The best friend of James Lee Williams, better known as Drag Race UK winner The Vivienne, has told an inquest they “don’t want drugs to define who James was as a person”.
James Lee Williams, who won the first series of Ru Paul’s Drag Race UK performing as their alter-ego in 2019, died in the bath at their home near Chester on 5 January this year.
Giving evidence at Cheshire Coroner’s Court in Warrington, Bobby Musker told the court how he had last spoken to the drag performer via video call on the night of January 3.
Senior Coroner Jacqueline Devonish recorded a conclusion of death by misadventure after the court heard Williams had suffered a cardiac arrest brought on by a ketamine overdose.
Williams, who went by they/them and he/him pronouns, had spoken about their addiction struggles on an episode of Ru Paul’s Drag Race – which his father Lee Williams told the court was the first their family had known about it.
However he believed they had been successful staying sober, and their immediate family were unaware that they had relapsed.
Mr Williams told the court: “He was just an outgoing character full-of-life.
“He just wanted to give people laughs and help them on the way, and I think in a way he achieved that.”
The court had heard Williams appeared to have been dead since the evening of Friday January 3, when they had last spoken to their father and best friend of 16 years Bobby Musker.
The 32-year-old star’s body was found by their neighbour Janine Godbold, who sobbed in court as she recalled how they “looked like they were sleeping”.