Three rarish Toyah photos from 1981. Live on the ‘Anthem Tour’, the band, and performing ‘Good Morning Universe’ on Top Of The Pops. These were originally included in a German magazine article. Click below to view larger. (Thanks to Paul Lomas)
Two photos of Toyah taken during the filming of the ‘Out Of The Blue’ video in 1993. This was the first single from the ‘Dreamchild’ album. Click on these to view larger. (Thanks to Andi)
• Official Toyah: The news at toyahwillcox.com has been updated, with details on The Humans (recording of third album + info on The Humans: Live, Up Close & Personal Podcast series), BBC4’s Love & Marriage (due to air next month) and ‘The Changeling Resurrection II’.
• Cult Queens: The brilliant 2007, Toyah as Medusa, image is included at ‘Cult Queens’. Toyah was previously featured by the site in March.
• Now Daily: A few past Toyah news posts have been collected together at ‘Now’ magazine’s website.
• Style Icons Past & Present: Toyah is included in this collection at ‘Pinterest’.
• Not exactly earth-shattering news, but… The King’s Arms in Salford has a Toyah mirror. Take a look.
There’s a great new Toyah photo blog, Fuck Yeah Toyah, at tumblr. It already has some brilliant content, including rare photos and classic Toyah imagery. Visit by clicking below.
A very rare photo of Toyah and Hazel O’Connor onstage with The Stranglers at The Rainbow, London in April 1980. More of these great photos soon. (Huge thanks to Andi)
An excellent new article on Quadrophenia, and the Blu-ray release, from The New York Times.
“Quadrophenia,” which the Criterion Collection is reissuing in a restored version on Blu-ray and DVD on Tuesday, concerns little more than a skinny 18-year-old West Londoner trying to track down some blues (speed) for one of these seaside gatherings turned tabloid-covered riots. But the emotions that “Quadrophenia” elicits and its role in converting troubled souls to smartly dressed members of a movement (one with its own chant: “We are the Mods! We are the Mods!”) can be as forceful as the waves that open both the film and the Who’s 1973 double album.
• Continue reading at The New York Times.
A small preview of all of the photos of Toyah included in ‘Herb Schulz, Capturing The New Romantics’ digital book, including rare shots from the famous 1981 session that have never been published before. If you’re a fan of Toyah’s early 80s imagery, or the New Romantics in general, this book is a must! Buy the book here. It may be available in other formats, including hard-copy, at some point in the future. (Thanks again to Andi | Photos © Herb Schulz)
Herb Schulz, an acclaimed advertising and fashion photographer of the time took these portraits of the ‘Blitz Kids’ in his studio. Unlike other images documenting from this period, Schulz decided to capture these creations in a sterile environment, removing them from the clubs or drab streets of 1980s London, imbuing them with a sense of hyper-reality. These images, like no other of the era, capture with a heightened sense of intimacy the characters behind the facades. Photos include Steve Strange, Boy George, Toyah Willcox, Siouxsie Sioux and many never before seen images from the earlier time of the New Romantic movement.
Amazing Melissa Caplan outfits from ‘Herb Schulz, Capturing The New Romantics’, along with the, slightly different. original cover. These are from the same collection as Melissa’s famous Toyah outfit, The Wedding Dress. Buy the book here. (Thanks to Andi | Photos © Herb Schulz)
‘Herb Schulz, Capturing The New Romantics’, by Herb Schulz & Timothy Nies, is available to buy as a digital photo book for the bargainesque £4.99/$6.99. Featuring stunning photos of Toyah, Siouxsie, Steve Strange, Boy George, Marilyn and many others. View more info at Facebook and buy the iBook at iTunes. (Thanks to Andi | Photos © Herb Schulz))
The New Romantic movement was an explosion of style, styling, androgyny and fashion. Formed in London in the late 1970s it was as a defiant answer to punk. It represented a flirtation with artifice and beauty through a new form of music, fashion and performance. ‘The Blitz Club’ became the London stage on which certain members of the scene played.
Those are our three reasons. What are yours? (Erm… 1. Monkey, 2. Brighton & 3. Jimmy!!!)
…Prostitute and Ophelia’s Shadow. Two ridiculously underrated albums (particularly the latter. I mean ‘Ghost Light’ is just… incredible!)
