV as he ditches the sequins to turn game show host on ITV.
Ahead of the return of Adil Ray’s daytime series later in the autumn, RuPaul is hosting a celebrity version of the fast-paced word game Lingo.
Celebrity Lingo — air date
The eight-part series of Celebrity Lingo begins on ITV on Sunday, September 4 at 6.30 pm.
There is no news yet on when this show will air in the US.
Celebrity Lingo — the game explained!
Lingo is very similar to the web-based puzzle Wordle, which became a bit of a craze and a topic for water cooler conversations earlier this year.
The game involves guessing a four or five letter word in five attempts. Unlike Wordle, however, the players are given the first letter of the word. Each time a player makes a guess, they are told which of their chosen letters are in the target word and whether they are in the correct place or not.
The famous twosomes will work against the clock as they try to figure out where the letters go in a series of words… but it’s not as easy as it might sound!
The celebs will also be hoping to guess enough words correctly in order to win money for their chosen charity.
Celebrity Lingo’s famous contestants!
Each episode in the eight-part series sees three celebrity duos playing against each other.
Among the famous pairs are TV presenter Vernon Kay and Drag Race co-judge Michelle Visage, Fay Tozer and H from pop band Steps, DJs Rickie Haywood Williams and Melvin Odoom, and Drag Race UK winners The Vivienne (Series 1) and Lawrence Chaney (Series 2).
Celebrity pairings for the first show are The Masked Dancer host Joel Dommett and his wife Hannah, Coronation Street stars Alan Halsall (Tyrone) and Andy Whyment (Kirk), and Good Morning Britain's Andi Peters and Laura Tobin.
Celebrity Lingo — more about host RuPaul Charles
RuPaul Andre Charles is an American drag queen, actor, singer and model.
Born in San Diego, California, on November 17 1960, RuPaul was 15 when he moved to Atlanta to study performing arts.
He started his career as a musician and filmmaker, and performed in clubs and underground cinema films. In 1989, RuPaul appeared as an extra in the video for the hit song Love Shack by The B-52s, and in the early 1990s, he regularly appeared on Manhattan Cable, the C4 series about New York’s public-access television system.
RuPaul achieved international fame in 1993 when he released his first album Supermodel of the World, which included the club hit Supermodel (You Better Work). Since then he’s released 14 albums, including 1997 Christmas album Ho Ho Ho and his most recent release, Mamaru.
He’s also had his own talk show, The RuPaul Show on VH1, has worked as a model, most notably appearing in full drag on billboards for MAC Cosmetics, and had a number of acting roles on film and TV.
As an actor, he’s appeared as high school guidance counsellor Mrs Cummings in The Brady Bunch Movie (1995) and its 1996 sequel, A Very Brady Sequel, which were based on the hit US series. He’s also had roles in the 1999 coming out comedy But I’m A Cheerleader and the 1995 comedy To Wong Foo, Thanks for Everything! Julie Newmar.
More recently, he had a lead role in the comedy drama AJ & The Queen on Netflix in 2020.
But of all his achievements, RuPaul is now probably best known for hosting RuPaul’s Drag Race, which has run for 14 series in the US since 2009 and has spawned spin-offs, including RuPaul’s Drag Race All Stars. He also hosts the UK version, RuPaul’s Drag Race UK, which has run for three series since 2018 with a fourth season on the way.
If you’re wondering about the name, RuPaul was named by his mother Ernestine, who originally came from Louisiana. It comes from the word roux, which is the base for gumbo and other creole-style soups and stews which is one of the many cuisines that the American state is famous for.
Celebrity Lingo — Q&A with host RuPaul Charles!
Here, RuPaul talks about hosting the show, his love of wordplay, his wish list of dream contestants and… Manchester!
The last time we last saw you on ITV, you got Ant and Dec in drag on Saturday Night Takeaway…
"They looked so gorgeous! I loved their willingness to go along with it. Ant and Dec were true professionals from start to finish and they were so much fun. I love them!"
How does it feel to be hosting Celebrity Lingo?
"I’m so excited! I love games and wordplay! I also love it when people are open enough to be foolish and put themselves out on the line. It’s a party for me!"
What do you like about the game?
"I love to see people coming out of their shell and exercising their intellectual DNA and intuition. Those elements are key to playing and winning a game, and Lingo is just perfect for both of those things. When I play it, I use my instinct. You have to have lived long enough on this planet to learn how to trust your instinct and I do, so I’m quite good at word games!"
There are lots of fabulous famous faces appearing on the show, but is there anyone you’d like to see play Lingo?
"I’d love to have Kylie Minogue on the show, and also Julie Walters, Joanna Lumley and Tom Daley. There are so many brilliant celebrities I’d like to see on Lingo so the list is endless."
You’ve been filming the series in Manchester. What’s that been like?
"I haven’t worked in Manchester since 1996 and seeing how it’s changed over the years has been such a joy. I don’t think anyone would have thought back then that it would evolve into this super modern, sexy metropolis. Now I can honestly say it is one of my favourite places in Britain!"
