Sister of The Vivienne to honour legacy by helping others

Chanel Williams, sister of The Vivienne, has spoken about honouring her late brother’s legacy through helping other people struggling with drugs.

The Vivienne, also known as James Lee Williams, died a year ago aged 32 from misadventure after suffering cardio respiratory arrest after taking ketamine.

Since their death, Williams has been an avid campaigner and worked to raise better awareness around the dangers of the drug.

Speaking on ITV’s Good Morning Britain, Williams said:

“It’s really hard to come to terms with a loss that’s so sudden.

“I think for us we’ve just focused all our energy on trying to raise as much awareness as we can and break the stigma that is around drug use and addiction, and really honour my brother’s legacy through helping other people.

The drag star rose to fame after winning the first series of RuPaul’s Drag Race UK in 2019 where they opened up about overcoming their addiction.

Williams, however, has said she does not believe the addiction ever “truly left”.

She added:

“There were periods of sobriety and we didn’t realise, or we weren’t aware at the time that James passed, that ketamine had become an issue again within his life.

“I think there’s certainly a stigma around when you say that you’ve gone through recovery and you want to advocate for people that are struggling and then you yourself are struggling, and you’re in the public eye, it’s really difficult.”

Williams, who has helped launch House Of The Vivienne, an addiction support group based in Wales, has urged anyone who may be struggling with addiction to speak out and seek support.

She said:

“It’s a dissociative substance and the damage that it does, both acutely and chronically, is devastating.”

She added:

“If you’re struggling with any addiction, whether it be ketamine or another substance, the first step is always seeking support and that has really been what we’ve done with the House Of The Vivienne.

“It’s about bringing people together and people knowing that they’re not alone and that there is support available.”

According to addiction specialist Dr Niall Campbell, who also appeared on the show, ketamine use in the UK is an “epidemic” because of how easily available and cheap it is.

He called for greater education and awareness in schools.

Find out more about The House of The Vivienne here.

Liverpool lit up green in memory of The Vivienne on the first anniversary of their passing last month, read more here.

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