My dad. He is just an example of somebody that you can't understand how anybody could not love their child for who they are, Like, Yeah, my dad is definitely that person. He's a superhero, he really is.
Hello and welcome to separate bathrooms.
We would like to acknowledge the Gadigor people of the Eora nation, the traditional custodians of this land, and pay our respects to the elders.
Both past and present. I'm Cam Daddo, I'm Ali Daddow. Are you ready for this?
I am Yeah. Pnaconda Hanakonda and you heard it correct with a huh.
Hannakonda has been dazzling audiences around the globe for over fifteen years.
She was recently runner up on.
The critically acclaimed BBC series RuPaul's Drag Race UK versus.
Of the World. Hannah was representing Australia, that's.
Right, on a global scale, competing against queens from across the world. This was all possible, of course, due to her impeccable showing on the stand original series RuPaul's Drag Race down Under season two, where Hannah was also a runner up.
Yeah, but she's a winner in our She absolutely is so a little about Hannah. After conquering the Perth drag scene, she took a leap of faith across the nullibre to make her sparkly mark in the big Smoke of Sydney.
It's kind of like a reverse.
Priscilla. Yeah, that's right. Yeah.
She's the only queen to ever win both the Rising Star and the Entertainer of the Year at the Drag Industry Variety Awards.
In the same year.
Hannah has produced and performed shows at prominent venues all across Australia and now globally, of course, recently dazzling audiences in the UK, the USA and the Philippines.
She's got an undying love of the art of drag and she it's just seen her flourish into a starlet like no other.
I love that there's no stopping this magical.
Queen as she continues to extend her reign onto more stages and of course into more hearts, and I have a feeling she's going to step into your heart as well.
Welcome to the bathroom, Hannah Conda.
Welcome to the bathroom, Hannah Conder.
Yeah, thank you for having that. I'm so excad to be in your bathroom, like my legs, so they are sexy, sexy legs.
His legs have been in heels before when you did the Rocky Horpe ITTU show.
Oh my god, yes you have to wear in fact, I might actually repost that on my Instagram.
Someone said, what do you do in your dressing room? And there as me in my high heels and fish nets feeling.
But they're good. It's just like it's like a nice exercise as well for the legs, like you, you know, because you're like when I'm wearing heels, I'm in them sometimes fourteen hours, so you kind of get your calves going and it's all everything aches and hurts. You don't want to see the dogs, honestly, they are disgusting.
You are probably more comfortable, and you could probably run in heels better than I could walk in heels. I'd imagine you're probably in the more than I am.
Yes, yeah, I can. I can. I've had a lot of practice running in heels. Plus we also have to like we're dancing in them as well. And where when I, you know, started doing drag, I was always told we had to wear the big clear stripper heels, and that's what we trained in for dancing and they're like six or seven inches and they're with a mandatory shoe for drag dancing.
Good god.
Yeah.
So they've got a platform at the front.
Yeh, yeah, they've got a big platform at the front. And then then but they're all clear. They look awful and look like I called them the nutbag like peanut bag or nutbag shoes because your toes and stockings, like they look so gross hanging out at the end of a.
Plastic class shoes like sort of dried stuff.
Yeah, yeah, gross, And it's like I hate them, but they were what you had to wear. And I ate shit so many times. Oh can I swear by the way.
Yes, okay, we're the toilet mate.
Yeah, okay, good Where all the fun things happen.
There's a lot of shit that happened the beginning of your of your story and connection to drag.
How did you get into it? Where did you discover it?
So? I, well, was it? Actually? When I think about this quite often, because you know, I've been doing drag professionally now for about fifteen years, and I started in Perth and but then I but I actually probably dabbled when I was like a teenager in high school. I went to an all boys Catholic school and we did like a play. It was The Lord of the Rings in fifteen minutes, okay, and I played Gladriel.
Thank God.
So yeah, which hello? And I remember my mom and I we went to an op shop and we bought like this white nightgown and this like you know, blonde wig. And then I had these soccer balls that my dad got from a Rod Stewart concert, because you know how Rod Stewart kicks out the soccer balls in the concert. Yeah, my dad's got like a ton. My dad's a Rod Stewart super fan. Like he used to write for the Smile of magazine and stuff like it's wild. My dad is camp. I love it. But anyway, I use these
soccer balls as my boobs. And so I was fifteen and like I was, you know, dressing up and doing I did Gladriel starring role. We'll look into the mirror, what do you see? Like it was quite camp, you know, I was like I always wanted to eat Cate Blanchett. But then I dressed up with you know, a kid. I loved dressing up. I had a purple afro wig and like little clip clop you know, those plastic two dollars shop heels.
Yeah, we called them.
Yeah, yeah, we called them the clip clup shoes.
Yeah.
So I had them as a kid. So, you know, I've always dabbled in the art of dressing up, but I only just cemented it when I turned eighteen and I started going out and sort of became friends with a little gay that had just started doing drag. And then when you become friends with someone that starts doing drag, you become their bitch. And so I was carrying the bags around. Yeah, yeah, carrying the I was the drag bitch.
