Welcome to our final update of 2012! Happy New Year’s Eve/Hogmanay to each and every person who takes the time to visit this website. Wishing you a happy, successful and Toyah-filled 2013. It’s the 30th anniversary of Toyah’s glorious ‘Love Is The Law’ album! Can’t wait…
Toyah’s Christmas Countdown was fully revealed and completed on Christmas Eve. Browse Twenty Four From Toyah at Soundcloud.
A great selection of rare live Toyah recordings from 1993 to 2012.
Download the digital artwork as well as a Twenty Four From Toyah booklet at toyahwillcox.com.
Phil Spalding has wished all of Dreamscape’s visitors a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year from himself and his partner Helen.
Thanks to Phil for the great photo. Please click here to view a larger version.
Look out for the launch of Phil’s new website, philspalding.com, which will be launching in early 2013.
• Sleeping Beauty: Toyah’s 2012/13 panto, at The Marlowe Theatre in Canterbury, continues for another three weeks. The production runs until Sunday 20th January.
• This is Kent: Fairytale romance has happy ending: Love was in the air when panto star Lloyd Hollett proposed to his girlfriend live on stage. The comedian wasn’t joking when he sank to his knees before a sell-out audience of 1,200 to pop the question. She had been called on stage by Toyah Willcox, who is playing the evil queen, to be given a bouquet for helping with costume changes.
• This is Kent: Panto Proposal: It was a magical evening at the Marlowe Theatre on Thursday, December 27 when comedian Lloyd Hollett proposed to his girlfriend Dannii Williams. Before the final song, punk singer Toyah Willcox called wardrobe assistant Dannii onto the stage to present her with a bouquet of flowers, before Lloyd got down on one knee.
• Sleeping Beauty Proposal: View a short video clip of Lloyd proposing to Dannii at ‘You Tube’.
• Canterbury People: Win two tickets to Sleeping Beauty at the Marlowe Theatre: The competition ends on Friday 4 January 2013.
Toyah guested on Marlow FM’s ‘Musical Milestones’ on The Eclectic Light Show on Monday afternoon. Toyah talks about her life and career and chooses six songs along the way. As this aired on Christmas Eve and the station doesn’t have a Listen Again function some of you may not have heard it so I’ve uploaded a low quality mp3 of the 30-minute special. Click below to listen/download.
Toyah’s fantastic track ‘Sensational’, from the much loved 2008 album ‘In The Court Of The Crimson Queen’, debuted on UK television on Boxing Day in a new high profile advertising campaign by Weight Watchers.
Weight Watchers – New Approach features Patsy Kensit in one of the first adverts and is expected to run for most of 2013.
View the 40 second ad at You Tube. There’s also a 30 second version. View here.
‘TV Ad Music’ have also reported on the advert. View here.
A new edition of Toyah’s 2008 studio album ‘In The Court Of The Crimson Queen’ is coming in early 2013. It will include the 2011 single ’21st Century Supersister’.
There are still some Toyah appearances on TV over the next few days as the year draws to a close.
Toyah’s Christmas At The Zoo: Vintage TV
Saturday 29th December: 8.00pm
Cosy up with family and friends as Toyah Willcox brings you 30 of the finest Christmas songs and a sprinkling of festive stories, surrounded by an extraordinary variety of creatures great and small.
100 Greatest Toys with Jonathan Ross: 4Seven
Sunday 30th December: 1.05am/5.55pm
A countdown of the nation’s favourite games, gadgets and playthings, as decided by a Channel 4 online poll. Inventors and toymakers tell the inside stories of their creations and successes – including Action Man, Yahtzee, Barbie and Trivial Pursuit – while the children of yesteryear, namely today’s celebrities, authors, actors and journalists, take a nostalgic look back at the toys they loved.
