Dreamscape | The Toyah Willcox Fansite

It’s Chameleon Release Day Eve… Less than 24 hours until one of the finest ever Toyah compilations is released, and there have been many since that first Toyah retrospective vinyl album, cassette and video back in 1984 – Which was, of course, Toyah! Toyah! Toyah! All The Hits.

Toyah has worked her socks off recently promoting the album via numerous radio, TV and press interviews. Scroll back through our recent news posts or visit Toyah’s official website, Facebook, Instagram and You Tube for much more.

Toyah guested on BBC Radio 4’s Front Row on Tuesday evening.

She is also guesting all this week on BBC Radio 2’s The Vernon Kay Show revealing her ‘Tracks Of My Years’ daily.

• Listen to both at BBC Sounds: Front Row | Vernon Kay/TOMY.

A new interview with Toyah, from The Sunday Post. This was also included in P.S. magazine, with Toyah on the cover.

Toyah Willcox on the 50 years of hard graft that have kept her at the top of her game

It’s Wednesday lunchtime and I am telling Toyah Willcox my own favourite Toyah story.

I remember going to see you as part of a 1980s revival night in Glasgow, alongside Belinda Carlisle, Go West and various members of Spandau Ballet, I say. This must have been back in the late 1990s, early 2000s. I’m a bit hazy on the date, I admit.

But Toyah’s not. “2002,” she interrupts emphatically.

Ah, right. Anyway, you came bounding on to the stage and exclaimed: “Glasgow, I’ve come for your men!” And a woman in the crowd shouted back: “Take them! Take them!”

“I remember it happening!” Toyah tells me gleefully over Zoom.

Speak to the singer, actor and presenter and it’s quickly clear that she remembers everything. Dates, chart positions, people. Her memory is a Google search engine containing the records of nearly 50 years in showbiz. And there’s a lot to remember.

• Continue reading at The Sunday Post.

Still Bouncing: Toyah on 46 Years of Music, Strictly, and Her New Greatest Hits

It is 46 years since Toyah bounced onto the music scene as the lead of a band that took her name. With her distinctive vocals, captivating image, and lyrical prowess, it’s hardly surprising that she continues to thrive 46 years later. After experiencing a significant surge during the Covid-19 lockdowns, Toyah ventured into Strictly and has been on the road multiple times in the past few years. As the touring continues, she has teamed up with Cherry Red for a fully comprehensive Greatest Hits collection – Chameleon – which not only celebrates the hits but also offers real insight. We caught up with Toyah to learn more…

J: Hello Toyah, How are you?

T: I’m good. How are you, Jeremy?

J: I’m very well, very well indeed, thank you. Thank you so much for joining us today. Now, the important thing we need to know is—are you ready to share some juice with us?

T: Okay? Oh, I just hope my mind is in gear—but you know, cross your fingers, Jeremy. Anything could happen!

J: Let’s see what happens. Here we go. We want to take you back to your childhood for now—what was your initial ambition? Did you always want to be a performer?

T: In the beginning, when I didn’t yet understand the difference between boys and girls, I wanted to be a muscle man—which amused everybody. Then I wanted to be an astronaut. But very quickly, by the time I was seven and had seen The Sound of Music about seven times, I knew I wanted to become a singer and an actress.

• Continue reading at Chimeo.

In early August Toyah recorded a number of interviews with Greatest Hits Radio, Greatest Hits Radio 80s, Absolute Radio 80s, Virgin Radio and BBC Radio 2 among others. These are airing now and also in the lead up to the release of Chameleon: The Very Best Of Toyah.

• A couple of great shots of Toyah below, one with Kate Thornton from a couple of the interviews. More details about the Greatest Hits Radio interviews here. Watch interview clips here and here. (Photos © Greatest Hits Radio)

Toyah guested on The Scott Mills’ Breakfast Show on BBC Radio Two on Friday 8th August (on what would have been my Dad’s 91st birthday)… Toyah Willcox, Craig David and Alex Jones on Big Guest Friday!

• Listen to the show at BBC Sounds – just 9 days left to listen! (Photo © BBC)

Toyah guested on BBC Breakfast a couple of weeks ago. Toyah talks It’s A Mystery, Chameleon, the Adam Ant tour,  Songs & Stories, Craig Astley, Sunday Lunch, social media and more… Watch some of the interview by clicking below.

Toyah guested on Season 1, Ep. 85 (Parts 1&2) of Spooning With Mark Wogan this week.