So I was carrying their bags and you know, coming to all the shows and standing at the front of any props come off, I'd be grabbing them. And then and their name was Ruby, and they were like, you should give drag a go. And I was like, oh, nah, too gay for me, not for me. I don't really want to do that. And she's like, no, but you did theater and stuff like you would have fun. So I said one night, I'll do it one night only
at the Court's Amateur drag Night on a Wednesday night. Now, was this in w i Wa at the court in Perth. So I was like, all right, I'll do it one night. So she put me into drag and went up there and I did my first number. I did wear My Kiss by the Sugar Babes. It's an album track from their thing. But I did the number wear My Kiss because I wanted to tell a guy that I liked him and he was front row of the show. So when it said where my Kiss, I went up and I kissed him on the cheek.
Yeah.
Yeah, And I was for him and he was like standing there like and I was like, it didn't work out. It didn't work out. You know, it did not work out. No, he was like, no, he was he was a he was a player, he was he was just a tease. He liked the attention and anyway, I just you know, that didn't work out, But the drag did. I just fell in love with it and kind of like and
it's like an addiction, to be honest. You know, you start like you buy one thing and then you're buying make up, and then you got two wigs and three wigs, and you know it was all under my bed in a plastic tub.
And then hiding there or it.
Was hiding there for a little bit. Yeah, just because I was like, I didn't like, I didn't really know how my parents would take it, and so they didn't care. I was a homo like that did not matter at all, but they I thought the dragon might be pushing it and anyway, kind of like the more I fell in love with it and I started realizing there was ways to make money out of it, I was like, oh, maybe I want to do this like and explore it.
So I spoke to my parents about it, and you know, they said, we don't really understand it, but we'll give you a year. If you maintain your retail job and you're paying you know, paying your way, and you start earning money from it, you know, we will support you.
And I did it. In six months. I was working and you know, started doing shows, and my mom and dad really sort of understood it when they came and soare a show, right, And so I invited them to come along and then they're like, oh wow, this is like we didn't get it, but now we at it and we love it. And now you know, fifteen years on, they will come to any show that they can. When they're here, they love it. Yeah, my grandparents come along. Yeah,
it's nice. I'm very very lucky, you know. I know I'm in a rare camp that I have a great supportive network. But yeah, I didn't tell my grandma for a while. My grandma and my pop. I didn't tell them because I didn't want to kill them, right, and my mom and dad weren't sure how it was going
to go. And so just before I moved to Sydney, and i'd been doing Dragon about four years, five years by this point, and I was just about to move to Sydney, and I told my Nan and I did a little PowerPoint presentation on the computer with photos and you know, so they could see it. And my Nan the one thing she said that was negative was I looked fat in address. Thanks Nan. She wasn't lying, but it was that. And then she was just disappointed in
me because she wanted to come to the shows. I deprived her of five years of being able to Oh you know. Yeah, so it really made me think as well, Like, you know, I always give people a chance. Now, like you never know how someone is going to react, and the only way you can know that is if you give them the chance. It might be negative and it might not go the way you want it to, but I would rather them have the decision.
You know, people often surprise you, don't they do They oft you make up your mind about what they're going to do.
I like that that. I remember when we were living in.
The States, friends of ours would often say friends of mine would often not invite me out when they were going out to do.
So, like, oh, you won't like it.
One day I picked up one of them, I'll go, what's going on? Why don't you ask me? Oh, you wouldn't like it. We'll give me the chance.
Yeah, get a chance to say no, but at least tell me, you know, because I'm feeling like really excluded.
Yeah. And it's that rejection feeling as well, because I feel like, oh, well, I'm not important enough to be in that, and that can hurt sometimes and maybe influence their decision of how they feel about something.
Yeah, that's so.
Yeah, it was a very interesting life lesson that moment that I told my grandparents.
Did they help you? Did mom and dad help you come up with your stage name? Or was that all you?
That was all me? So it was well, actually it was a drunk irish man. Have you been to Perth.
Yes, Cam spent a lot more time. I've only been there briefly.
But you have been happened there.
Yeah. So so there's two gay bars in Perth. It's the Court and then there's Connections and they're in north Bridge.
Yeah yeah, so making a connection all the.
Time, Pats. It's the best place to make connections. But there's the Arts Precinct that runs in between and you have to walk from the Court to Connections. It was the migration every Wednesday night. You'd start at the amateur Dragon Night and then you'd walk down to Connections for what was happening on a Wednesday night. Then was the lesbian mud wrestling right.
It was there too.
Ah, the most iconic of it. I'm so devastated it's gone. It was just all the incredible lesbians getting their kid off and wrestling in pools of mud for money. Wild. I loved it, So you got So that was the migration.
And so before I did Drag, we were walking down doing our regular Wednesday night migration and this drunk Irish man just stumbled up to me my friends and he's just like, you're an anaconda, and I was like what, so confused, no context, just a very random comment, and we all, being a little bit drunk in eighteen, thought it was really funny that night, so we just kept calling me that. I kept calling me that for the
whole night. And then when the idea of drag came around, I was given the name Rosy Cheeks, but with an exit the end. It just didn't feel right. That's yeah, it is cute. And it came out the fact that I got when I got drunk, I used to get Rosasa in my cheeks, you know, so I'd have these big rosy cheeks. And I was like, it feels a little bit hurtful, to be honest. So I was like, why can't I be like at a conduct like the guy called me And they're like, oh, yeah, that's pretty good.