Best Of: My Vintage Part 1: Vintage TV: Sunday 30th December: 5.30pm
Our very special guests, including Toyah Willcox, Lol Creme, Thomas Dolby, Suzi Quatro, Hazel O’Connor and Mark King share their superb music selections and the stories behind them for this annual round-up of the best on this, your favourite, TV channel.
The 100 Greatest Musicals: More4: New Year’s Eve/Hogmanay: 8.15pm
Part One, 100 – 51. Denise Van Outen presents the first in a two-part rundown of the 100 best musicals as voted for by viewers, featuring 42nd Street, 8 Mile and The Sound of Music. The first show counts down from 100 to 51 and features memorable clips from film, stage and TV, interspersed with interviews given by performers, directors, writers and choreographers. Also airing on More4 +1.
The 100 Greatest Musicals: More4: New Year’s Day: 6.15pm
Part Two, 50 – 1. Denise Van Outen concludes the rundown of viewers’ favourite musicals, counting down from 50 to number one. Including memorable clips from film, stage and TV productions, plus contributions by celebrity fans, Hollywood movers and shakers, critics and journalists. Also airing on More4 +1.
There’s one final opportunity to catch the three-hour festive filled Toyah’s Christmas At The Zoo, tonight on Vintage TV.
Toyah’s Christmas At The Zoo: Vintage TV: Saturday 29th December: 8.00pm
Cosy up with family and friends as Toyah Willcox brings you 30 of the finest Christmas songs and a sprinkling of festive stories, surrounded by an extraordinary variety of creatures great and small.
For the second year in a row Toyah presented a mammoth Christmasfest on Vintage TV. This year’s was Toyah’s Christmas At The Zoo, which ared on the channel around 20 times through December, recorded at ZSL LondonZoo. The full playlist was:
It’s The Most Wonderful Time Of The Year (Andy Williams), The Christmas Song (Nat King Cole), Last Christmas (Wham), Merry Christmas Everyone (Shakin’ Stevens), Wonderful Christmas Tine (Paul McCartney), I Wish It Could Be Christmas Everyday (Wizzard), Walking In The Air (Aled Jones), Frosty the Snowman (The Ronettes), Silent Night (Bros), All Alone On Christmas (Darlene Love), Rockin’ Around The Christmas Tree (Mel Smith & Kim Wilde), The Millenium Prayer (Cliff Richard), It Doesn’t Often Snow At Christmas (Pet Shop Boys), I Believe In Father Christmas (Greg Lake), When A Child Is Born (Johnny Mathis), Mary’s Boy Child (Harry Belafonte), Stay Another Day (East 17), All I Want For Christmas Is You (Mariah Carey), Winter (Tori Amos), This Christmas (Gloria Estefan), White Christmas (Bing Crosby), Santa’s List (Cliff Richard), A Winter’s Tale (David Essex), Santa Baby (Eartha Kitt), Driving Home For Christmas (Chris Rea), Best Christmas Of Them All (Shakin’ Stevens), Winter Wonderland (Scott Weiland), Have Yoursefl A Merry Little Christmas (Frank Sinatra), Please Come Home For Christmas (Aaron Neville), Merry Christmas Everybody (Slade).
Another year over… just about! 2012 has been a fantastic year for Toyah, and a precarious one for Dreamscape, but amongst the confusion and name changes I hope everyone who visits has still enjoyed the updates. Hopefully 2013 will be a calmer year for the site. This is our 13th Christmas and in a couple of month’s time we will enter our 14th year online! As always, a huge Thank You to everyone who has kindly sent photos, news or plain old encouragement over the past 12 months. Thanks too to everyone who has taken the time to type toyah.net and pay us a visit. Wishing you all a Very Merry Christmastime and a Stupendously Successful & Happy New Year.
