• The 8 – 21 July 1982 issue of Smash Hits has been added to Like Punk Never Happened. No major Toyah content but there is a Bitz! news article on the release of the Maneaters’ ‘Nine to Five’ 7″ single (something Toyah or Adam Ant weren’t very happy about at the time).
• A couple of interesting tv related Toyah tweets this week: “Meeting head of Vintage TV 2 discuss poss series.” and “I’ve had the most bizarre tv offer of my life. If it happens it will make headlines!“.
• Lärwi, of ‘The Toyah Willcox Interview Archive’, has started a new You Tube channel dedicated to All Toyah, and following on from the recent ‘Radio Chorley’ addition to the Archive, Lärwi has also added the full transcript of the ‘BBC Radio Leicester’ Tony Wadsworth Show interview.
• The SAS Band (Spike’s All Star) have launched a re-designed website. Toyah has guested with the band in concert a number of times and is included on the “Artists” page.
• Return later today for some Toyah goodies: I’ll be adding the four-page Smirnoff feature from 1980, a couple more rare Toyah photos plus another very rare interview, this one from 1982!
• Jelly, the band which includes Stevie Bray of the original Toyah (Sheep Farming/Blue Meaning) line up, play their very first gig this weekend: The gig is at the The Water Rats, Grays Inn Road, Kings Cross. Visit the events page at Facebook for more info and details on how to be added to the guest list. Check out Jelly’s Facebook page for links to some of their songs.
• A full transcript of Toyah’s recent ‘Radio Chorley’ interview at Blackpool Pride is now available at The Toyah Willcox Interview Archive.
• Kevin Tucker’s brilliant Mermaid Days website, photos and memories of Toyah in Trafford Tanzi at the Mermaid Theatre in 1983, has been resurrected as a Facebook group. The site ran for a number of years through the Noughties and it’s great to see it return.
• A Quadrophenia Club Night, in association with Falkirk Steeple Scooter Club, is taking place at Falkirk Town Hall on Saturday 18th August. You’ll be in for a great night of non-stop entertainment starting with the the screening in magnificent Blu-ray of Quadrophenia (first time on a Falkirk cinema screen for 33 years!!) and then dance the rest of the night away in a re-creation of the legendary Goldhawk Club where Alex Carnaby will be playing all the authentic sounds of the sixties, Truly not to be missed! View further info and ticket details here. (Thanks to Mark Leonard)
• Toyah will be the first star on it in a fortnight’s time, and the inauguration of the King’s Heath ‘Walk of Fame’ Commemorative Music Plate took place last Wednesday in the town. The ‘Walk of Fame’ has been brought about by the collaboration of the Birmingham Civic Society and Birmingham Music Archive together with the City Council.
• Gig Junkies: King’s Heath Walk of Fame Commemorative Music Plate – 27th June 2012: Wednesday June 27th, 2012 saw a nostalgic bustle of Birmingham’s silver-haired rock n’ rollers gathering outside what is now ‘Cash Converters’, York Road, Kings Heath. But, not so long ago it was the legendary Ritz Ballroom…
• Birmingham Mail: Plaque unveiled in King’s Heath: It may now be a pawnbrokers – but this Birmingham store’s 21st century appearance belies its rich musical heritage…
• Sun Dried Sparrows: Quadrophenia, my first time.
• A print of a painting of ‘Ieya/The Blue Meaning’ Toyah, by artist Julie L Harwood, is currently up for auction at eBay.
• View a nice selection of photos from this week’s Sleeping Beauty panto launch in Canterbury over at Tim Stubbings Photography.
• Another press article on the panto at This is Kent.
• The Guardian: Your next box set: Shoestring: A new review of a box set that’s been available for almost a year? Toyah/Toola receives a namecheck. (Thanks to Stephen Bennett Troake)
• The Tempest on Blu-ray: More info on the forthcoming release at Kino. Still no artwork though!
• Psychics Network: Toyah’s full appearance on Bio’s Our Psychic Family, which originally aired in December 2008. View screen caps from this here.