There's no Anna, and I was like, actually, I don't want to be Anna. I want to be Hannah because I just I don't know, I just felt I don't know, I just felt right, and it just stuck. And yeah, I've been had a conda the whole time.
Yeah, fantastic.
Yeah, And does Hannah does.
Hannah's well Hannah's costumes, because clearly you're not in Hannah Hannah's costumes.
I a beautiful, glamorous woman on the game.
Yeah, is there snake skin part of this?
But it was there was a lot of that because I was quite goffy drag queen when I started, Yeah, like dark hair, and I had I did have snake skin. I did a whole photo ship with snakes actually, you know, really playing into that snake sort of theme. But then as I got older, I just became this like blonde, fairy princess kind of looking thing. I don't know, it's
the complete opposite. And snakes and darkness enter it every now and then, but now it's just very colorful and broad and bright, and yeah, I don't want to ever box myself.
You don't have to.
I've heard you have a great asp.
Oh you can't, did you know what? And look? Then another reason that I kind of chose Hannah condat was that it's French. Yeah for Big Snake, don't google it.
Just trust me.
Your partner's not here today. Tell me what his name is, Jack, Jack Jack. We do want to talk a little bit about we got it.
It's about several relationships. It is. Yeah, we've got to talk about and Hannah Jack Hannah Jack Hannah. I know, I know, it's as wild talking and I.
Meet him as Hannah or how when did you meet?
Yeah, so he was. I met Jack in Sydney. He's from England, He's from Newcastles, a Jordie and we've been together now seven years. I believe it's bordering like Vergin on eight. And he was working at the midnight shift on Oxford Street. I was a bartender and I was doing shows and one of the glassy years after the show was like, oh, there's a British bartender downstairs and he's got a crush on you. And at the time
there was three of them. And I was going through what I call my hoe face when I moved to Sydney. So I was, you know, sampling all the wares and so I went I was like, oh right, well I'll go figure out which one has the crush on me. So yeah, so it was like a mystery. I was like, oh, there's three of them, let's see. It's like yeah, yeah, which man behind the schooner will be revealed?
And you're off to a little visit to Queensland results up, Oh yeah for like a match, you know.
Like, so I went down and I saw him and he's tall, but oh, Jack on, there's so many innuendows with the two of us, it's a bit naughty. I love then were in the bush. Thank god, this is obviously this is perfect potty conversation without potty mouths. But he, yeah, he was there at the bar and I was like, oh hey, and just started sort of briefly chatting and we you know, I asked him to come over to my house and watch a movie because he was a
backpacker who was doing his working holiday visa. So it's like, oh, you mustn't have a DVD player. You should cut my over friend watch a movie with me. And he was like yeah, sure. So we met up and I found out that night. I was like, so, how long did you have the crush on me? And he's like, I didn't have a crush on you, and I was like, oh, so it turned out it was one of the other ones. It wasn't Jack. I just you know, I was laid eyes on Jack and I was like, all right, you'll
do the man. Yeah, And I thought it was just going to be a little fling. And I tried to make the move on the first date and he's like, oh no, no, He's like, I don't really do any of that for like ten dates. Yeah, I was like ten dates. That's a very annoying amount of date. Yes, specific number. And I just I was like, you're you're only here for like a couple of months, Like why are we waiting? Why are we messing around?
Like is his definition of a date could be could you've just dropped over for a coffee and then that's a date?
Well, yeah, well that's what I started counting because I was like every time, yeah, yeah, every time I saw him, yeah, all of it, tallying it all up, yeah and yeah. So then he we sort of started hanging out a bit and again got to like thirteen or fourteen dates, and we just had the greatest time, like just enjoying each other's company. But we knew that was kind of a time limit because he was going to Thailand and he didn't know if he was going to come back
or whatever. And got to the time that he was leaving for Thailand, and I was all emotional. I was like, oh my god, you can't leave. I'm like, you know, and he's like, well, we'll see what happens if it's meant to be. It's meant to be. He goes away to Thailand, he's meant to be there for a couple of months, and I we were chatting on the phone and then we'd schedule like a couple of face times
and whatnot. It was one day that we were meant to do a FaceTime call and he wasn't replying to me, and it was maybe thirteen fourteen hours and I was like, oh, he hates me. It's all over. It's done. He's run off with someone in Thailand and it's all over. And the next thing, I get a text message and it's a photo of his suitcases out the front of not my apartment, but the apartment building up the road that he just forgot my apartment was, but the sentiment was
there and he had come back close. Yeah, so close. Yeah, so yeah. So I run downstairs. I'm like, oh my god, you know, and he's there with his bags and he moved in. And that was kind of like three months into like the whole experience. Yeah, it was very quick, you know, moving of the relationship because you know, we'd obviously both started that it was something we valued and wanted and you know, being him him being from the UK, we had to work out like visas and all of that.