Singer, actress and activist, Toyah Willcox joins Spooning With Mark Wogan this week. Toyah opens up about the tenacity to getting the role of Monkey in Quadrophenia, the scandals that affected Masterchef and Strictly Come Dancing and being the voice of The Teletubbies and Brum.

• Listen to both episodes by clicking below. See footage of Toyah guesting at Instagram here, here and here. (Photo © Mark Wogan)

Interview with Toyah at Rewind-on-Sea, Dreamland, Margate on 14th June 2025. Toyah talks about her stint on Strictly, going ghost hunting in Margate’s Theatre Royal, Live Aid memories, childhood holidays and much more.

Toyah Willcox talks Margate memories, It’s A Mystery, touring and more ahead of Rewind by the Sea at Dreamland

Singer, actor, writer and presenter Toyah Willcox heads to Margate to join other 80s stars for Rewind-by-Sea, being held at Dreamland for the first time this June.

Her memorable single It’s A Mystery exploded into the charts in 1981 and was so popular with fans – including a 12 year old me- that production struggled to keep pace.

That single is just one part of an all-reaching 50 year career in music, film, theatre, TV, radio and YouTube, ranging in diversity from 80s punk princess and Quadrophenia to Songs of Praise and Posh Pop.

I was lucky enough to talk to Toyah about the upcoming show, memories from Margate and what’s ahead for the “small woman in a big industry.”

Some 50 years since her career began, Toyah Willcox is still a powerhouse, radiating energy, creativity and that famous rebellious streak which earned her the title of ‘punk princess.’

Toyah, 67, has worked across the gamut of creative industries, joining the National Theatre aged 18 in 1976 and appearing in director Derek Jarman’s 1978 film Jubilee alongside punk scene figures Siouxsie Sioux, Adam Ant and Richard O’Brien.

She took the role of ‘Monkey’ in the 1979 cult classic Quadrophenia and signed to Safari Records, releasing a debut single “Victims of the Riddle”, which topped the UK Indie Chart in 1979.

Toyah said: “It allowed me to meet musicians. Where I come from in Birmingham, there were not many opportunities for women. Being in London with the National Theatre, I could put a band together. I always wanted to sing and write songs and music and I knew I had to do it while I was still in my teens. The punk movement was very welcoming to people who did not look like Olivia Newton John or Farah Fawcett, like supermodels, which I didn’t. I’m 5ft tall, powerfully built and punk suited me.”

• Continue reading at The Isle Of Thanet News.

To celebrate Toyah’s birthday on Sunday, Classic Pop re-visited their 2021 Posh Pop interview…

• Read at Classic Pop. See also: RF: On the occasion of Toyah’s birthday, down the garden with Sweetlips Willcox…

Classic Rock/Prog Magazine has, this week, re-published their great 2020 interview with Toyah. She talks Robert Fripp, Toyah & The Humans, Bill Rieflin, her music influences, career and more.

“I’ve heard Robert Fripp say no to everybody. David Bowie, Peter Gabriel, you name it, he always has an excuse not to play… He’s a wonderful husband but professionally it’s done me no favours”: Toyah Willcox is more than just Mrs King Crimson

From post-punk icon and award-winning female solo artist to becoming regarded as just the prog mastermind’s wife, her rebellious creative energy is fired by Roxy Music, Devo, The Tubes and all things off the wall

Toyah Willcox began her career as an actor in Quadrophenia and Quatermass, and as a post-punk in the 80s declared she wanted to be free. In the 21st century she teamed up with the late Bill Rieflin, Markus Reuter and her husband Robert Fripp, and was even In The Court Of The Crimson Queen. In 2020 – just as Toyyah And Robert’s Sunday Lunch presented the pair in a new, light-hearted light – we asked the question: how prog is she?

Most people think they know Toyah Willcox. She’s rooted in popular perception as the rebel queen of 80s new wave, responsible for mega-hits like It’s A Mystery, I Want To Be Free and Thunder In The Mountains. But there’s a whole other, less-celebrated side to her – the edgy adventurer, surveying the worlds of improv, art rock and experimental music.

“I’ve always needed to walk away from the predictable,” she tells Prog. “I love doing the 80s festivals and the touring shows, and my audience turns up in their thousands, which I’m so grateful for. But there’s also a part of me that is very off-the-wall. And I need to feed that.”

• Continue reading at Classic Rock/Prog Magazine.

Strictly star Toyah Willcox reveals why she was strip-searched in Sweden

We catch up with singer, actress and TV presenter Toyah Willcox on her top holiday spots and why she was regularly strip-searched on arrival at certain destinations during her early years touring.

