Dreamscape | The Toyah Willcox Fansite

Here are the acts that have been announced so far

With preparations for next year’s Brentwood Festival well underway, a number of acts appearing in the line-up have been announced.

So far those that have been confirmed include the singer, songwriter and musician Paul Young, famous for his hit singles such as Love of the Common People, Wherever I Lay My Hat and Everytime You Go Away.

Toyah Willcox will also be taking to the stage. The singer, songwriter, musician, actress, producer and author, has accomplished a lot over her career including eight top 40 singles.

Another act will be Katrina Leskanich, the former lead singer of the pop rock band Katrina and the Waves, famous for the song Walking on Sunshine.

• Continue reading at Essex Live. Visit the Brentwood Festival 2019 website.

A selection of Toyah on TV this festive season. Of particular interest are Celebrity Mastermind. airing on BBC1 on Saturday 22nd December, and the Fleetwood Mac documentary A Musical History, airing on BBC Four on a number of occasions just before Christmas.

Celebrity Fantasy Homes: Home:
Friday 14th December: 1.50am
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.

Most Shocking Christmas TV Moments: Channel 5:
Monday 17th December: 10pm
A merry romp through the most inappropriate, outrageous and appallingly atrocious Christmas television turkeys of all time. These are the kind of disastrous, ill-conceived and downright cringe-inducing moments that it’s a wonder ever made it to air. Among contributors ready to dissect the disasters – many of which they were involved in themselves – are Eamonn Holmes, Toyah Willcox, Laurence Llewelyn-Bowen, Anne Diamond, Steve Punt and Mike Read.

Fleetwood Mac – A Musical History: BBC4: Friday 21st December: 8pm
Fleetwood Mac – A Musical History: BBC4: Saturday 22nd December: 1.25am
Fleetwood Mac – A Musical History: BBC4: Christmas Eve: 00.25am
Fleetwood Mac. Fleetwood Mac fan Edith Bowman provides a narrative overview alongside other celebrity fans who all pay tribute to the band in this hit-filled hour. Contributors include KT Tunstall, Travis’ frontman Fran Healy, Toyah Willcox, Sian Pattenden and Emma Dabiri.

Celebrity Mastermind: BBC1: Saturday 22nd December: 5.20pm
Series 13, Episode 2. John Humphrys puts four celebrities to the test in another episode of the classic quiz. Taking part are comedian Joe Pasquale, Newsround presenter Ricky Boleto, singer Toyah Willcox and Olympian Jeanette Kwakye. They answer questions on werewolf films, 1990s number one singles, Boudica and Disney animations.

Quadrophenia: Film 4 HD: Christmas Eve: 1.25am
The Who wrote and produced this energetic story of a young man disillusioned with his life in 1960s London. Phil Daniels excels as the alienated anti-hero Jimmy Cooper. Director: Franc Roddam. Starring: Phil Daniels, Leslie Ash, Toyah Willcox, Philip Davis, Mark Wingett, Sting, and Ray Winstone.

Most Shocking Christmas TV Moments: 5Select: Christmas Day: 1.25am
Most Shocking Christmas TV Moments: 5Select: Boxing Day: 0.00am
A merry romp through the most inappropriate, outrageous and appallingly atrocious Christmas television turkeys of all time. These are the kind of disastrous, ill-conceived and downright cringe-inducing moments that it’s a wonder ever made it to air. Among contributors ready to dissect the disasters – many of which they were involved in themselves – are Eamonn Holmes, Toyah Willcox, Laurence Llewelyn-Bowen, Anne Diamond, Steve Punt and Mike Read.

The 100 Greatest Musicals: More4: Christmas Day: 12.20pm
Part One. Denise Van Outen kicks off a sumptuous two-part celebration of the great songs and performers from the best classic and contemporary musicals – as voted for by the British public. From Astaire to Zellweger, from 42nd Street to 8 Mile, Moulin Rouge! and The Sound of Music, The 100 Greatest Musicals is the definitive guide to the musicals that have both stood the test of time and had a lasting impact on viewers’ lives. The first show counts down from 100 to 51 and features memorable clips from film, stage and TV, interspersed with interviews given by performers, directors, writers and choreographers. Also airing on More4 +1 and HD.

The 100 Greatest Musicals: More4: Boxing Day: 12.30pm
Part Two. Denise Van Outen concludes the rundown of viewers’ favourite musicals, counting down from 50 to number one. Including memorable clips from film, stage and TV productions, plus contributions by celebrity fans, Hollywood movers and shakers, critics and journalists. Also airing on More4 +1 and HD.

Isn’t it reassuring that some people still listen to, and appreciate, great music. Congratulations to Toyah for her success at Spotify this year. Not forgetting how well the Four From Toyah: Birthday Edition EP did upon its release in May. While on the subject of music, Toyah and Simon Darlow recently signed a new record contract and completed a new song for release in 2019.

Christmas 2010, was an incredibly busy time for Toyah. As well as starring in the panto Sleeping Beauty at the Festival Theatre, Malvern (with great reviews from The Stage and Malvern Gazette: “This is as near the perfect pantomime as can be“), being part of The Hazel O’Connor Collective and the Christmas charity single Re-Joyce (In The Bleak Midwinter), and appearing all over the TV and radio schedules – Toyah also found time to take part in a variety of festive events.