So we yeah, with three months of sort of seeing each other with a couple of weeks of him being in Thailand, and then he came back and we registered as a de facto couple and got into like we moved in together. We just went gung ho into it because.
It's what a great decision by Jack.
Yeah, marriage something or is it you happy with the way things.
We're pretty comfortable to be fair, like being de facto and like registering your relationship is.
Kind very much.
Yeah, I'm not like a massive fan of weddings and marriages just because I've been you know, we're doing drag. You do a lot of Hen's nights and you see the other side. Yeah, And I'm like, oh, I want to spend money on this, Like I don't want to, Like I would love to. I could have loped. But you know, we could do a wedding if we go down to the thing, down to the registry office and you know, do that. I'm not like gearing up for a big wedding or anything like that. But then Jack
surprised me. He said, if we do get married, he wants to have a bit of a party, and I was like, that's weird. I don't want any of that at all. But yeah, it's just not been something we've been urgently thinking about. We're pretty content with how it's all running.
And is Jack content? Well? Is does he get into drag as well?
Oh my god, absolutely not. I put him there's only ready for one of us.
But he ever dressed him up?
Yeah, I did it once. I put him in drag once. Yeah, and he actually looked really beautiful, So that's kind of why I don't want it to happen. But in competition, yeah, yeah, but he would be a terrible dancer. He's very tall and lanky, and I've taught him how to have a bit of rhythm now so he can clap along to a beat and whatnot. But I just don't think the performing will be the strongest.
So that's that's part of it. Like, you can, but he can get dressed up, just don't perform.
Jack, Yeah, but I don't want. But the only way he get dressed up is if I do it for him. And I barely like getting myself into drag anymore, let alone doing it for someone else, So why is that, you know, Like now it's just like for me, it's you know, work, and like like there used to be a time where I love getting into drag and going out for fun, but now I'm like, once i'm in, I consider myself in drag like a like a car
park meter. You know, you put the money in and I will do the job, and once the meter's run out, I'm done and I'm out. Like and you know, and if they want to top it up, and they want to, you know, throw a few, you know, more bucks in the meter. I'll stay longer at your party and I'll do whatever you want. But if there's no money there anymore, I'm out.
How big is your makeup kit?
It's now desk, a desk, It's a full thing. And yeah big, yeah, I've got like tons of makeup and then half of that I don't even like touch you. Like we're creatures of habit drag queens and we use the same things over and over again, will buy everything because we love it. But then you end up sticking with the things that you know work.
You know, women are the same.
Yeah, it's fun, it's what we do. I know, the pretty right.
And then the latest and the greatest, and then you go, I think I really like that.
I do the same with golf a tire.
It's exactly the same.
I'll buy, I'll get it.
All, and then I'll only wear three different things.
You know what golf tire is, Actually it's dragged, to be honest, it really is. You're doing drag every time you go out.
And I get it ready the night before.
You know what, You're better than drag now because we'll find whatever's on the floor and put it on.
Came will go out for dinner and just like you know, tracky back, tracky decks and a T shirt, a pair of songs.
But the golf we gotta dress up.
It's matching. So it's everything is pristine.
That's very I love that.
I feel the better, you know, the better I feel, the better I'm going to play.
Well, that's true, So I look the same drag, Yeah it is, and ru Paul said mother RuPaul. She said that she always wears suits because you dress the way that you want the world to see. Sure, and you know when you see someone in a suit, you go, oh there. She's like, they want to give you money when you're in a suit. And I think there's something to it. I just looked terrible in a suit. So that's why no one wants to give you money. They're like, go away. But when I'm in drag though.
So you had two runs on is that right?
Two runs on Drag Race?
What's that experience?
Like?
It is the weirdest, most intense, beautiful thing that I've ever done.
Yeah.
The first time we did it, we filmed in New Zealand. We're like in a tin shed, like a tiny little tin shed. But it was like my first time in the world of reality TV, seeing how it's all made. And for me walking into that tin shed, it felt huge and I was like, wow, this is amazing. And you know, you start learning about the secrets of television and you know you don't want to know, you don't want to once the once you go behind the curtain,
it changes the way different it is. And I really struggle watching it now, yeah, because I know exactly what they're going through. You can see all the little bits and you're like, oh, that's there's some fiddling and some you know, treachery, yeah, and stuff, and it's but it's fascinating and I loved every experience and I realized in
doing Down Under, like it's not a competition. It is a TV show made to entertain people in the guys of being a competition, and if you do good TV and you work hard at making sure that you've got a moment, they're not going to get rid of you. You know, that's going to you know, because you make good TV. So that's what I learned. And then going back, we were in the BBC we at the what was it, what's the big studio in the UK, Pine Wood Pine, Yeah,
so we were just across from the Double O seven studio. Yeah, it was white and they were filming Snow White for Disney at the time. So we were out there in half drag, like having cities and chatting in like half drag while they're people walking around in Renaissance costumes. Like it was like fabulous and it was in the middle of winter it was freezing, but like the UK, going to that studio, I realized that our tin shed in the in New Zealand compared not even close to it.
