Toyah: My doctorate, AI and days out in Pershore
One of Worcestershire’s most successful musical exports, Toyah Willcox, has been recognised with an Honorary Doctorate from the University of Worcester.
From chart hits including It’s a Mystery, Thunder in the Mountains and I Want To Be Free, to acting, broadcasting and her hugely successful Sunday Lunch videos with husband Robert Fripp, the Pershore musician’s career has spanned nearly five decades.
Last week, she joined graduates to receive the honour – and to offer some advice to the next generation of creatives, with BBC Hereford and Worcester’s Adelle Davies at Worcester Cathedral.
• Listen at BBC Sounds.
• Toyah & Robert: UpBeat Moments – Watch… • Toyah & Robert’s Sunday Lunch – Keine Lust – Watch… (Image © Toyah)
I had another great trip to London to meet up with my amazing friend Su. I flew down to Gatwick, caught the shuttle, then the train to Victoria Station and the tube to Angel Station and arrived at Su’s place at 10.30am. We spent some great time together and I just had a really good visit. Lots of chats and laughter.
• See Dreamscape’s other 2026 “tour dates” :) here! (Photos © David Fleming)
The new deluxe 24CD singles box set Twenty-Four From Toyah is on sale now at Cherry Red Records. Pre-order now for 4th December shipping.
The box set chronicles a run of singles and EPs from 1979–1987 issued on the labels Safari Records, Portrait and EG Records. It marks the first time these Toyah singles have been released on this format. Each CD single contains the A-Side, B-Sides, mixes, rarities and relevant outtakes, plus selected live recordings. 21 of the total 197 tracks are previously unreleased.
• Pre-order at Cherry Red. Watch Toyah announce Twenty-Four From Toyah here.
Secret Diary Of A Call Girl: Together TV: Tuesday 6th October: 0.00am
Series 1. Episode 1. Adult drama based on the journals of Belle de Jour, starring Billie Piper as a high-class escort who enjoys what she does but has to keep it a secret from everyone in her personal life. Belle entertains two new clients – one of whom gets too close for comfort. With Toyah Willcox and Cherie Lunghi.
Secret Diary Of A Call Girl: Together TV: Tuesday 6th October: 0.30am
Series 1. Episode 2. Belle is invited to a prestigious adult party, but her client doesn’t want to join the action. Starring: Billie Piper, Toyah Willcox, Aleksandar Mikic, Jamie Sives, Aislinn Sands and Scarlette O’Harlette.
50 Wild Women Of The 80s!: NOW 80s: Friday 25th September: 9pm
Brilliant songs, big voices, blazing hair & bags of attitude – the ladies of the 80s had the lot! From Toyah to Tina & Joan Jett to Janet Jackson.
Sharon and I had a great birthday day out in Dundee. We called it Dundee’s Greatest Hits as we spent some of the day revisiting many of the places we had been to before during my previous visits to Sharon’s home city! The V&A, Oor Wullie, Minnie The Minx, Desperate Dan, The McManus Art Gallery & Museum. We also paid a first time visit (for me) to Dundee Rep Theatre after we had an amazing high tea at Chez Mal Dundee (Malmaison). A truly fab day and we even bumped into a very famous actor but I’ll respect his privacy and not name him!
• See Dreamscape’s other 2026 “tour dates” :) here! (Photos © David Fleming)
Celebrity Help! My House Is Haunted: Really: Friday 2nd October: 1am
Toyah Willcox. Series 1, episode 5. The team undergoes one of the most terrifying investigations yet when visiting Toyah Willcox, who has experienced strange activity in her home ever since she moved in.
Celebrity Fantasy Homes: Really: Thursday 1st October: 6am
Toyah (Series 2, Episode 2). Celebrities hunt for a new home. Gaby Roslin helps the original punk-pop princess Toyah Willcox search for a second home, in Richmond upon Thames, with a budget of £650,000.
Toyah is pleased to announce on 4 December 2026, Cherry Red Records will release Twenty-Four From Toyah, a 24CD box set celebrating Toyah’s singles discography with extensive bonus tracks, deluxe packaging and previously unreleased material.