In early December Toyah switched on Bidford Upon Avon’s Christmas lights on a wintery Sunday evening; took part in The Big Switch On in Malvern, turning on the Worcestershire town’s Christmas lights and performing some Christmas classics; and later in December Toyah and her panto co-stars helped launch the Oxfam Unwrapped gift scheme in Malvern. A great festive month!

Full details – day, time and synopsis – of the episode of the Christmas series of Celebrity Mastermind, in which Toyah is participating, has now been confirmed by the BBC.

Celebrity Mastermind: BBC1:
Saturday 22nd December: 5.20pm
Series 13, Episode 2. John Humphrys puts four celebrities to the test in another episode of the classic quiz. Taking part are comedian Joe Pasquale, Newsround presenter Ricky Boleto, singer Toyah Willcox and Olympian Jeanette Kwakye. They answer questions on werewolf films, 1990s number one singles, Boudica and Disney animations.

• The programme will be available to watch on BBC iPlayer after it airs. Visit the dedicated page for this episode at bbc.co.uk.

Christmas 1981, 82, 83 & 84. In the early eighties Toyah’s Official Fanclub – Intergalactic Ranch House – sent out Christmas cards to subscribing members each December.

Toyah took the time to sign each and every card, which numbered around 6,000 at the height of the fanclub’s popularity.

This tradition was carried on for an extra year, in 1984, when the IRH became simply the Toyah Fanclub after Toyah’s Safari Records contract ended and she signed to the CBS/Portrait.

All four cards featured photos of Toyah, showcasing great early eighties imagery and creating a unique set of fanclub memorabilia that became collector’s items.

Hey! It’s Christmas, an ideal time to take one of our, very sporadic, looks at the visitor stats to this website.

In these times of social media essentially becoming the internet for many people, this site is still very busy and continues to receive 100′s of unique visitors each and every day.

Even on the quietest day of the last couple of months, which was Saturday 20th October, there were still 130 unique visitors. I have friends who run well-known Madonna, Doctor Who and U2 fansites and all say social media has seriously affected their visitor stats over recent years.

In the last 24 hours alone there have been visits to Dreamscape from: United Kingdom, United States, Israel, Switzerland, Japan, Italy, South Africa, Canada, Australia, France, Thailand, Sweden, Netherlands, China, Poland, Jersey, Estonia, Germany and Austria.

View a larger version of the stats graphic here.

Christmas 2011, ITV’s This Morning got into the festive spirit with their Big Fat Panto Quiz.

Paul Ross was Quizmaster, with Bonnie Langford, The Krankies, Timmy Mallet, Lynda Bellingham, Kevin Cruise and Toyah, all in full panto dress/character, answering the questions.

Panto is a huge Christmas tradition here in the UK. Oh yes it is! A short clip from The Big Fat Panto Quiz is still available online here. Please click on the caps to view larger versions.

Another live date for Toyah’s Gig Diary in 2019. The Forever Young Festival 2019, taking place in Ireland in July with a plethora of bands and artists. Click below for further details.

Christmas 1984. Toyah guested on the Pop Quiz Christmas Special on BBC1. The programme aired at 4.15pm on Christmas Eve.

This was the penultimate edition of the original Pop Quiz. There were four series, plus five specials, 48 episodes in total, with Toyah guesting four times. The final Pop Quiz Special aired a few days later on 28th December 1984. Though there have been a number of revivals since.

Pop Quiz was a British television quiz programme that originally aired on BBC1 from 4th July 1981 to 28th December 1984 with a Top of the Pops special on 4th January 1994 hosted by Mike Read. It was then revived from 21st May to 9th July 1994 on the same channel but this time hosted by Chris Tarrant (Toyah also guested on this series, alongside Pete Burns). It was revived again on Red TV from 14th June to 30th August 2008 with Mike Read returning as host. He also hosted two specials on BBC Four in December 2016 and January 2017 – Please click on the caps below for larger versions.

Celebrity Fantasy Homes: Home: Friday 14th December: 1.50am
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.

Christmas 2012, BBC Radio 4 aired Neil Tennant’s Smash Hits Christmas on 20th December. An interesting look back at the golden years of the UK’s biggest pop magazine of the Eighties. The programme included contributions from Tennant, various Smash Hits editors and writers, and Toyah, talking about Smash Hits in general and her Brave New World cover from the Summer of 1982.

Neil Tennant had a life as a journalist before he became famous as a Pet Shop Boy. In fact, it was on a Smash Hits trip to New York that he had his big breakthrough with the record producer Bobby O. The half-hour programme isn’t currently available at BBC iPlayer but you can click below to listen to a recording of the programme at You Tube.

The Christmas series of Celebrity Mastermind begins airing on BBC1 on Friday 21st December at 8.30pm. Please check your, just about to be published, Christmas Radio Times for exact days and times for the full series.

Toyah is one of the contestants during the Christmas 2018 series.

Visit the BBC Celebrity Mastermind website.