• Yesterday Limahl tweeted a photo of himself and Toyah from a private show that they played over the recent Jubilee weekend: “Great photo with Toyah and the super cool ‘Madhen’ lead singers at a private 40th B’day party gig recently ;-) Toyah sang Neverending Story with me for an 80’s poptastic moment – fab night“. (Photo © Limahl)
• A good response, via Twitter, yesterday to Toyah’s Mylor Sessions gig on Saturday, with tweets from people saying how much they enjoyed the concert.
• Toyah was included in the lastest Connections (Show 127): ‘It’s A Mystery’ was lodged between Hazel O’Connor’s ‘Will You’ and Susan Cadogan’s ‘Hurts So Good’.
• Rabbit… Rabbit: WillyFred has his very own thread over at the ‘Rabbit Rehome’ forum. View here.
• Toyah talked David Bowie in The Stardust Memories on ‘BBC Radio 4’ this morning. The radio documentary marked the 40th anniversary of the release of the ‘Ziggy Stardust’ album. Toyah tweeted about it: “Turned BBC Radio 4 on whilst travelling & I was on talking Bowie! Can’t remember recording it!”. Unfortunately this isn’t available at ‘BBC iPlayer’ but view more info on it here.
• ‘BBC Radio 2 – Now Playing’: Toyah – I Want to Be Free – Tweeted by “now playing” earlier this afternoon!
• The Changeling by Melissa Mailer-Yates: “First batch of Toyah prints arrived yesterday, simply awesome tone matching and detail, fabulous 290gsm paper, great work by Ginger in Warwick, they’re on their way people x“.
• Jelly: ‘Get Out Of Jail’ at You Tube, ‘Say Hello’ at You Tube.
• Toyah tweeted a great photo yesterday from a ‘National Trust’ photo shoot that took place at Croome Park, Worcestershire this week. (Photo © Toyah Willcox)
• Tracey Ullman’s Toyah impersonation, from the first series of Three Of A Kind, has just been uploaded to You Tube.
• The Criterion Collection release a new Quadrophenia Region 1 DVD and Blu-ray in August, with all new artwork. They now have a page dedicated to the release at their website.
• As previously mentioned, The Tempest is also being released on Region 1 Blu-ray in August. No artwork has been released for this yet.
• Toyah was played on today’s David Jensen Double Top 20 on ‘Smooth Radio’. David was counting down the Top 20 from this week in 1981.
• Please return to Falling To Earth over the weekend, as I’ll be adding a great selection of photos of Toyah from last weekend’s ‘Blackpool Pride’ PA (courtesy of the very generous Ray Sears).
• More Toyah imagery to look forward to: Toyah tweeted earlier this week: “Doing shoot with Dean Stockings 2 b submitted 2 National Portrait Gallery! Its a competition. Trying strange idea!”
• The Sun: 10 Looks That Rocked My World: One woman on the changes in her appearance: Monica Troughton opens her photo album here to reveal everything from orange spikes to a glossy black bob and even a Toyah-esque mullet: She says: “I loved Toyah Willcox and began morphing into her. I dyed my hair orange and had it chopped into a mullet.”
• Punk’s Dead: An interesting article, at the ‘Bitterness Personified’ blog, on Simon Barker’s recent ‘Punk’s Dead’ party, which Jordan (the punk legend from Jubilee, not Katie Price) attended: “She’s 57-years old now, silver-haired, mumsy, looks a bit like Su Pollard“.
• Scott McAulay has added a great I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here! photo collage to his blog this week. I’m pretty sure the photo of Toyah was taken a few years after she guested in the jungle. Excellent photo anyway!
• I’m thinking of *rebranding* (stop sniggering!): Dropping the “Falling To Earth” and using “Toyah Willcox News” as the site name. Not totally sure yet, does anyone have any thoughts?
• Toyah plays Blackpool Pride today, with a live PA at the North Pier Theatre at the North Pier Promenade. Visit the Blackpool Pride website.
• According to Touch FM Toyah will be attending the Evesham River Festival 2012, taking place 6th – 8th July: Look out for famous faces from stage and TV including Prunella Scales, Timothy West, David Suchet and Toyah Willcox.
• Behind The Lens: There’s a short article on Dean Stockings at the f20-12 website. The forthcoming f20-12 exhibition takes place between 26th June and 12th July at Strand Gallery, London. View further info here.