It was like just humongous and it was it blew my mind. I nearly like dared at how big it was. But the second time I went in so much more prepared in terms of understanding what I was walking into, so you don't have that initial shock of you know, walking into a room and just having fifty cameras looking at you and going, oh my god, what do I do now? I could. I just knew what to do, and I felt more natural and I loved it, And yeah,
it was so much fun. And there was drag from all over the world, so we had like the Philippines, France, Spain, the UK, obviously, Australia, America. All this melting pot of all different types of drag and just learning about each other was just my favorite thing. I thoroughly enjoyed it.
Can I ask you a question, are there are there any if you ever met a straight guy?
There is? There's there are straight men that do drag. We've got a couple here in Sydney actually, But then there was one that was on Drag Race in the US named Mattie Morphosis. And there are Mattie Morphosis and they're a straight man that does does drag. Yeah, it's a thing like after drag is for everyone. Like I hate that sometimes our community can get a little bit
like gate keeping with it. I think the power of drag is for everyone to experience at least once, Like there is a level of just allowing yourself to just be free. That's so much fun and playing dressing up what you know, there's nothing you should be shamed about it.
And this is the.
Thing in today's day and age, with labeling and gender and everyone. I think people genuinely want to be respectful. Yeah, you know, people genuinely do so then am I crossing lines?
Is it okay?
These sort of questions and get asked often before you have that that innate response you know that I just want to do it.
Yeah, you can't do that because you're going to offend. But blah blah blah.
So so that's why, that's why I asked you that why I'm tentative with it, because it's like, is this appropriate?
I think, I'm I'm probably you know, this could be a controversial statement, but I hate the way and I
use the word hate because I hate it. I hate that these structures that people are trying to put in place make us scared of each other and scared of experiencing someone else's existence, because that makes you more more empathetic to someone else and makes you you know, like when you learn about someone's experience, it just grows you as a human because you can you can go, oh, no, you know, I understand that, And even if you didn't understand it before, now you do, and it's just an
extra layer onto you. And I just hate that we are putting all these rules and restrictions on everyone that actually isolates us from each other. Yeah, whereas you know, you should be able to play with all these things and dabble and learn about each other. And you know, the same goes with like, you know, I don't feel like if you make fun of someone's culture, that's a different thing. But if you want to genuinely learn about someone's culture, you should be able to do that with someone,
so it enriches you as a person, you know. I just feel like that. Yeah. I just don't like the fear that it's puts in people and the fact that you know, you even said, oh, I don't want to say the wrong thing. We should say the wrong thing. We should be able to have the grace to say the wrong thing. And if someone goes, hey, that's not correct, then you go, oh cool, no worries, thanks to letting me know. Yeah, And then we move on. How do
you learn if you don't make mistakes? And like it's so counterintuitive and I don't really understand how we got to that point, because you don't learn unless you make those errors in life, because then you can fix it and carry on beautifully. Shit, do you.
Feel that mainstream media in Australia is to is partially to blame for that?
Yeah?
I think I think mainstream media is because it doesn't sometimes showcase a diverse palette of stories. I think they very sometimes streamline into certain things. And like even from my experience, like after doing Drag Race, I thought we kind of get sold this idea that you get you know, pushed into the world of you know, mainstream media and whatever and you can go do other shows and you
can be invited to these things and whatever. Honestly, it's sometimes it's like Diddley Squat, we get chat on and they would rather celebrate someone from maths then like us, who you know, can bring so many different talents and skills, Like we have so many facets to drag because we've had to produce ourselves for such a long time that we could bring all these wonderful things to a show.
Or whatever, but we just never get invited. And then I was talking to an executive once that the actors and I was like, you know, I'd love to come on like I'm a celeb or do this or whatever, and Australia is not ready for that. But which I was like, are you joking? You know, because I was like, we grew up with Priscilla. You celebrate Priscilla all the time, you celebrated Dame Edna. Why why is it now we're all scared of drag? Yes, it could be controversy.
It's his response.
Oh, he was like just he just didn't care. It was he was like, on walk away from the crazy drag queen lady. But but like Australia is. I think Australia is ready. I just think they need to see it. If you're not going to see it, of course they're going to be a bit weird with it initially, but like once they humanize us and they see the person behind the drag, like they just realized we're people just getting on with life and trying to make you laugh and you know, make you happy.
You'd be good on Google Box.
I'd love to I don't have to do anything right now. To be honest, I'm separate bathrooms and live in my life.
You've reached the pinnacle.
It can only go down from here.
I was just thinking, as you're talking about footy clubs, footy.
Clubs, the community footy clubs.
Have been doing and they have the men already like we've always so, yeah, and it is and that's what it should be. That's what it should be. And it's yeah, it just becomes this whole big political thing and it doesn't need to be. And yeah, so it's been very very interesting. But I think also as well, like the second point of that is mainstream media, but also social media as well, like how social media now is a place where everybody has a place to put every single
one of their thoughts, feelings and opinions. Yes, which yeah, I get it to a degree, but I think we also need to learn the restraint and sometimes all those things need to go out into the ether. Yes, And I don't know, I don't think we can put the lid back on that now container now that's out. But so now it's just going to be. We just got
to manage it. And you realize, like honestly, the things that happen online don't really translate into real world to be honest, Like when I go to conventions like we do drag Con, which is big drag queen convention. You could be absolutely hated online, but you will have a line at your booth and people come and by your merch. So you just realize that translation. Yes, it's not that. It never it never really has real world effects. It's all just noise and avoid And I've really started to
make sure I focus on that. If things go a little bit haywire online, it doesn't like that doesn't mean anything. This does not mean anything. This can get turned off. What happens the best. The only thing that matters is interactions like this. We're in a room together, we're talking to people like that's the stuff that matters, you know, well said, well, thank you. I'm just a wise old hour.