Earliest holiday memory?
Playing on the estuary between Rock and Padstow in Cornwall, aged two or three. My siblings and I spent all day in an out of the water and I snacked on everything from candyfloss to cockles.

First trip abroad?
Jersey when I was seven. I fell in love with the island. Among the highlights was visiting Devil’s Hole, a 200ft deep crater, but I was disappointed that we didn’t get to meet the Devil.

Earliest touring memory?
My frustration as a vegetarian on learning that everything food-wise in Germany arrived with bacon, even the cabbage.

How’s touring changed?
On my first UK tour in 1977 I travelled to gigs on a motorbike; now I drive in my car or have a driver.

• Continue reading at the Daily Mail. Browse our Daily Mail archive of Toyah content here.

An excerpt from a new interview with Toyah, from Blitzed Magazine, talking playing live, her back-catalogue reissues and Strictly.

From princess of punk to accomplished stage actress, Toyah Willcox is a uniquely gifted, well-loved and respected performer. Charismatic, outspoken and very passionate, she is one of Britain’s most beloved household names of stage, screen and radio. The hit singles ‘It’s A Mystery’, ‘I Want to Be Free’, ‘Brave New World’ and platinum-selling albums Anthem and The Changeling confirmed her status as one of the most significant talents of the 1980s. In 1982 she won the Best Female Singer at the British Rock & Pop Awards (which later became The Brits).

In recent years, Toyah has seen her career take on even more challenges with TV, live festivals, re-releases of classic albums, as well as awards and new material too. For issue 18 of Blitzed, we spoke to Toyah about her legacy and kicked off by asking her how she would summarise 2024 in terms of the highs and lows?

The year has been very rewarding, and it’s satisfying to be seen and regarded as an artist of influence in the music industry. I will remember 2024 for the rewards after decades of work. Glastonbury will always be a high point in my life. It is a magical festival that takes place on a very powerful piece of land and the audience add to that. No other experience matches it, it is a truly loving caring community where music is the very heart and soul of everything. The lows, there aren’t really any other than seeing my brilliant 78-year-old husband move into a more fragile time in his life but that is inevitable.

• Continue reading at Blitzed Magazine. Read the full interview with Toyah in issue 18 of Blitzed Magazine.

Toyah Willcox reveals ‘main focus in life’ – and it isn’t husband Robert Fripp

Singer Toyah Willcox says she loved every moment of her recent appearance on Strictly. Now, she’s looking forward to joining Craig Revel Horwood’s 1980s musical and releasing a new album

Anyone who witnessed her spirited jive to Nutbush City Limits on the last series of Strictly Come Dancing would know that singer Toyah Willcox is not short on energy. And a quick glance at her schedule for 2025 would suggest she has no plans to slow down.

She will join the cast of NOW That’s What I Call A Musical next month, there’s a new album in the offing and if that wasn’t enough, she recently bought an old 1890s industrial water mill on the River Avon, which she is renovating and restoring back to its original structure.

“I love it,” she enthuses. “I spent all day yesterday removing trees that washed up in the floods; it’s a really physical project.

“I’ve always got something on the go. Anyone that sits still can’t bear being with me. I adore working and I always will. My main focus in life is my work. I think if I didn’t work, the boredom would eat me alive.”

• Continue reading at The Express.

BBC Strictly 2024 star Toyah Willcox makes ‘very shy’ admission

Toyah Willcox has revealed that she had to confront her “vulnerability” by showing off her legs on ‘Strictly Come Dancing’. The 66 year old ‘I Want to Be Free’ singer, who is no stranger to performing in front of a global audience, admitted to having some reservations about stepping onto the BBC show’s dance floor with professional partner Neil Jones.

Speaking to Metro, she confessed: “I am very shy about my legs. My legs have never been great, but they are strong, brilliant, and work for me. I had to expose that vulnerability. ”

She also mentioned her discomfort with the footwear, saying: “The shoes didn’t suit me greatly. I don’t tend to wear strappy shoes. I was having to do things that I would never normally do, and this is why I went into ‘Strictly.'”

• Continue reading this Metro article at www.msn.com.

Christmas 2016, and Toyah was the cover star of Birmingham Living magazine – issue dated January 2017 but published in December 2016 – with a three-page interview feature accompanied by some great shots of Toyah.

Toyah Willcox’s colourful career has taken her from Punk Princess to Splash, Teletubbies and I’m a Celebrity. She never ceases to surprise…

There is something very endearing about Toyah Willcox. She is one in a long tradition of creative, sometimes downright cussed, free spirits who mellow into a kind of national treasure with the passing years. Say what you like about Toyah, you could never pigeon-hole her.