• f20-12 also features photos of Toyah from the opening night of last year’s ‘More Guys Hanging’ exhibition by GPN. View here.
• After playing Mad in Jubilee in 1977 Derek Jarman wanted Toyah to play Joan of Arc in a new film he was planning to make. This isn’t just a rumour, Toyah talked about it when she guested at ‘Derek Jarman: A Celebration’ at The Tate in October 2001. Unfortunately Joan of Arc didn’t go past the planning stages but they worked together on The Tempest instead. View a larger version of our “Toyah of Arc” photo.
• Return to Falling To Earth soon for some screen caps from yesterday’s Saturday Cookbook.
• An interview with Phil Davis at the Mirror. This includes that iconic Quadrophenia photo!
• More new blog posts on Jubilee, from In The Dark, Film Fan and Random Ramblings, Thoughts and Fiction, The film is also showing this evening at 7pm at The Cube in Bristol.
• Toyah at BBC iPlayer: Hole In The Wall, with Toyah guesting, from November 2009, is available to watch online at iPlayer until Monday evening.
It’s the Diamond Jubilee Bank Holiday Weekend…
• Toyah guests on Saturday Cookbook on ITV1 tomorrow morning in a special edition celebrating the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee:
Saturday Cookbook: ITV1: Saturday 2nd June: 8.25am
Nadia Sawalha and Mark Sargeant are joined by chef Phil Vickery and Toyah Willcox to celebrate the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee.
• On Sunday Toyah plays Birmingham Pride, the UK’s largest LGBT two-day festival, being held on Saturday 2nd and Sunday 3rd June, or as the Brum Pride website says “The Queen’s Diamond Jubilee Bank Holiday Weekend”. Toyah appears at Bar Eden on Sunday.
• No doubt Derek Jarman’s Jubilee will be aired and watched in numerous places over the next few days: The two confirmed showings in the UK are at The ICA (6th June) and Nottingham Contemporary Arts Centre (5th June).
• Capital Celluloid 2012 – Day 158: Wed June 6: Jubilee (Jarman, 1978): ICA Cinema, 8.30pm: No more appropriate film could screen in Diamond Jubilee week.
• Gay Times: Derek Jarman’s Jubilee: With the Queen’s Jubilee bank holiday creeping closer and close and your schedules are getting tighter and tighter, we thought that now would be an opportune time to remind you of another Jubilee. In 1977 influential gay director Derek Jarman filmed a little punk gem of a film.
• Topman Generation: With the Golden Jubilee around the corner we recall Derek Jarman’s classic punk film. (Membership required)
• To Do List: To Jubilee Or Not To Jubilee? That Is The Question: A guide to ignoring/enjoying the Jubilee: Watch Derek Jarman’s cult punk classic Jubilee at the ICA | Wednesday 6th June at 2030.
• Whats on TV: Include a clip from Jubilee (“My Love Is Like A Red Red Rose”) in their latest “Whats on You Tube” feature.
• A few more screencaps from Florence & The Machine’s new ‘Spectrum’ video. After watching the full clip, co-directed by David LaChapelle, it’s difficult not to consider that it is influened by Toyah (Ieya, Brave New World) and Kate Bush. View the video here and larger versions of the caps here.
• Toyah mentioned a couple of weeks ago she had been asked to participate in a new Doctor Who documentary for ‘BBC America’. She tweeted today to say she was now filming this and her thoughts were full of plots, facts, Daleks and Cybermen!
• According to the Mylor Sessions website Toyah’s concert on Saturday 23rd June, at Tremayne Hall, is now sold out (75% of the tickets were bought in the first 24 hours of going on sale).
• What’s on TV include a clip from the 1990 BAFTA Awards in their latest “What’s on You Tube” feature, with someone you may just recognise presenting the award…
• Tweeted, by Producers, earlier this afternoon. A photo of Trevor Horn with Toyah, Janice Long and Paul Sexton at today’s recording of The Janice Long Review Show for ‘Vintage TV’. Producers are the band that includes Trevor and Lol Creme as members. (Photo © Producers)
• As well as taking great photos of Toyah, and this evening adding a review of her PA to their website, Music Mafia UK will soon be publishing an interview with Toyah too.