Toyah’s December/Christmas 2018 blog is available to read at toyahwillcox.com.

Saturday 16th February 2019 will be a busy day for Toyah – She plays an Acoustic, Up Close & Personal date at Square Chapel Arts Centre, Halifax and participates in a Q&A after a 40th Anniversary screening of Quadrophenia prior to her concert, at the same venue.

Square Chapel Arts Centre presents
Quadrophenia + Q&A with Toyah Willcox
Sat 16 Feb, 6:00pm at Red Brick

Join us for an exclusive 40th anniversary screening of the mod classic Quadrophenia. Loosely based on The Who’s 1973 rock opera of the same name, the film has become a cult classic and we are delighted to be joined by one of the stars of the film. Toyah Willcox, who plays Monkey will be here to talk about the film and her career. Toyah Willcox is an icon of stage and screen and will also perform a live acoustic gig with her band to celebrate 40 years of her music career!

To book for the Film Q&A AND the live gig please book a ticket for this event and also for the live gig here. Booking both events saves you 40% with the whole evening just £22.50.

Toyah Willcox Acoustic Gig | Sat 16 Feb, 9:00pm at Red Brick Auditorium

After our exclusive 40th anniversary screening of the mod classic Quadrophenia we are delighted to be hosting a gig by one of the stars of the film, Toyah Willcox. 2019 marks the 40th anniversary of her music career as Toyah released her first ever single and studio album in 1979. This acoustic concert includes hit singles, album classics and fan favourites.

• See further info on both events and book tickets at squarechapel.co.uk.

Christmas 2016, Toyah attended a ceremony to be inducted into the Birmingham Walk Of Stars.

Toyah said: “I am thrilled to be receiving a star on the Birmingham Walk of Stars. Having spent my childhood and teenage years in this great city, I developed my love of music and theatre here, thanks to all the great music venues and theatres available within the one city.“

• See news on Toyah attending the Birmingham Walk Of Stars event here and here. (Photo © Birmingham Mail)

Christmas Eve 1981, Toyah played the final date of the Good Morning Universe European Tour, at the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane, London. This was Toyah’s third tour of the year, following the College Tour at the beginning of 1981 and the Anthem Tour in the middle of the year.

The gig was broadcast live on BBC2 on The Old Grey Whistle Test as their annual Christmas Eve concert for 1981. Others who were gifted the festive accolade over the years included Elton John (1974), Queen (1975), Rod Stewart (1976), The Kinks (1977), 10CC (1978), Ian Dury & The Blockheads (1980), Elton John (1982), Paul Young (1983).

Toyah would later recall: “I spent one Christmas in complete euphoria after doing the Drury Lane Whistle Test. I can remember driving home to Birmingham that night and it was snowing. Everything was just wonderful and I remained on a high after doing that show for about ten days.“

Dreamscape’s Toyah news for the last 12 months has now been added to our News Archive. It’s been quite a year for Toyah, with a landmark birthday, numerous gigs, TV appearances, press, film roles, an anniversary tour and much more. Revisit at least some of it by clicking below.

Christmas 2018. Photos of Toyah onstage at last night’s All Star Christmas Special, with The SAS Band, at GLive in Guildford, including a fantastic shot of Toyah and the band in festive headgear to get Christmas 2018 off to a great start!

Toyah performed Suffragette City, It’s A Mystery and Sweet Child O’ Mine, as well as I Wish It Could Be Christmas Everyday in the medley at the end of the concert.

Click below to see larger versions of both of these photos, and more, at Dreamscape’s Toyah Gallery. (Thanks to Angus | Photos © Angus Turner)

“Rocking out the storm at Fistral Bay” Great photo tweeted this afternoon by Toyah, taken at Fistral Bay in Newquay. (Photo © Toyah Willcox)

Toyah’s third gig of the week with The SAS Band is the 6th annual All Star Christmas Special, taking place tonight at GLive in Guildford.

Fabbagirls have shined their boots and Princess of Punk Toyah, Justin Hawkins of The Darkness and rock powerhouses Patti Russo, Chris Thompson and Tony Vincent are ready to blow the roof off of GLive Guildford TONIGHT! Last tickets available – click below to book.

Returning to G Live for their 6th annual Christmas Special, Queen’s MD and keyboardist Spike Edeny has invited some of his rockstar and musician friends to join him and his All-Star Band to help launch the festive season!  Performing their biggest hits and many more… this year’s line-up will include:

Charismatic frontman of The Darkness, Justin Hawkins – hits include I Believe In A Thing Called Love and Christmas Time, TOYAH – It’s A Mystery, Thunder In The Mountains and I Want To Be Free, Chris Thompson (Manfred Mann’s Earth Band) – Blinded By The Light and returning by popular demand, Rock powerhouse Patti Russo (Meatloaf/Cher) and Tony Vincent (of We Will Rock You!).

The Fabbagirls, Susie Webb and Zoe Nicholas, will be opening the show for at 7.45pm. They were the original singers of Bjorn Again and are truly considered one of the best Abba Tribute acts. Even Abba has said they like them!

This is a night for real music lovers and it’s advised to book early, as this show always sells out!