We have a quote here from your dad.
Oh yes, and I love this and it.
Was in a response to a really shitty article and hateful woman.
I remember her.
Do you want to read it? Honey?
Yeah?
Oh my.
Of it.
It's so beautiful.
Because this is going to I think because we have a son, River who's been dressing in well he hasn't he hasn't kept up kept with her, but he certainly for all of his boyhood he dressed as princesses and loves and so I think this is going to hit me.
So I don't know if I can read it, because I haven't ready it. No, I'm going to take a big, deep Breathay, why not?
Okay, Yeah, this is okay.
My son is Hannahconda, a drag queen, and a very good one at that. He is a beautiful human being who has dedicated much of his life to his craft, his family, and above all, his community. I too, will do whatever it takes political posting mama to protect my children. But my job as a parent is to give them a good grounding in their life and to be supportive of their endeavors, to lead by example guide them to
becoming good citizens in our wider community. I have seen firsthand and way too often, the terrible sadness that exists with young people who are not accepted by their own families because they are merely gay. If you really want to make a difference in the world we live in, start by being a nice person.
Oh that's your dad, that's your dad, Dad, he is he is like he I have said it before. He's my like he is my my, my hero. Both my mum and my dad are very very called them new age. We we'd like when we grew up, we did like reiki, we did hands on healing as a family. You know, we've always been like like things were going wrong with like mental health or whatever, we'd be like therapy was
a big thing too. We're a very open family. We talk about a lot of stuff and I think that sometimes gets Jack a little bit because I'm a talker. I'm an open book and we and like our family is very very open and like Jack sometimes goes, oh my god, just you know, this is a lot of feelings.
He's also British.
It is also Yeah, they're very reserved and they don't really do that. But my dad, he he is just an example of somebody that you know, can't understand how anybody could not love their child for who they are. Like they take us where they guide us and that and that's the fundamental lesson he's always taught us is that we just we pay our taxes and we be good people. Like that is it? You know, he said you could have nothing, but as long as you smile and be a good person. That's all I want from
my children. And I think that's a really important lesson and something.
What else is there?
You know, like people want to work and be around nice people and that are easy to easy to be around. And my dad is definitely that person. He's Yeah, he's a superhero, he really is. When he wrote that as well, like it just I didn't know he was doing that, and oh just melted my heart because I was. I wasn't because in drag you over the years, there's been so many things staring us, but we get a thick skin,
like we've very thick skin. So even though that, you know, because I was getting death threats, so I was getting all these horrible things sent to me, and I just didn't let it face me because you just carry on.
Yeah.
But my dad he was like, no, I'm not standing for this because he has seen when he's come to the bars, how many kids deserted by their family and they become like surrogate parents. Yeah, and they sit there and they talk and they have all these like you know, kids all around them, just sitting and enjoying and they love it. There's a photo of them that goes on their on their TV at home with them and they're like, oh,
there are leather daddy friends that they've met. There's just these old older couple that live in Sydney and there their the leather daddies. We love our leather daddy friends. Yeah, but they just you know nothing, And I feel like that's very similar to the two of you. It's like, I think your essence is very much the same as what my parents are, and you know, you just take people where they're at and just yeah, you know who's
just being a good person. And you both do that, and I feel like you'd get along with my mom.
And I love that already.
Yeah, they're fun, They're real fun.
I always I think I think the first time I saw this was in America. I think I'm sure it happens here too. But when they would do when they were there was some like gay run or something through West Hollywood. There was a gay marathon, and there was this mum who would she was like free.
Free mom, hugs. Yes, I'm like I want to be there yet takes with you.
It was so hot. I'm like, come to me. I will absolutely. I just think it's such a beautiful thing.
No, it's just just such a kind gesture and it changes someone's day and experience, and like just so simple kindnesses that I think we sometimes forget just a smile at someone. You know, it's weird. Sometimes some people don't know how to take it and they go, oh my god, what are you why are you looking at me?
But yeah, you know something about the drag community that people might not realize.