• Bev Meets… Toyah Willcox, which aired on ‘BBC WM’ yesterday, is now available, until Sunday 30th December, at BBC iPlayer. It’s a great hour-long special with Toyah talking about her early life, growing up and her career, as well as choosing some of her favourite songs. She also talks about her plans for 2013. Toyah chose tracks by T-Rex, Lou Reed, Roxy Music, Nirvana, David Bowie, Lana Del Ray, Muse, Tasmin Archer and The Rolling Stones. Listen here.
• It’s Slade, the 1999 documentary that’s been repeated several times on ‘BBC Four’ over the past few days, is also available to view at BBC iPlayer for the next week. Toyah pops up sporadically talking about the band. Watch here.
• Today sees the final box to open at Toyah’s Christmas Countdown at toyahwillcox.com – Check out Twenty Four From Toyah at Soundcloud.
• A third clip from The Resurrection Live Sessions has been uploaded to ‘Vimeo’. It’s Brave New World. ‘Angel and Me’ and ‘Danced’ are also available.
• David Hepworth’s Blog: The former Editor of ‘Smash Hits’, commented in his blog yesterday, on something Toyah said in Neil 
Tennant’s Smash Hits Christmas: The harmless TV fun of today may produce the scandals of tomorrow: Toyah Willcox said an interesting thing on this week’s programme on Radio Four about Smash Hits when talking about the relatively benign world of 80s pop stardom. “Nowadays,” she said, “I think of fame as something dark and abusive.”
• Smash Hits Archive: The December 23, 1982 – January 5, 1983 issue of ‘Smash Hits’ is now online – It includes a brief comment from Toyah talking about her Christmas 1982 plans: It’ll Be Homely This Christmas: Toyah’s off to Italy just before Christmas, because she’s got a hit single there at the moment, but she’s flying back on Christmas Eve. “I always spend Christmas with my parents – it’s the only time I get to spend with them. And I’ll be getting ready for a busy next year.”
• Daily Mail: Ever felt that someone’s watching over you?: Toyah was mentioned in a ‘Daily Mail’ article yesterday on Guardian Angels: Toyah Willcox and Myleene Klass have also talked about their faith in them.
Toyah guests on The Eclectic Light Show‘s ‘Musical Milestones’ on Canterbury’s Marlow FM on Christmas Eve.
Xmas Eve Lunchtime Celeb Special: Musical Milestones are those key memorable tracks that either marked a significant event or had a lasting and influential effect.
The Eclectic Light Show: Marlow FM: Xmas Eve: 12pm
Toyah Willcox recalls reaching ‘rock bottom’ personally and professionally in the early 90s. Starting with their earliest recollections as a child and continuing through their formative years and on to the present day, our celebrities have chosen their six most significant or important tracks. They reveal the very personal story behind each of their choices – taking the listener on a voyage of discovery into their life and career.
• Tune in on 97.5FM to this special Eclectic Light Show between 12 midday and 2pm on Christmas Eve or listen online.
Just a reminder that Bev Meets… Toyah Willcox airs today on BBC Radio WM. You can listen online and it will be available at BBC iPlayer post-broadcast.
The two hour show, which also includes Tony Christie, begins at Midday. I’m not sure if Toyah and Tony have an hour each but it’s sure to be an interesting show.
Bev Meets: BBC Radio WM: Sunday 23rd Dec: 12pm
Toyah Willcox and Tony Christie. Bev meets West Midlands’ stars Toyah Willcox and Tony Christie to discuss their lives and careers.
The Express & Star feature a photo of Toyah from this year’s Changeling Resurrection tour in their article on what’s playing at the Wolverhampton Grand Theatre in Spring 2013.
Joseph, Cats and Evita coming to Wolverhampton Grand Theatre
Andrew Lloyd Webber musicals Joseph And The Amazing Technicolour Dreamcoat, Cats and Evita are among the big shows coming to Wolverhampton as theatre bosses reveal their new spring line-up.
The Grand Theatre in Lichfield Street will also welcome Toyah Willcox, Hormonal Housewives, starring Toyah Willcox on April 2 and 3, features sketches about day-to-day problems that women face.
