The CD, ‘Live at Kings Place’, a Weekend Guitar Trio and Toyah collaboration, is launched via two concerts in Estonia this month.
The live CD is the 8th album by WGT, celebrating their 20th birthday this year. It contains the second set of the concert, plus “Boredom Is A Killer” from the first set. The 2-track live recording was restored and mastered by Markus Reuter & Lee Fletcher (Unsung Productions).
The album will be presented in Tallinn (9th of May) and Tartu (15th of May). At these concerts, WGT will be joined on stage by the Estonian poet/singer/rapper/producer Jarek Kasar.
• Further information on the genesis of this collaboration, the new live album and launch gigs at Weekend Guitar Trio’s website.
British singer Toyah Willcox has taken aim at the Hollywood stars who donned punk-inspired outfits for this year’s (13) Costume Institute Gala in New York on Monday (06 May 13), calling their faux rocker outfits “too manufactured”.
Anne Hathaway, Miley Cyrus and Sienna Miller were among the glamorous A-listers who tackled the evening’s punk theme in studded garments and dramatic make-up at fashion’s biggest night, also known as the Met Ball.
But Willcox, who found fame just as the punk movement took off in the 1970s, is adamant their designer gowns missed the mark since punk style was all about do-it-yourself creations made with little to no money.
In a column for Britain’s The Sun, she writes, “As the Met Ball celebrated and adorned itself with super-rich guests dressed in mandatory punk theme, A-listers arrived in their saccharin designer versions of punk chic. The A-listers at the ball… were all too manufactured. But here in the U.K. the punk movement has a far more working class power – a power for me that could never be mimicked by designer labels…”
Toyah has written an article due to be published in ‘The Sun’ today.
The piece is in response to The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York exhibition Punk: Chaos to Couture, running from today to 14th August. This will possibly only be available in the print edition of the paper.
• Jubilee: A rare-ish photo of Jordan and Toyah was recently listed on Ebay.
• Stamford Advocate: The Original Punks: Circa 1980: British actress and pop singer Toyah Willcox, lead singer of the punk band Toyah.
• Chester Chronicle: Toyah Willcox stars in Hormonal Housewives at Crewe’s Lyceum Theatre: There was the feisty, whip-cracking heroine of Calamity Jane, then a femme fatale devil in high-heeled boots in Vampire’s Rock. Now Toyah Willcox is one of a trio of ‘hormonal housewives’ in the show of the same name which visits Crewe’s Lyceum Theatre next week.
• The Mirror: Trending Today: Toyah Willcox · Robert Fripp · Richard Hammond · Harry Potter · Rod Stewart.
• Twitter: Toyah tweeted earlier today that the Autumn tour dates will be announced very, very soon – London, Manchester, Bristol, Newcastle, Wolverhampton, Brighton and more.
• This is Lincolnshire: Housewives get personal about all things female: The Hormonal Housewives are back on stage and in discussion, getting up close and humorously personal about all things female, with their spring national tour.
• Daily Track: Toyah was the “daily track” for four days running this week … ‘It’s A Mystery’, ‘Thunder In The Mountains’, ‘Danced’, and ending with ‘I Want To Be Free’ on Tuesday.
• Worcester News: Win a pair of tickets to see Hormonal Housewives at Chelmsford Civic Theatre!
• As everyone knows Toyah and Robert guested on tonight’s All Star Mr & Mrs on ITV. It’s now available to watch online (for UK residents only) at ITV Player for the next 28 days. It’s also available at UTV Player.
• The programme will also be repeated on ITV this coming Saturday at 12.30pm.
• STV Player are using a great photo of Toyah in their index of episodes of the series. View here.
• All Star Mr & Mrs Facebook: Backstage with singer Toyah Willcox & husband, guitarist Robert Fripp! – Congrats to Toyah & Robert, they won £5,000 for St. Richard’s Hospice, Worcester.