• As we previously mentioned, Nottingham Contemporary are showing Jubilee next week, in celebration of, what would have been, Derek Jarman’s 70th birthday. Read a new, and interesting, article on Jarman, by John Leighton, at the Nottingham Contemporary website.
• Toyah @ Twitter: Over the last few days Toyah has tweeted about writing for The Humans’ third album, a meeting with ‘Vintage TV’, the weather, Eurovision, and her visits to Cumbria and Minehead for gigs over the weekend. Visit Toyah’s Official Twitter page.
• A huge gallery of photos of Toyah at The Stroke Association Ball the weekend before last are now available to view/buy at the Ragsdale Photography website.
• Your Source Today: Win a pair of tickets to Audley End’s 80’s Night. Toyah, along with Rick Astley, Nik Kershaw, T’Pau and numerous others, play Audley on Saturday 4th August. (Closing date for entries: 23rd June 2012)
• Toyah at BBC iPlayer: The final episode of J. M. Barrie’s Peter Pan, (Spring Cleaning Time Again), is now available to listen to at iPlayer. It will remain online until next Monday.
• Fupa Games: When we think of the 80s, we think of Spectrum and Atari. We think of Jet Pac, Combat, Big Country, Toyah Willcox, Kim Wilde and Crystal Palace FC, Top Deck Shandy, KP Outer Spacers and Smash Hits. But most of all we think of Pacman! (Thanks to Simon)
• Either… this is a leaked photo from Series 7 (or Season 33) of Doctor Who: Metal-clad Motrakeb has just torn off the head of the Glow King as she is approached by an Auton disguised as a British Policeman… or it’s a photo of Toyah in Cumbria on Saturday night where she played the ‘Decades’ festival… I’m opting for the former!!
• Blast From The Past, March 2005: The Telegraph: I felt like an Egyptian mummy: In our final extract from her new book, Toyah Willcox reveals what happened when the bandages were removed after her facelift.
• This is Derbyshire: Line-up grows for Rock and Bike Festival: The line up for this summer’s Rock and Bike Festival is taking shape with The Sweet, The Quireboys and Toyah Willcox among the acts booked.
• Toyah Live 0212: Mylor Sessions: All the hits & a lot more!
• Amazon: Toyah Willcox by Ronald Cohn & Jesse Russell: High Quality Content by Wikipedia articles!
• Something to look forward to: It looks likely that Toyah’s 1987 album ‘Desire’ will be reissued, on download, later this year. Toyah’s Official Facebook said on Sunday: “There are no plans for a CD reissue of Desire. Plans for a digital release later in 2012 however.”
• Thanks for the feedback on Stevie Bray’s interview, and to everyone who has visited the feature so far.
• ‘I Was A Teenage Toyah Fan’ has now been available for over six months. The Kindle version, from Amazon, can be bought for the very bargainesque 80p. You don’t even need a Kindle to read it! View all of our IWATTF news here.
• Stylish Elegance: Toyah Willcox is 54 today…
• Toyah was quoted yesterday in an article by GScene on a new exhibition “f20-12” from the GPN: Actress and singer, Toyah Willcox, said: “The Gay Photographers Network Exhibition is a wonderful event exploding with vitality, fun, highly original ideas and inspirational images. I recommend it to everyone. it is one of London cultural gems that brakes taboos and enriches the city’s culture.”
• 2 up-top: Toyah: Anthem & The Changeling: Most people think Toyah Willcox is just some saucy older woman, who loves to talk about sex (FTE: do they?) and is married to guitar virtuoso Robert Fripp, but back in the early 1980’s Toyah was a very big pop star who released two very high quality albums ‘Anthem’ and ‘ The Changeling’; mixing pure pop, punk, dark gothic and prog rock in equal measures.
• Toyah will be compering the ‘Rock & Bike Festival 2012’ on Saturday 14th July…. AND performing as special guest with The Sweet on at least one song….. maybe more. (Source: Toyah’s Official Facebook)
• Win weekend passes for the ‘Rock & Bike Festival 2012’ from Kerrang! Radio (entry via text message).