• Continue reading at the Express & Star.
This is brilliant. A huge thank you to, another longtime friend of Dreamscape, Andrew York for taking the time to colour the Toyah @ Pop Goes Christmas in 1982 photo. I’ve added a bit of text and a tree to add to the festive feel of it. (Thanks again to Andi and Andrew)
A second review, published on Thursday, of Sleeping Beauty by Kent Online.
Where the mishaps are magical
The mark of a great panto is how unscripted those apparently off-the-cuff moments appear. Great writers weave in sequences where things seem to go wrong, that are in fact, carefully choreographed mishaps. Equally the mark of a great pantomime actor is how convincing they can make these “slip ups” appear. In both cast and script, Sleeping Beauty at the Marlowe Theatre had these qualities in abundance.
The crowd were even left wondering whether members of the audience were in fact, strategically placed crew members, such was the hilarity of some of the heckles. “Don’t touch it!” shrilly screamed someone at the back as Carabosse, played deliciously devilish by Toyah Willcox, revealed the last working spinning wheel in the land to Beauty, played by Faye Brooks.
• Continue reading at Kent Online. Read their other review, from 6th December, here.
Toyah’s ‘Walk of Fame’ gig in King’s Heath in July has been named one of Birmingham’s Top Gigs Of 2012.
Let’s hear it for B-Town… the best of the rest: Some of the biggest music acts in the world have played Brum this year – after the top ten, here’s our selection of the highlights
Toyah Willcox, who not only was inducted on Birmingham’s walk of fame this year, she also played a home-coming gig at the Ballroom.
• Continue reading at the Birmingham Mail. View our Walk of Fame News Archive.
• Toyah’s Christmas Countdown continues at toyahwillcox.com. There are only a few days left until the final window is opened on Christmas Eve. There’s already been an abundance of great live Toyah tracks and photos.
• Hold The Front Page: Reporter cast as naughty schoolboy in pantomime: A weekly reporter took part in a pantomime performance alongside celebrities Gareth Gates and Toyah Willcox – after the team behind the show took exception to an article he wrote.
• Den of Geek: A Christmas Carol: the best and worst adaptations: Toyah receives a namecheck in this article on the much loved Christmas classic. (Thanks to James Armstrong)
• This is Kent: Lacemakers raise cash to help out Dave’s charity: The money for the Dave Lee’s Happy Holidays charity will help book out Canterbury’s Marlowe Theatre for an exclusive pantomime performance in January. The theatre will be packed with children and their families watching Gareth Gates and Toyah Willcox in Sleeping Beauty.
Toyah is, as always, a significant presence on the UK festive TV and Radio schedules. There are numerous appearances, both new and old, with documentaries, interviews, music, film and more to help you through the festive season.
There are many opportunities to catch Toyah’s Christmas at the Zoo over the next couple of weeks, a one-hour Toyah Special on BBC Radio WM with Bev Bevan, a great Slade documentary from 1999, the classic Quadrophenia and some of those 100 Greatest… retrofests!
Toyah’s Christmas At The Zoo: Vintage TV
Friday 21st December: 9.00pm, Saturday 22nd December: 1.00am, Sunday 23rd December: 2.30pm, Christmas Eve: 6.00pm, Christmas Day: 6.00am, Christmas Day: 7.30pm, Boxing Day: 11.00am, Thursday 27th December: 2.30pm
Cosy up with family and friends as Toyah Willcox brings you 30 of the finest Christmas songs and a sprinkling of festive stories, surrounded by an extraordinary variety of creatures great and small.