• Overnight viewing figures for tonight’s edition will be announced tomorrow. Last week’s programme was watched by almost four million people, though that will probably be over 5m when the final figures are released.
• Those Twitter folks were agog, tweeting: “Toyah Willcox & hubby are just so adorable!!“, “Awwww.. How sweet are Toyah Wilcox and her hubby Robert Fripp” and someone who doesn’t know that Toyah is only 54!!, “I want to be like Robert and Toyah when I’m old“… etc.
• The power of a prime time TV appearance. In the couple of hours after All Star Mr & Mrs aired tonight Dreamscape has had FIVE times as many visitors as it usually does.
• The last fortnight has been quite entertaining. Every time I’ve searched for Toyah news online there have been Fripp/King Crimson fans aghast at this programme lol!
Famed for her ever-changing hair colour, dramatic make-up and outlandish outfits, singer, songwriter and actress Toyah Willcox scored several chart hits in the 70s and 80s, and starred in Jubilee, one of the most influential punk-inspired movies.
Toyah announced info about the upcoming tour in her May blog yesterday: The autumn tour is shaping up and we should be announcing the dates any day now. London, Manchester and Bristol are solid, we are now awaiting confirmation on a few other dates before we announce. We have decided to keep it selective and to main venues as I have a TV series to shoot in the autumn, but there will be enough venues for everyone to reach and to follow us around the country. The tour set will include songs from LOVE IS THE LAW, CRIMSON QUEEN, ANTHEM, CHANGELING and SHEEP FARMING, in that order of priority.
Toyah also mentions the possibility of a tour in 2014: Next year I might tour CRIMSON QUEEN, in it’s own right, especially if I can pin SIMON DARLOW down to record the follow up and to come and do some dates too. CQ is a fantastic album and it has had such a great response in the industry I’d like to give it the time it deserves. But this isn’t my priority just yet.
• View a larger version of Dreamscape’s LITL Tour teaser here or by clicking on the image.
One of Toyah’s greatest ballads, and a standout song on the Love Is The Law album… Martian Cowboy… Will it be included in the set list of the Autumn anniversary tour? View a larger version of Dreamscape’s MC image here. (Thanks to Andi for the HQ photo)
Toyah’s May blog is now available to read at The Official Toyah Willcox Website. There are also some new photos from the recording of All Star Mr & Mrs in a news update.
Vote for your top albums of 1983 in the fourth Slicing Up Eyeballs poll. ‘Love Is The Law’, celebrating its 30th anniversary, is included as an option. Voting closes on 24th May and the results will be announced at the beginning of June. Click below to participate in the poll.
Toyah and Robert’s edition of All Star Mr & Mrs airs tomorrow night on ITV. There’s another opportunity to catch the programme, it’s repeated on Saturday afternoon on ITV. It will also be available on ITV Player after tomorrow night. Click below to browse all our Mr & Mrs news.
All Star Mr & Mrs: ITV: Wednesday 8th May: 8.00pm All Star Mr & Mrs: ITV: Saturday 11th May: 12.30pm
Phillip Schofield presents a new series of the classic game show as three celebrity couples battle it out to win £30,000 for their chosen charity. Who knows the most about their other half? The couples hoping to win big this time are TV presenter Gabby Logan and husband Kenny Logan, singer Toyah Willcox and husband, guitarist Robert Fripp, and EastEnders actor Jake Wood and wife Alison Wood. (Also airing on ITV +1)
Dreamscape is Remembering 1983 all this year! Toyah guested on ITV’s The Saturday Show (the successor to TISWAS) that year, co-hosting the programme with Isla St Clair. Click below for larger versions of the screen caps. (Thanks to Andi for this great Toyah footage)
• Mayhem: The 2013 reprint of the 2005 CD reissue of Toyah’s 1985 Safari album ‘Mayhem’ is included in the latest Burning Shed newsletter: This fascinating album gives an insight into late 70s/early 80s works in progress by Toyah and comprises finished songs not included on EPs and albums.
