[Source: BBC]

Drag queen Trixie Mattel will be taking a break from work after “struggling” for more than a year.

Trixie became a world-renowned star after first appearing on Ru Paul’s Drag Race in 2015.

Since then, the queen returned for the All Stars version and as host of the spin-off show The Pit Stop, as well as running a YouTube channel and make-up business.

Trixie told fans in a video that all the work was “not sustainable” and there would be “a hiatus” for at least three months.

“I need a complete reboot,” says Trixie, who uses she/her pronouns in drag and he/him when not performing.

It was a rare video where Trixie, real name Brian Firkus, was out of drag.

Brian says he’d been working himself to “death” as Trixie and had become ill from stress.

It got to a point where he “struggled to enjoy” drag, which “I feel weird complaining about because all my wildest dreams came true”.

Brian grew up in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and has previously shared his experience of growing up in poverty.

As well as Drag Race, Trixie is well known for working with drag queen Katya Zamolodchikova – the pair often perform together and also have a Netflix series and online show UNHhhh.

Since 2022 Trixie’s also had her own show on Discovery+, Trixie Motel, which follows the drag queen as she renovates a motel in California.

Brian told fans: “I love doing all my little jobs” like Trixie but has realized “it’s a good thing to have boundaries”.

Brian says he’ll be visiting friends and family and will also be taking a break from social media.