{"id":1910433,"date":"2026-04-30T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2026-04-29T21:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=1910433"},"modified":"2026-04-30T00:00:00","modified_gmt":"2026-04-29T21:00:00","slug":"wonderland-159","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=1910433","title":{"rendered":"Wonderland"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\n\t\t\tWonderland<\/span>
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\n\t\t\tDID KACEY MUSGRAVES CRASH HER OWN LOOKALIKE CONTEST (AND LOSE)?\u00a0<\/span>
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Five Kacey Musgraves walk into a pub in North London \u2013 only one doesn\u2019t need the costume. In celebration of her new album release, the country star left her fans stunned with an unannounced appearance at her own dedicated Thursday night hoedown.\u00a0\u00a0<\/h3>\n
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Not many things can get me to leave the house during the hell that is London tube strikes, including my day job. However, a Kacey Musgraves lookalike contest at a place called The Boogaloo? That\u2019s an invitation I simply can\u2019t resist.\u00a0<\/p>\n

On a quiet street corner in leafy Highgate stands a line of bedazzled, boot-wearing, country-loving fanatics. It\u2019s just one week until May 1st, the release date of the 37-year-old country heavyweight\u2019s seventh album, Middle of Nowhere<\/a><\/em>. And for a girl whose days are confined in London\u2019s east to the streets of Dalston, this is, quite literally, the middle of nowhere. It\u2019s also St George\u2019s Day, and what better way to mark my current deficit of national pride than by spending it immersed in some good ol\u2019 Americana?\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

The charming local that plays host to tonight\u2019s adventure is familiar, friendly, but inconspicuous, not the usual watering hole for such extroverted endeavours. Feeling just a little self-conscious as I murmur \u201cI\u2019m guestlist\u201d at the door, my familiar British awkwardness is quickly eclipsed by awe at the head-to-toe American flag ensemble joining the queue behind me.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Inside, there\u2019s a warm glow, and not just from the neon cowboy signs or half a dozen candles. Giggly and giddy, it\u2019s barely 7pm, and I\u2019ve already overheard one girl say to another, \u201cSorry, I\u2019m a hugger.\u201d My only prior experience of lookalike contests was the search for London\u2019s best knock-off Danny Dyer in Hoxton Square last summer. The winner that day got a bag of Walkers. Safe to say, tonight\u2019s shaping out a little differently.<\/p>\n

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I join a group of three friends discussing their collection of Kacey Musgraves vinyls, \u201cI just love how tongue-in-cheek she is. She has a sense of humour, and she\u2019s not afraid to show it,\u201d one of them marvels. The pals had frequented Musgraves\u2019 album release party at Circuit Kingston the night before and are planning to attend her Oxford Street signing the day following. Tonight, they\u2019d travelled two hours because they\u2019d heard whispers of the country star\u2019s attendance. \u201cShe can take the most simple concept and make something that leaves me completely shook,\u201d says superfan Jack, simultaneously spilling his drink, \u201cSee? shook.\u201d I inform him of the free merch shirts at the front, in case he wants to change.\u00a0<\/p>\n

I head to the bar, a mission briefly interrupted by the fringing of a jacket catching on my button. Swapping my pinot for tequila, I\u2019m ready for the first activity of the evening, line dancing.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The choreography is taken from Musgraves\u2019 recent Coachella set. I stumble over my own feet under the watchful eyes of those who\u2019ve passed through The Boogaloo before me. A black-and-white framed photo of Amy Winehouse shoots me a look of pity.\u00a0<\/p>\n

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My lack of coordination is at least good for one thing \u2013 embarrassing and amusing failure is often an incredible conversation starter. After my fifth apology, I ask the girl to my right (or left?) how she first discovered Kacey. Hearing an American twang, I imagine it was an obsession that started young, out on a ranch somewhere. \u201cI work in the city, it\u2019s one of those proper corporate jobs, and they love to play her music,\u201d she says. She refuses to disclose where \u00a0\u2013 fair enough \u2013 so speculation is only natural. Perhaps the execs at JP Morgan are getting down to \u2018I\u2019m so lonely, I\u2019ve been sitting on the washing machine,\u2019 a favourite lyric of mine from her recent release, Dry Spell<\/em>.<\/p>\n

She returns the question. I told her my ex\u2019s favourite song was \u201cHigh Horse\u201d. \u201cWell, at least he had good taste,\u201d she replied. I didn\u2019t mention his playlist also included a song with the lyrics, \u201cDrop em out, let me see those titties.\u201d <\/em>In the words of Musgraves, love is a wild thing.\u00a0<\/p>\n