It’s Slade: BBC Four: Friday 21st Dec: 9.00pm
It’s Slade: BBC Four: Saturday 22nd Dec: 00.20am
It’s Slade: BBC Four: Christmas Eve: 1.50am
Top pop documentary, narrated by Radio One’s Mark Radcliffe, about one of Britain’s greatest and best-loved bands. Slade scored six number ones in the 70s, a feat rivalled only by Abba. Apart from Noddy and his bandmates – Dave Hill, Jim Lea and Don Powell – the cast here also includes Noel Gallagher of Oasis (who covered Cum On Feel the Noize), Status Quo, Toyah Willcox, Suzi Quatro and Ozzy Osbourne. Altogether now “Are you hanging up your stocking on the wall……….?”
Quadrophenia: ITV1: Saturday 22nd December: 3.00am
Quadrophenia: STV: Christmas Day: 12.45am
The Who wrote and produced this energetic story of a young man disillusioned with his life in 1960s London. Phil Daniels excels as the alienated anti-hero Jimmy Cooper. Director: Franc Roddam. Starring: Phil Daniels, Leslie Ash, Toyah Willcox, Philip Davis, Mark Wingett, Sting, and Ray Winstone. Also airing on the +1 channels.
Bev Meets: BBC Radio WM: Sunday 23rd December: 12pm (12-2pm)
Toyah Willcox and Tony Christie. Bev meets West Midlands’ stars Toyah Willcox and Tony Christie to discuss their lives and careers.
100 Greatest Toys with Jonathan Ross: Channel 4: Sunday 23rd December: 3.00pm
100 Greatest Toys with Jonathan Ross: 4Seven: Boxing Day: 3.55pm
A countdown of the nation’s favourite games, gadgets and playthings, as decided by a Channel 4 online poll. Inventors and toymakers tell the inside stories of their creations and successes – including Action Man, Yahtzee, Barbie and Trivial Pursuit – while the children of yesteryear, namely today’s celebrities, authors, actors and journalists, take a nostalgic look back at the toys they loved. Also revealed is the inspiration behind the design of the Raleigh Chopper, the unlikely individual responsible for the creation of one of the world’s toughest action figures, and why the Vietnam War almost brought Britain’s Matchbox car range to an end.
The Eclectic Light Show: Marlow FM: Christmas Eve: 12pm
Toyah Willcox recalls reaching ‘rock bottom’ personally and professionally in the early 90s. Listen online at Marlow FM’s website.
Bev Meets: BBC Radio WM: Thursday 27th December: 2pm
Jasper Carrot and Toyah Willcox. Bev meets West Midlands’ stars Jasper Carrot and Toyah Willcox to discuss their lives and careers.
Neil Tennant’s Smash Hits Christmas, which aired yesterday on ‘BBC Radio 4’, is now available to listen to online at BBC iPlayer. Toyah is included in the 30 minute programme, discussing ‘Smash Hits’ in the early 1980s and also the memorable and iconic ‘Brave New World’ cover issue .
Neil Tennant had a life as a journalist before he became famous as a Pet Shop Boy. In fact, it was on a Smash Hits trip to New York that he had his big breakthrough with the record producer Bobby O. Here, 30 years after his first stint on pop’s most successful and inventive magazine, Neil recalls the golden days of Smash Hits. We hear from founder and legendary magazine maker Nick Logan, editors David Hepworth and Mark Ellen, writers Miranda Sawyer and Sylvia Patterson, and from regular Smash Hits cover girl, Toyah.
• The programme is available until Thursday 27th December. Listen here.
Another positive review for Sleeping Beauty at The Marlowe Theatre, this one by Inquire Live.
Sleeping Beauty is the pantomimic treat at the Marlowe theatre this year. Paul Hendy’s vibrantly stunning, glittering, unashamedly hilarious show will have you in gleeful spirits and ready for the upcoming holidays. Where else will you find a heart-warming fairy tale, countless gags, sing-alongs, wacky costumes, and a well-rounded cast of actors, comedians, dancers, and a fire breathing dragon, all in the same place? I’ll give you a clue: Nowhere.
Toyah Willcox as Carabosse was sassy, edgy, and her rock numbers were electric.
• Continue reading at Inquire Live.
