Tomi Grainger, renowned Aussie drag queen, found themselves in a peculiar situation at Tokyo International Airport this week. Having undergone extensive cosmetic surgery, Grainger’s altered appearance caused an unexpected delay at passport control.
Air travel can be replete with unexpected delays, difficulties and embarrassment. This week alone, we’ve seen a man urinate all over business class, a woman publicly weighed on a luggage scale, and even a passenger deplaned after beating a hostess with an in-flight phone…
An issue we didn’t see coming, however, was a popular Australian drag queen getting stopped at passport security for not looking like the photograph in their passport. En route from Tokyo to Sydney, Tomi Grainger encountered a surprising hold-up.
Grainger took to TikTok to recount the nerve-racking experience, sharing their realisation that they no longer resembled the person in their passport photo thanks to a drastic change in looks brought on by plastic surgery. Grainger later posted a photo of their younger self as seen on their passport and… you can see where airport security was coming from.
WATCH Tomi themselves explain how the awkward incident went down below.
In the days following the incident, Grainger described the situation further:
“It was funny but super nerve-racking at the same time. I’ve been through the airport many times and never had an issue like that. My heart was racing, I thought I might miss my flight. That would have been a nightmare.”
Tomi Grainger
Reflecting on the incident, Grainger had the sensible and perhaps overdue revelation that it was time to update their passport. However, Tomi can take some solace in the fact that they’re far from alone in having endured this kind of experience: only a few months ago, a Ukrainian actress was denied entry to Malaysia because her face looked so different to her passport photo sans makeup.
As you might expect, the incident sparked a great deal of commentary from Tomi’s followers about the extent of their surgery and why they’d chosen such evidently extensive procedures at such a young age.
Lucky for them, Tomi has always been open about their choices, explaining as follows:
“Given that I had a history of anorexia, I’d reduced my skin collagen and made it far more elastic than for a regular 28-year-old male. Having the surgery was the only solution… there was a physical reason for getting this procedure and obviously a psychological component too. It wasn’t something I decided to do overnight…I have no regrets.”
Tomi Grainger
Grainger’s ordeal also serves as an important reminder to make sure you know the regulations for passport photos in your country of residence. In most, passport holders are only required to renew if their appearance has changed to the extent that they can no longer be recognised from their original photo; dying your hair or growing a beard doesn’t qualify, anything much more intense is worth checking.
At the ripe old age of twenty-five, I’m still incapable of growing anything that seriously resembles a beard, so I’m okay on that front. My nosejob next week, however, may be up for reconsideration. As long as the BBL doesn’t have to be cancelled, life is good…