The original wild-child punk princess is credited with starting the Goth movement, has voiced the Teletubbies, champions the National Trust and survived the Celebrity Jungle. And this multi-talented ball of energy has now been officially honoured by her home city with a star on Birmingham’s Walk of Stars.

Being Toyah, she challenges the word mellow. “I don’t think I’m mellowing,” she says, “though I do find things that freaked me out in the past don’t bother me anymore. And I’m working harder than ever.” No kidding! This is a one-woman phenomenon with a record company, six movies on the go and a touring band. A typical day starts at 6am, involves driving across the country, gigging, presenting and writing before final getting into bed at 4. Not that she’d change a thing.

• The magazine is still available online. Continue to Birmingham Living at Issuu.com to read the full interview.

Following their interview with Toyah in 2021, and talking Toyah in September, Toyah & Robert guested on Word In Your Ear‘s latest Podcast – How Toyah & Robert’s kitchen show became an Xmas rock’n’roll ding-dong.

• Watch/Listen at You Tube or at Apple Podcasts.

Toyah and Robert guested on yesterday’s Love Your Weekend with Alan Titchmarsh on ITV. A great interview with Toyah included clips from Top Of The Pops, The Corn Is Green and The Isle Of Wight Festival. Toyah talked Strictly, working with Katharine Hepburn and George Cukor and much more. Robert then joined the conversation to chat about David Bowie, touring, and more.

The show is repeated next Saturday morning on ITV.

Love Your Weekend: ITV: Saturday 23rd November: 7.30am
Series 6. Episode 30. Joining Alan at Manor Farm are entrepreneur James Middleton, singer Toyah Willcox and composer Debbie Wiseman. Garden designer Chris Hull has advice on hedging and there is a masterclass on what wine goes with what for Sunday roasts.

A great retro interview with Toyah – from The Lady in 2014- has recently been republished online…

Toyah Willcox … is an English singer. She has had 13 Top 40 singles, including It’s A Mystery and I Want To Be Free, and has released 20 albums. She is also an actress and has written a number of books. Toyah and her husband divide their time between London and Worcestershire.

What are you working on at the moment?
I am on tour all year with my band, Toyah. I am also touring an acoustic show with my American band, The Humans. I have three movies to shoot this year – in the first there’s no dialogue as we all ‘speak’ like apes… it will make sense in the end.

When were you at your happiest?
Why ‘were’? I am happy now. Happiness is an art form. I find it challenging at times but the past is gone. My motto is never look back – but my 40s were fantastic.

What is your greatest fear?
In the last five years I have lost my parents and the pain is overbearing. My great fear is losing my husband and our friends. I can’t imagine being happy without my hubby.

What is your earliest memory?
My mother putting a towelling nappy on me and the super size of the safety pin she used to secure it.

What do you most dislike about yourself?
I have less patience and sympathy for difficult people. I am on stage most nights and my audiences are wonderful, but there may be one person who has had too much to drink and disrupts the show.

• Continue reading at The Lady.

EdFringe | Trafford Tanzi starring Toyah Willcox! The play that changed my life – Kevin Maguire

Having given Andrew Pierce the opportunity to share the story of the musical that changed his life – it was Mamma Mia! you may recall – it seemed only fair to offer Kevin Maguire the same courtesy, especially as the pair’s Edinburgh Fringe show, Andrew Pierce vs Kevin Maguire (Assembly Rooms, 8-10 August), pits them against each other. So, in the interest of maintaining an even playing field, here, Maguire shares the piece of theatre that ‘changed his life’… Toyah Willcox in Trafford Tanzi.

‘Time erased exactly why I went to see punk princess Toyah Willcox hitting a wrestling ring’s canvass during 10 rounds over three hours, yet the exhilaration – mine, not hers, just to be clear – is as fresh today as that evening 41 years ago and counting. You never forget the magical impact of your first play, the memory sticking like first day at school, first day at work, first football game, first kiss.
I was a late debutant to the theatre, growing up in a Tyneside working class home where money was tight and the stage a social world away from our life. There’s no need to get out an unfeasibly small violin. Childhood is recalled happily even if now I recognise it could’ve been enriched culturally.

Never going to the York Theatre Royal during three years at the city’s university is explained blushingly by hanging with a group, at least one of whom subsequently came to see Willcox in her cartoonish outfit, who, like me, preferred football, playing the fool and doing nothing.

• Continue reading at Must See Theatre.