s RuPaul Drag Race co-star Crystal has opened up about her shock and heartbreak at the drag queen’s untimely passing on Sunday, aged just 32. “The homophobia that faced days before her death breaks my heart”, she said, adding that the amount of hate she received has “compounded the tragedy of her passing”.

In a devastating opinion piece for , Crystal called The Vivienne, real name James Lee Williams, ‘effortlessly funny, whip smart, and more confident than anyone I had ever met". And of her death on January 5, she said, “It has shocked me. Losing a friend so young is a real gut-punch – it doesn’t feel real. But the shock and sadness is heightened because I know her final days were spent on the receiving end of abuse and homophobia.:

The Canadian-British performer added that the star, who in a national tour of Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, was ‘at the top of their game’ in terms of their theatre, TV, comedy and music career - but added that, after they starred on a special Day episode of Blankety Blank, received on the show from ‘the usual suspects’.

Though Crystal pointed out that she was not drawing a connection between the online bullying and The Vivienne’s death, she was at pains to point out how ‘incredibly sad’ it made her. "The pile-on Viv received points to a dangerous trend in recent years of the mask slipping, and the public feeling more emboldened to shame queer people simply for being themselves.”

Crystal also opened up fondly about her first ever time she saw The Vivienne, in 2019, on, saying they looked like they’d be doing this ‘all their lives’ and admitting she was ‘a little in awe’.

Adding that the late star taught her everything from make-up tips to how to bring out your inner confidence, she ended by saying poignantly: “We do not need to know the details of The Vivienne’s death to know that a queer person has died far too young – and that is an occurrence with which our community is all too familiar.”

She concluded: “Maybe seeing a drag artist on TV is pointless to you, but it could be huge for a young queer person who doesn’t yet feel pride in themselves. Again, we don’t need to know the circumstances of The Vivienne’s death, to find it absolutely heartbreaking that she received so much hate leading up to it.”