I think that people like you know, because I think it gets politicized a lot. Now, yes, there's probably a lot of things, but this is the one that I feel like I want to focus on. I think it gets politicized a lot, you know, with the drag queens, story time and yeah, you know all of that, and they, like conservatives will look at that like we're trying to indoctrinate children into the gay gender and all that. I was like, I never got indoctrinated. I went to an
all boys Catholic school at me. Now, hey, come on, like that. There was no drag wuens around when I was a kid, But like I wish there was, because you know, I don't know, just so encourages that level of being able to play and dress up and use your imagination, which I do get scared for young kids these days, when they're so ingrained in like technology and everything. That idea of just being able to mold something out of the things in front of you and play how
important that is. And I think drag keeps that alive a little bit. And the idea of exploring like different colors and shapes and textures and like, it's it's it's a it's it's fabulous way to like expand your mind. So you know, we get this. You know, we're trying to groom kids and we're pedophiles and all of this. We get told this all the time by conservative media, whereas reality is it's never that we're very much dressed appropriately. If we're doing a drag story time, I'm not going
to go in pair of hooker boots and whatever. I'm going in a big princess gown and looking like Elsa, you know what I mean, Like, we know what we're doing, but I just forge I think people forget that while it's political, sometimes the most political thing you can do is to laugh and ensure yourself because that is a reprieve from the madness of the world, and that recharges your batteries to then go out and do the hard stuff, because you can't be stuck in that all the time
in the like you know, the activism and the wallowing and realizing the world is not the greatest at the moment. But you know, but there are pockets of fun and that's what like. Even like, I was watching a documentary on like, uh it was baking the in World War Two and yeah, yeah, but my like, it was about how they would cook and do baking in like in the bunkers and at Christmas, and they did a big Christmas dinner in like it was a modern show, but they went back to show you how they would do it.
So they took a whole family down into a World War two bunker in England and they will cooked this Christmas dinner and they put made decorations and they made little presents and it was an it was an experience for everyone that was there. And that they said that the most important thing was that even though the war was raging above them, here it's Christmas and we're having a break to celebrate each other and just be fun.
And that just sticks with me. I was like, well, it's true, you know, even in the darkest of times, those reprieves are what keeps us going absolutely, you know, and I think, yeah, we forget that that's sometimes a bit important. So the fun part of drag, you know, and that reprieve from the noise and laughing and just you know, making fun of the world. I suppose it's quite powerful.
I have a dear friend who is she's the CEO of a domestic violence charity, Rise Up, and she deals in, you know, in victims and survivor stories day in and day out. Here's the most horrific stories. She is the funniest, most joyful person.
I know.
That's how she keeps going because if you weren't. I feel like if she wasn't, it would.
Be she would be so depressed and like how would she get out of bed? But she's absolutely hysterically.
Funny and just got a smile on her face and so joyful, and it's like, see, only I can get through baby.
She calls me back, babe. But you know it's plus also probably helps the people that she's seeing to go, oh, this is the nice how you can feel the energy, so you know, it's yeah, I think there's just power in that. Sometimes we all need balance, Oh, you do?
You need balance.
It's good to be serious sometimes it's good to be earnest and passionate about things. And yeah, at the same time, it really helps to be frivolous or the antithesis of that.
And just go go out and just be silly.
You can take you can take what you do seriously, but you don't need to take yourself seriously. There you go, look at you.
We're going to start making bumper stickers from the stuff.
I felt like I want to do like a little book of just saying I'm gonna have to go back and be like, listen to what I've said, beautif.
Do you make goals?
Do you do you set yourself out like time goals and things that you want to achieve?
Yeah? No, I do, like I have Like I yeah, I do have goals of certain things that I want to achieve. But then I like to just see sometimes where it takes me. I enjoy sometimes and sometimes maybe not to my benefit, and I end up going, oh my god, I've got to work this week. What am I kill me? But you know, I do have the big goals, but the in between stuff, I like to see what happens because it's you know, it creates a spicy life that you never know. You know, you never
know what's around the corner. And some of the best things that I've ever experienced have been you know, surprises. They're just pupped up, you know. But I'm very much a believer and like trust the process, and I trust that I'm on the path, you know. And I and I a good gut, so I know when I actually don't have a good girl got ibs, but I've got a good gut. I've got a good yeah.
Right, that'll help you.
But I've got yeah, I trust, I trust it and if I know, like I know when something's right, and I know when something's a bit off. If you just think, if i'd like meet someone and I don't really trust what they're saying, it's weird. My shoulder goes, isn't that interesting? It just like pops up. And so like when I've been around people that I'm like, oh, you're telling stories, it just goes like that.
And then I think myself like this, yeah, yeah, yeah.
Oh I don't like you. It's be careful you.
Because you're protecting your heart.
Yeah, you're actually creating a barrier. Yeah, because you did your other hand over your heart. Yes, the body never lies, No it doesn't. Yeah, trust it, Yeah, trust it.
So five years down the track, yeah.
Well my goal, I would really love to move to the UK really. Yeah, Like after doing the UK Drag Race, I fell in love with it and Jack's got his family there. Yeah, they're in Newcastle. I don't want to live in Newcastle. I love Newcastle. I couldn't live there. I'd like to live around like, you know, not even in London, but on the outskirts of London. I could go a little bit like regional. But I just love it. It just melts my heart in the UK and I
would love to live there. I'd love to do more sort of TV stuff and panel shows and comedy and you know, I like to dip my finger in every part that I can. I'm not one to say no to something. I'll try anything. So yeah, my goal is just to keep working away and sort of building the profile of what Hannah is and just making people laugh and have a good time and smile. You know, that's my goal. That's my job, you know. And I think I've really invested too deeply into this, so I can't
really go back you know, don't put too much into it. Now, I'm like, what else can I do? Yeah?
