'I might look vacant, but girl, I have good intuition for some things...'

Lorena Larios looks like she could be a character from Tim Burton’s film Beetlejuice. She appears in a black and white striped dress that takes us back in time to the Neitherworld of the famous 1980s American movie. Her skirt billows as she performs the CanCan, crashing into the tables of Eden Copas and apologising as only a great diva could.

Green lips and eyeshadow add colour to the black and white. But it is her story and her charisma that also colour the conversation. Lorena Larios' character was born in October 23 years ago, but she says that she changes “like everyone else, from better to worse".

Lorena Larios laughs as she runs through the various nicknames she has had, which she describes as "noble titles". "First it was 'Lorena Larios Flor de Málaga', when I was introduced I used to say: 'On the rocks, please'," referring to the brand of gin, Larios. From gin she went on to be "the illegitimate granddaughter of the Marquis of Larios". And of one of her latest noble titles, she says as she removes her glasses: "The bad gays called me Viscountess because I have a vacant look, but girl, I have excellent intuition for some things.... not always, but hey!"

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She is a clown by nature and she knows it: "If my shows aren’t funny, people keep waiting to see if I'm going to mess up." She recalls one of the highlights of her career so far, "I performed in my New Year's Eve costume at the Benalmádena Drag Contest with [the song] Pero Me Acuerdo de Ti and a fake dildo,” which she played with on stage.

There has been rivalry between Lorena Larios and some of the other transvestites sitting with her while she gives her interview: "I've been screwed over, but I can’t say anything because whoever does it will regret it in time. People who are now friends have done awful things to me," she confesses.

Lorena Larios has taken to wearing a mask that matches her outfit since the start of the pandemic. "Every suit I've had made in the pandemic has a matching mask, shall I show it to you? Look darling, this isn’t for a diva, but I have to catch the bus.”

The drag performer isn’t planning on retiring yet: "As long as you're having a good time.... If you've been in the same job for 23 years, are you going to change it? I don't think so.” So fortunately for Torremolinos and Malaga, Lorena Larios will be around for a while.