• TCM Turner Classic Movies: A Jarman double-bill aired on TCM over the weekend, including another showing of The Tempest, with Toyah as Miranda.
• This is Local London: Scarlett Fever: Rockabilly band launch debut album with free gig at New Wimbledon Studios: Kent trio Scarlett Rae and the Cherry Reds play original tracks from their album Crash Landing and a selection of cover songs at the gig. The band, formed in 2011, is made up of lead vocalist and double bassist Andee Price, drummer Chris Wong and guitarist Ben Green. Wong is also the musical director for 1980s star Toyah Willcox…
• WFMU: Dark Night of the Soul with Julie: Playlist from May 2, 2013: An emotional trainwreck in fluffy bunny slippers… ‘Out Of The Blue’ from Dreamchild was included on Julie’s show playlist on Thursday night.
• WFMU: Toyah Special: Julie’s A Celebration of the Crimson Queen from May 2011 is still available to listen to online. A transcript of the Toyah Special is available here.
A new interview with Toyah, published by the Hereford Times on Friday.
A great night out in prospect at The Courtyard as Toyah Willcox stars in Hormonal Housewives
Think of Toyah Willcox and “housewife” isn’t a word that immediately springs to mind – punk princess, yes, award-winning actress, certainly – but she’s currently relishing the role as she plays one of the eponymous Hormonal Housewives of Julie Coombe and John McIsaac’s hugely successful show, which arrives at The Courtyard in Hereford on Wednesday, May 15.
“I took the part because it’s a very funny script and I adore doing comedy,” she says. “Before this the only comedy I’d done was Shakespeare and Arthur Smith, which is very different.
It’s a genre I really love, and this show delivers a laugh at least every five lines. It’s one of the most outrageous pieces of theatre, very very naughty, but with a big smile on its face.”
One of the famous “Toyah bonnets” by Gary Price. This was the first one (an MG) from 1981 and, apparently, he did numerous others over the next couple of years. He got stopped by a policeman in the early hours of Christmas Day 1981 while travelling home from the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane ‘Good Morning Universe’ gig and when ‘I Want To Be Free’ was in the charts kids used to dance round the car at traffic lights. By Spring 1982 he was on the dole and working on a portfolio to apply to go to Chelsea Art College. At this time he couldn’t afford to run the car so it was kept in a garage.
By around mid 1982 Gary was working on a third bonnet and was planning another two – he was hoping when they were all complete that there would be a photo session done with Toyah. Unfortunately this didn’t happen. It sounds as though there were various artworks designed for subsequent bonnets. This first one was in loads of magazines (at least eight by early ’82) and on Nationwide and TISWAS!!!
• Click here to view a larger version. (Thanks to Andi | Photo by Tara Nowy)
A Gallery update: A trio of great shots of Toyah live at Kremlin, Belfast in August 2004. Click below to view larger versions of these. (Thanks to Jonathan David Smyth)
A couple of screen caps from last night’s All Star Mr & Mrs end-credits preview of next week’s programme, featuring Toyah and Robert. The first programme of the new series had a viewing figure of 4 million. Click below to view larger versions.
All Star Mr & Mrs: ITV: Wednesday 8th May: 8.00pm All Star Mr & Mrs: ITV +1: Wednesday 8th May: 9.00pm
Phillip Schofield presents a new series of the classic game show as three celebrity couples battle it out to win £30,000 for their chosen charity. Who knows the most about their other half? The couples hoping to win big this time are TV presenter Gabby Logan and husband Kenny Logan, singer Toyah Willcox and husband, guitarist Robert Fripp, and EastEnders actor Jake Wood and wife Alison Wood.
The CD, ‘Live at Kings Place’, a Weekend Guitar Trio and Toyah collaboration, is launched via two concerts in Estonia this month.
• Jubilee: A rare-ish photo of Jordan and Toyah was recently listed on Ebay.