Mecca and Sophora have benefited greatly.
Oh they really have. You know, when you're realize you're committed too hard to something, you're like, oh god, yeah, well put all the eggs in this basket.
Great? Would that be putting up on a vision board? There you are advertising for Mecca?
Oh that was great?
Right, looks too.
Yeah, Mecca, if you're listening for you're listening, I don't know. I'm an equal opportunitist make up by studio to yours. Yeah.
What's been the most empowering part of your drag journey?
I do think it is when you, like, when I've been able to start traveling more with with drag post Drag race, you realize like sometimes it's a bit trauma dumpy. The people that you come to meet, they like, go, oh my god, You've saved my life, and it can
get it can get a lot. But then at the same time that is incredibly special, like knowing that I've been able to go into somebody's house on TV for you know, an hour each week and that's made such an impact as someone that they've decided to make changes to their life and live a better life or whatever, or just even the fact that I just brought them a bit of joy. That's really special because you don't
you don't sometimes realize the impact you have. Yeah, you know, even with smaller platforms, even when I was just the local entertainer and Sydney working on Oxford Street, like the same thing would happen. Someone go, I love that show. That number that you did really made me happy. And that's when you realize the effects we have on other people around us. And sometimes we may not know it because not everyone will come up and tell you, but the ones that do showcase that we are doing that.
And I think that's the most profound, you know impact. And it was also actually sorry to I've just had another brain way. There was one time and there was I was doing a I think it was a birthday or a Christmas party just in the city, and I walked in and there was this gentleman. I've told the story before, but it's always gets me that I walked in. There was this guy he was probably like fifty, maybe like late mid to late fifties, and I walked up and he was like, oh, don't talk to me. Don't
talk to me. And I was like, no worries. It's like I used to bash fags like you in the eighties. And I was like, Okay, all good, no worries. I'm going to leave you to it. I'm not gonna I'm not that person to push someone like that. I was like, I don't like what you've said. I think that's really horrible and you probably should be, you know, investigated for this, but fundamentally, I'm just going to leave you be. So
I go around do my job. I'm entertaining people, like I was on the mic, did a couple of numbers and he comes up to me at the end and I get a tap on the shoulder and I turn around it's him, and I was like, oh god, what's going to happen now? And he's like I just want to say. I say I'm sorry for what I said before, and he's like, I can't take back what I've done.
But just seeing you today just made me realize that you're just like us and his and like I was like, wow, Like you've just recognized in space of an hour or two hours that we're just fellow human beings. Trying to get on with it, and you know, you've probably realized, you know, thirty years of hate that you've harbored in your heart for a group that you have no idea about, was just wasting away your time.
That's exactly right.
And you know, yeah, obviously very problematic what he said and what he did, but I don't know that lesson that he learned on that day. I'm hoping he's carried forward and continued on, but just knowing that you can change someone's minds by just being around, yeah, and just doing your doing you. Yeah, it's pretty cool.
And that's and that's to your point.
Like the more we see in mainstream media, it just takes away this idea it's us and them.
It's like we're all wanted together.
And some of us in our community, I get weirded out by I'm like, I don't get you, but not for me, Like, you know, I'm not going to poop on your braid. Weird exactly the people that all the time, but we just you know, I just I don't want to, you know, I just again live life as a good person and you don't need to go and you know, poop on someone's doormat just because you don't like it. Yeah, exactly, there's another one for the book.
Thank you so much for the time today. It's wonderful to have.
You right back at you, and it's been so nice and like I said, like you give me the aree of my parents. It's been just like I think you'd get along with them so well. And I wish they I wish you could meet my mom and dad because I think I think we'd all have a very gay time. I love it. Yeah, we'll get there.
Who are the leather dudes?
O the leather Daddyes, yeah, yeah, I can find them. Yeah. Yeah, Well we'll have our own little Mardi growing here.
We'll do a little heart to your mom and dad. I'm sure they're listening.
Hi, mom and dad and everyone else who's listening to my brother Tim? This is Amy High. Thank you so much for angels. Thanks for having me in your bathroom.
You are welcome.
Can I can I flush now? Wish?
Oh my gosh, what and wonderful human. I love love him.
As he was leaving just then, I forgot to ask you how many wigs you have?
Over to hundred wigs?
Yeah?
Wow?
Yeah?
Do you have two hundred of anything at books.
I know that two hundred books. That's the only thing I held to.
Two hundred of yeah, over two hundred. Yeah, nothing else, nothing else.
His desire to pass along joy and fun.
Is so significant. Yeah, I just love how he just that's it.
You give you a respite from all the absolute gloom.
You know, we need more, We need more Hannah's in the world. Yeah, we really do. I'm sure Jack is just as delightful as well. I don't want him to move to the UK.
I want him to stay in Australia and keep bringing joy to people in this country.
Acture, we would come back for tours and lucky, lucky, the Internet has flattened the world out, so you.
Can really do that and you'd still think he was here.
He was still here, that's right. Anyway.
Look, we so hope you enjoyed Hannah Conder and that conversation we think he was is just a delight Thanks so much for listening.
Until next time. Bye,