The box set will be on-sale from 10:00am on Friday 18 September 2026 from Cherry Red Records. Initial orders will include an exclusive art card (that fits inside the box) featuring a previously unpublished Toyah image.
It chronicles a run of singles and EPs from 1979–1987 issued on the labels Safari Records, Portrait and EG Records. It marks the first time these Toyah singles have been released on this format. Each CD single contains the A-Side, B-Sides, mixes, rarities and relevant outtakes, plus selected live recordings. 21 of the total 197 tracks are previously unreleased.
An ultimate collector’s item, this limited edition deluxe release is a crescendo to the Toyah Safari catalogue being reissued and expanded since 2020 and follows the recently acclaimed retrospectives Chameleon/The Very Best Of Toyah (2025) and Revelations/B-Sides & Rarities (2026). Chameleon has been nominated for Best Catalogue Release in the AIM Association of Independent Music Awards 2026, and Revelations charted at no. 7 in the Official Independent Album Chart.
The box set houses 24 Picture Disc CDs in card wallets, with the recognisable single artwork reimagined with rare or previously unseen imagery from the original photoshoots. The box set artwork is inspired by the striking visuals from the Top 10 EP Four From Toyah and features gold foil blocked hieroglyphics and lettering. A 56-page booklet details each single’s release information, chart positions, recording dates, images of related artwork and ephemera plus trivia compiled by Toyah’s archivist who curated the box set.
• Continue reading and browse further details, the complete box set tracklist and more images from Twenty-Four From Toyah at toyahwillcox.com. The release is available to pre-order from this Friday (18th September) from Cherry Red.
It’s my birthday and I’ll celebrate Toyah if I want to :) Today I turned 59!!! I’m now in my 60th year. To mark the announcement of Twenty-Four From Toyah I’m also celebrating the artwork from one of my favourite Toyah singles/EPs, the gorgeous reverse of the Four More From Toyah sleeve from November 1981, released when I was just 14.
There’s been a number of news stories over the past few days on the, often mentioned, Sunday Lunch movie/documentary, following Toyah mentioning it during an interview at the recent Rewind festival she played at!
• Classic Rock: That movie about Toyah and Robert Fripp’s viral Sunday Lunch success is still in production: Don’t expect the Citizen Kane of kitchen performance videos to arrive any time soon.
Toyah has updated fans about the film that’s being made about the Sunday Lunch performance videos she makes with her husband, King Crimson leader Robert Fripp. The clips have been delighting the internet since they debuted in a pandemic-stricken world in 2020 – Continue…
• Guitar.Com: Robert Fripp and Toyah’s lockdown Sunday Lunch series was such a sensation they’re making a movie about it – here’s an update on its progress: Toyah and Fripp’s viral lockdown sessions prompted the making of a documentary on the pair, though when it will be released is not yet known.
Toyah Willcox has shared an update on the long-awaited documentary on her and husband Robert Fripp’s Sunday Lunch lockdown sessions. Speaking at Rewind South to eonmusic, Toyah confirmed that a documentary crew had been filming the pair’s project – Continue…
• Eon Music: Toyah Willcox on the Sunday Lunch Movie: “They’ve Got the Footage”: In a story that went viral, three years ago we broke the news that Toyah Willcox and Robert Fripp’s Sunday Lunch was being turned into a movie. Now, we’re catching up with Toyah at Rewind South, where the 80s icon is once again celebrating the music that made her a household name — and, naturally, we’re keen to find out what’s happened to that movie. With almost 50 years in the business behind her, Toyah remains as passionate as ever about performing the hits, while looking to the future with her forthcoming album Future Dreaming. We talk Sunday Lunch, Quadrophenia, the enduring appeal of 80s music, and what comes next for one of Britain’s most enduring performers. It’s a mystery – Continue…
Singer Toyah Willcox awarded honorary doctorate
Singer-songwriter Toyah Willcox has been awarded an honorary doctorate by the University of Worcester.
During a career spanning more than four decades, Willcox recorded 25 albums, achieved 13 Top 40 singles, appeared in more than 20 feature films and over 40 stage productions.
Alongside her artistic achievements, she has been a patron of the Avon Navigation Trust since 2024, supporting environmental education and youth programmes.