Here I stand on a large chunk of rock
Floatin’ in the piss-pot part of the firmament…
That could almost be a description of certain areas of Facebook. Apparently this site, and myself, have recently been getting bad-mouthed (again?) by some misery or other.
Fuck chuck a buck you… ‘Ghosts In The Universe’, 1988.
Toyah puts it far more eloquently, poetically and succinctly than I ever could :)
Toyah casting her eye over two recent artworks: ‘The Changeling’ by Melissa Mailer-Yates and ‘Crimson Queen’ by Cliff Matthews. Both of these excellent creations are available to buy as prints. View more details of Cliff’s here and Melissa’s here. Read our recent Q&A with Melissa Mailer-Yates here. (Photos © Ian Dunn & Cliff Matthews)
Screen caps of Toyah from Saturday night’s The Timey-Wimey Of Doctor Who, which aired on ‘BBC America’. Click below to view larger versions. Read up on all of our recent Doctor Who documentary specials news here. (Thanks to Paul Lomas)
• Very rare print sheets of two retro Toyah badges, the logo and Intergalactic Fanclub membership, were recently up for auction at eBay. The sheets were originally produced by badge-making company de Graff and printed in the early 1980’s. View the logo sheet here, and the IRH here.
• VinceFont: Lee Fletcher’s “Faith” is no worthless thing: Both Toyah and Robert Fripp are mentioned in this review of Lee’s new album. He worked with Toyah a few years ago via This Fragile Moment.
• Quadrophenia: The legendary film is released on Region A/1 Blu-ray next week. Pay a return visit soon for a bumper Quadrophenia news update.
Two more photos of Toyah at Wynne’s Cakes & Coffee Shop VIP Night last week. Click here to view larger. All of the recent photos of Toyah at Wynne’s have been added to Dreamscape’s Gallery. View all of our recent Toyah @ Wynne’s Cakes news. (Thanks to Jenni & John)
A couple of pretend “adverts” for The Ebony Tower, using great stills from the ITV drama.
• Toyah plays Manchester Pride this coming Bank Holiday weekend. She headlines the Women’s Stage at Sackville Gardens on Sunday. View more info here.
• Heart Shaped!: Check out Toyah’s unique tomato at Twitter.
• Sugar Rush: Toyah & Robert Fripp: Read a great article about Robert at The Humans’ Fansite.
• Invisible Guy Recommends: Toyah: Danced: Even though I believe the live-version is better, I just have to recommend the studio-version of the song Danced by Toyah. Featured on her debut-album Sheep Farming In Barnet.
Toyah did, after all, guest in Saturday night’s third documentary special, The Time-Wimey Of Doctor Who, on ‘BBC America’. Here is a transcript of what she said.
Toyah on Rose Tyler in the epsiode ‘Father’s Day’: “Rose Tyler is human. She’s made like all humans, to nurture and save, and she sees her father and she has a chance to save him… So she saves him from the car hitting him, and all hell breaks loose. It cracks a moment in time, where these demons, these gargoyles, can come to life.”
On the Doctor and instant time travel, specifically from the episode ‘The Big Bang’: “He can go like that (clicks fingers) and he’s with one person, and he can be having a conversation with that, and he can go like that (clicks fingers) and he’s back in another time having a conversation with someone else. ‘Oh! I forgot to say something’ (clicks fingers), and he’s back somewhere else!”
On Doctor Who and its effect on viewers: “What the writers of Doctor Who manage is to broaden our perceptions, broaden our beliefs, broaden our horizons. They get it brilliantly correct every time.”
• Screen caps of Toyah from Timey-Wimey coming soon. (Thanks to Paul Lomas)
The Destinations Of Doctor Who: BBC America
Sat 25th August: 9.00pm/Sun 25th Aug: 0.00am
Leave the beach towel at home and take a trip to the end of the earth – literally. From the Starship UK to one very haunted hotel, you won’t find the destinations of “Doctor Who” in any guidebook.
More press for Toyah’s visit to Wynne’s Cakes & Coffee Shop. ‘The Sentinel’ included a great photo of Toyah at this week’s VIP Night, with the fantastic Wynne’s cake, in their Photos Of The Week yesterday. Visit Wynne’s Cakes & Coffee Shop Facebook for more info.
