Hundreds of fans post goodwill messages after announcement
After more than 50 years of glamour and glitz, Bobby Mandrell has cast aside the false eyelashes and feather boas. Bobby is the stage name of drag artist Ray Millington, who announced his retirement “with immediate effect”.
The news sparked hundreds of comments on the Bobby Mandrell Facebook page. A recent post there was headed “special announcement”.
It went on to say: “Hello my little loves, I just wanted to do a quick post to keep you all up to date and to stop any rumours and speculation.
“It is with regret that I have retired from performing with immediate effect. After over 50 wonderful years, the time had come for me to hang up the boobs and gowns, and take off the eyelashes.
“This is due to personal reasons, and I am glad to say that I am in reasonably good health, so please don’t worry. I owe a debt of gratitude to you all, the support and love you have all given to me over the years, and of course the laughter.
“Now the time has come for me to enjoy a well-earned retirement. With love Bobby xxxx.”
A flurry of responses included one that said: “Aww, have a lovely retirement love, you deserve it… I remember you from Schooner days years back.”
Another reply read: “You’ll always be the Queen of Hessle Rd, you do what feels right for [you]. You can always pop out of retirement now and then when Bobby needs to get out for an hour.”
One fan said: “You have given the people of Hull and beyond so much joy. You have earned your retirement, now time for you to enjoy it.”
A further reply said: “THANK YOU for the last 45 years that I have seen you at various places, the laughter and the iconic outfits.” Many more spoke of the “legend” that was Bobby, the “best in the business” and his “well-earned” retirement.
One person responded: “You’re a class act….thank you for your contributions to charities and decades of entertainment in this great city and beyond. You are part of our story and always will be.”
Ray spoke to the Hull Daily Mail’s James Campbell in 2023 when, although semi-retired and in remission from cancer, he was celebrating an incredible 50 years of his drag act. He told how he grew up among the hardened fishermen of Hessle Road, but knew he was different to the other lads in his street.
When he put on a dress at a friend’s party and pranced around the living room, his audience was in hysterics. It is where his addiction to dressing up first began, and it did not take long before he was asked to step into the spotlight.
He created his alter ego, Bobby Mandrell, from a combination of Bob Monkhouse and singer Barbara Mandrell. He recalled the early days as Bobby in the Vauxhall pub.
He said: “I never felt frightened. I remember when I was at the Vauxhall, there were a lot of fishermen and one guy grabbed me by the ankles and the landlady took off one of my shoes and whacked him with it.”
He also spoke about his sadness over the death of Paul O’Grady, who brought drag into the mainstream, and who knew Ray personally. “I was pals with Paul before he even became Lily Savage,” he says. “We crossed paths many times over the years.”
During his drag career, Ray had amassed over 500 dresses, 400 pairs of shoes and 250 wigs, spending a total of about £200k on his costumes. He travelled the world, doing shows for the crew when he was in the Merchant Navy, and worked with the likes of Cilla Black, comedian Jimmy Cricket and Roy Chubby Brown.
Ray preferred the comedy side of drag, changing the gags for each performance. “Putting a smile of people’s faces is what it is all about, not just looking the part,” he said.
“What I love about what I do is the audience. If you can make people laugh for five minutes then you have achieved something.”
The only song he never dropped, because of its popularity, was ‘I Am What I Am’, which has become a gay anthem. “I have been booed, had ashtrays thrown at me, but you just carry on,” he said.
“Some people say nasty things, but those things do not stick in my mind. There have been far more good experiences than bad.”