Speaking at the ceremony at Worcester Cathedral on Tuesday, she said: “I’m so proud and it’s such an honour to be asked by Worcester University because I live within this area.”
She added: “The area means everything to me. My friends [and] my family all love Worcester and where I live.
• Continue reading at BBC News.
• Toyah & Robert: UpBeat Moments – Watch… • Toyah & Robert’s Sunday Lunch – Way Down! (aka Whole Lotta Love) – Watch… (Image © Toyah)
We – Alec, Sharon and me – had a great, and very colourful, day out in Edinburgh to celebrate all three of our birthdays, but mostly Alec’s (Sharon and I will be having another day out for ours, as they are only three days apart, very soon!). We paid a visit to Paddington – we always do – on St Andrew Square and then had breakfast at The Standing Order. Later on we had an amazing birthday afternoon tea at gorgeous Tigerlily in Morningside, which took a couple of hours and was a lot of fun, with delicious food. We spent the remainder of the day in Edinburgh’s Old Town, including on the Royal Mile, at the Castle and Victoria Street. Such a fantastic day!
• See Dreamscape’s other 2026 “tour dates” :) here! (Photos © David Fleming)
Fireside Chat Featuring Toyah Willcox
Join 80’s icon Toyah Willcox for a lively fireside chat about the punk rock years, her current tours and smashing ageism together!
Dive into a lively fireside chat where we’ll speak out against ageism and celebrate ageless creativity. Get ready to be inspired, entertained, and part of a movement that proves passion only gets stronger with time. Don’t miss this chance to hear Toyah’s stories and insights up close and personal!
As part of London Against Ageism, Age UK London’s campaign to challenge ageism and celebrate ageing in all its diversity we are pleased to invite you to this exclusive fundraising event.
On the afternoon of 18 November, we’ll be welcoming the one and only Toyah Willcox to Cecil Sharp House in Camden for an intimate fireside chat, launching our new Rock Against Ageism series. Doors open from 2.30pm with Toyah taking to the stage at 3.15pm. (Please note seating is not allocated).
• Continue reading/Book tickets at Eventbrite.co.uk.
The 1981 POWER Hour!: NOW 80s: Sunday 20th September: 6am
60 minutes of power pop & rock! Earplugs at the ready as we rewind to 1981 with Toyah, Genesis, Rick Springfield & Meat Loaf.
A 41-year old rarity is now available digitally for the first time.
Toyah & Robert Fripp recorded the track Mothership in 1985 not long after they met to work on the album The Lady Or The Tiger. It was recorded in the same session as Freedom which later appeared as the closing track on the Sunday All Over The World album.
As part of Robert Fripp @80 series of releases and celebration playlists, it is now available to download/stream now, along with an audio commentary track with Robert talking about the track with David Singleton. The track is available on iTunes, Spotify, QoBuz and other digital platforms.
• Continue reading at toyahwillcox.com.
Toyah Willcox, 68, makes fitness fun by prioritising this low-impact
The singer would choose this low-impact workout over the gym any day – and research suggests it can improve strength, fitness and mental wellbeing
Singer-songwriter, actor and presenter Toyah Willcox often shares glimpses of life by the water. From turtle watching to painting, the Strictly alumnus seems to spend a considerable amount of time outdoors, surrounded by nature.
Experts often refer to the health benefits of being near water as ‘blue health’. And there’s growing evidence that simply spending time in these environments can boost wellbeing.
One systematic review examining ‘blue space interventions for health and wellbeing’ found significant positive effects, particularly for psychological wellbeing.
• Continue reading at Women’s Health.
• Toyah At Home: September 2026 – Watch… • Toyah & Robert: UpBeat Moments – Watch… • Toyah & Robert’s Sunday Lunch – Gimme All Your Lovin – Watch… (Image © Toyah)
The Chase: Celebrity Special: Challenge: Tuesday 15th September: 10pm
Bradley Walsh hosts the quiz show as four celebrities take on the Chaser. Singer Toyah Willcox, ex-footballer John Barnes, writer Germaine Greer and heavyweight boxer Audley Harrison pit their wits against one of the country’s finest quiz brains in the hope of winning thousands of pounds for their chosen charities.