• Rest in Peace Donna Summer. Sad news. The Soul and Disco legend passed away today. Toyah covered Donna’s ‘Love’s Unkind’ on her second solo album, ‘Desire’ in 1987.
• Check out The Pauper Kings, aka The Lost Boys from Vampires Rock. View a photo of Toyah. Robert and two of The Pauper Kings doing lunch.
• According to Blu-ray.com Derek Jarman’s 1979 film The Tempest, with Toyah in a lead role as Miranda, will be released on Blu-ray later this year. Kino Video will release The Tempest in America on 7th August 2012. (NB: This isn’t the Blu-ray cover :))
• Fans of The Tempest may be interested in a recent edition of BBC Radio 3’s Arts & Ideas: Philip Dodd presents a Landmark edition devoted to Shakespeare’s The Tempest, a drama reimagined by artists from Purcell to Derek Jarman via TS Eliot, Derek Walcott and Thomas Adès. The podcast is available here.
• Last night’s Dark Night Of The Soul with Julie, on WFMU, opened with two Toyah songs and one by The Humans: ‘Rebel Run’, ‘Angel & Me’ and ‘Love In A Different Way’.
• Sanctuary Music Presents: Toyah: The Changeling Resurrection II: Sanctuary’s promotional poster/flyer for the dates they are promoting during the Autumn tour. View a larger version here.
• Toyah at BBC iPlayer: Episode two of J. M. Barrie’s Peter Pan, (In The Mermaid’s Lagoon), is now available to listen to. It airs again today at 4.30pm and tomorrow at 5am on BBC Radio 4 Extra.
• Toyah Collectables: A new photo page at flickr, with lots of goodies already!
• Independent.ie: This week’s birthdays: FRIDAY: Toyah Willcox, singer and TV presenter, is 54.
• Let’s Rock The Moor 2012: Check back soon for photos of Toyah, courtesy of Angus Turner, from yesterday’s concert.
• Sanctuary Music Presents: The Humans: Live, Up Close & Personal: Sanctuary’s promotional poster/flyer for The Humans’ July 2012 dates. View a larger version here.
• The Press Association: BBC Celebrates Birth Of Punk: Never mind the Jubilee, here’s a punk season … the BBC is to celebrate the birth of a musical revolution with a series of programmes on radio and TV.
• There’s less than a week to go until Toyah’s birthday. In the past Dreamscape always celebrated Toyah’s special day by bringing you a rarity or three from the archives, and why break a tradition? Please do look! back hear! on May 18th for something just a little bit groovy :)
• Thanks to some amazingly loyal Toyah fans, who have stuck by Dreamscape since the very beginning, for the lovely messages over the last week or so. Despite having a degree in Marketing (yuk!) I never really thought, or think, in the terms of “Brand Dreamscape”, as someone suggested I should. I do agree, though, that it’s not a great idea that everything should revolve around Facebook or social networks in general. It is a fantastic way to communicate news immediately but great bands and artists should always be represented by at least a couple of independent/non official websites… FTE will stay, as I think it works well having a seperate site/url for a news (yes, and trivia/occasional nonsense) resource, but there may be a sporadic update or two to Dreamscape’s Gallery (one possibly quite soon!). In archive status the site is still as busy as it was when “active”.
• Toyah plays Let’s Rock The Moor 2012 this afternoon. It’s been officially confirmed Toyah is onstage at 4pm. Great weather up here today, here’s hoping it’s the same for Toyah and all the other bands in Cookham, Berkshire…
A couple of news reports on Sunday’s marathon five-hour-plus Dave Lee Tribute Show, at The Marlowe Theatre in Canterbury, have been published today:
• This is Kent: Stars shine in tribute show for Canterbury panto star Dave Lee: Toyah starred with Dave Lee in four panto seasons. (Photo: Tim Stubbings)
• Kent News: Poignant Dave Lee tribute show raises a massive £30,000.
• Toyah is also namechecked in a new interview with Paul Hendy, of Evolution Pantomimes. Read Panto production is a family affair for Paul at, ‘This is Kent’, here.
