Drag Race's Ella Vaday 'scared' to strip naked for Real Full Monty
RuPaul's Drag Race UK star Ella Vaday is set to return to screens later this year in The Real Full Monty.
The hit ITV show sees celebrities perform a strip tease in a bid to raise awareness for life-saving cancer checks.
Ella, known as Nick Collier out of drag, will be joining a wide range of celebrities on stage as they get their kit off for a good cause.
Following on from The Real Full Monty's casting announcement, Nick has spoken exclusively to Digital Spy about the "daunting" prospect of baring all.
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"Look, I'm the first drag queen on the show," said Nick. "Learning the routine for The Real Full Monty is a breeze, you know, because I'm a trained dancer and can pick up things really quick.
"It's the full-on nudity that is the most scary bit for me because I spend my whole career pretending to be someone else.
"So, this is the most vulnerable I will ever be in my whole life, literally butt-naked centre stage in The Real Full Monty. It's daunting, I'm trying not to think about it."
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Thankfully Nick went on to note that he's currently feeling confident in his own skin after working hard on his new fitness website FITTI.
"Luckily, I've had a whole year of looking after my body so I'm feeling more confident and healthy than ever," the actor and drag performer explained. "So, I'm just gonna take it on.
"I'm just gonna do it and not think about it and hope my friends and family don't stare too much at me when I'm naked because that's weird."
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Detailing his personal reasons for taking part in The Real Full Monty, Nick explained that his mother's cancer battle had inspired him to sign up.
"It is such a great cause and it's raising awareness more than anything for cancer," he said. "I've worked a lot this year with breast cancer charities because my mum has been through breast cancer.
"I’ve been working with CoppaFeel and I went on a 100-kilometre trek back in June. So yeah, for The Real Full Monty, I'm really excited."
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Coronation Street stars Sherrie Hewson and Victoria Ekanoye, TOWIE stars Gemma Collins and Pete Wicks, Dancing on Ice pro skater Vanessa Bauer, and many more celebrities will be taking part in The Real Full Monty.
"It's been a really, really fun rehearsal period," Nick enthused. "The cast are amazing and so fun."
While ITV has not yet confirmed an official release date for The Real Full Monty 2023, the broadcaster has said viewers can expect it to arrive on screens around the festive period.
Nick/Ella's fitness programme, FITTI, is out on September 18th. For more details, visit www.fittiplan.com.
RuPaul's Drag Race UK airs on BBC Three in the UK and streams on WOW Presents Plus in the US.
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