London can sometimes feel like a lonely city. But you wouldn\u2019t know it here. This cabaret has camaraderie. \u201cThese events have been running for a few years now, we just wanted a queer space for people to gather in North London,\u201d shares Fenn, friend of the organiser and professional cowboy hat rhinestoner. \u201cOne that didn\u2019t only revolve around drinking, but somewhere people could actually connect,\u201d As I sign up for one of her rhinestoning workshops, she tells me about Jerry, the pub owner. \u201cHe lives above, in Shane MacGowan\u2019s old flat. You\u2019ll know when you see him, he\u2019s the Phil Mitchell of North London.\u201d I later ask Jerry if he too was here for the contest, to which he lets out a brief snort. He might not have had the hairline, in fairness, but with a decent wig, he\u2019d be in with an outside shout.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Among my favourite characters from the night is Bambi, a rhinestoned hobby horse. Her plush head and wooden stick are entirely encrusted in rainbow gems, complete with two ribbon bows tied to her ears for good measure. I\u2019m disappointed to learn that hobby horse rhinestoning isn\u2019t on the agenda in Fenn\u2019s workshop. Bambi\u2019s sparkle has lasted an impressive six months, or, in her owner\u2019s words, \u201clonger than any of my relationships.\u201d<\/p>\n

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The clock strikes 10:30pm, and the already surreal evening is catapulted to new, dizzying levels of spectacle as the reason we\u2019d all been gathered begins: the lookalike contest. The most glamorous line-up you\u2019ve ever seen takes to the stage, as five show-stopping brunettes get ready to compete for the title of a lifetime. The night\u2019s girlhood spirit is momentarily forgotten as the contestants shoot each other a few competitive glares across the room. \u201cKacey\u2019s a Leo sun, I imagine a room full of her lookalikes would be her heaven,\u201d whispers the girl beside me. Little did we know we wouldn\u2019t have to stretch our imagination too far.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m Kacey,\u201d says the fifth contestant, she\u2019s dressed in a pink gingham dress, pink neck tie and even has the pink blush to match. Who knew head-to-toe pink could make such an effective disguise? Hands firmly on hips, hair firmly in place, this was the real deal. The country star is here, somehow managing to enter a room full of her most adoring fans completely undetected. That anonymity, however, didn\u2019t last long. Before she can finish the lyrics to her 2015 song, \u201cBiscuits\u201d, whispers of suspicion start to spread. Whispers that soon turn to screams, that then turn to utter fan frenzy.\u00a0<\/p>\n

A testament to the community Kacey has built, the chaos manages to remain contained long enough for the eight-time Grammy-winning artist to crown her champion, before quickly slipping out through a discreet back door. The whole thing is over in under ten minutes, but I think it\u2019s fair to say this is a moment these fans will remember for a lifetime.<\/p>\n

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Amidst all the commotion, I manage to grab the lucky winner and ask her what she thought made her most like Kacey. I\u2019m hoping for the secret to keeping my bangs in place, or a hidden spot for cheap, authentic cowboy boots. \u201cMy bad luck in dating,\u201d Lily smiles. \u201cI relate to her song \u201cDry Spell\u201d on a spiritual level.\u201d Not exactly the answer I\u2019m looking for, but there was something surprisingly eye-opening about her response. Kacey Musgraves isn\u2019t just about glitter and sparkles \u2013 she\u2019s a state of mind. A philosophy that approaches life\u2019s hardships with a dose of humour, whatever those hardships may be, including a three-hundred-and-thirty-five-day dry spell.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The night is over at the tip of your cowboy hat. As I leave the venue and measure my conquest home, \u00a0all that\u2019s left is a\u00a0 handful of half-dazed fans, a couple of confused smokers (\u201cKacey was here?\u201d), and one forgotten tour manager, left to figure out how he is making it back to his hotel room in Hoxton. I tell him I know Hoxton well. I\u2019d been to a Danny Dyer contest there once.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Words \u2013 Farah Thorndycraft<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

Photography \u2013 Karen Stanley<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n

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\n\t\t\t\t30 April 2026\t\t\t<\/div>\n
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\n\t\t\t\tSARA LANDRY\u2019S COACHELLA PHOTO DIARY<\/span> <\/span><\/a>\t\t\t<\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Wonderland DID KACEY MUSGRAVES CRASH HER OWN LOOKALIKE CONTEST (AND LOSE)?\u00a0 Five Kacey Musgraves walk into a pub in North London \u2013 only one doesn\u2019t need the costume. In celebration of her new album release, the country star left her fans stunned with an unannounced appearance at her own dedicated Thursday night hoedown.\u00a0\u00a0 Not many […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[226,257],"class_list":["post-1910433","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-crawlmanager","tag-wonderlandmagazine-com"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1910433","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1910433"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1910433\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1910433"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1910433"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1910433"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}