Dreamscape – Toyah Willcox Fansite

The V&A Club To Catwalk: London Fashion In The 1980s exhibition opens on Wednesday, and runs for the next six months. Time for some related newsy bits:

• The Guardian: 1980s Throwback: Clubland’s charming impact on fashion examined at V&A: Curator of Club to Catwalk says Dynasty shoulder pads kept to a minimum in show that includes Adam Ant’s pirate outfit… The subcultures explored include familiar ones like New Romantic (see that pirate shirt and stagewear worn by Toyah Willcox), Goth and Rave.

• Charlie Porter: Club To Catwalk: London Fashion in the 80s opens soon at the V&A. A tour of its amazingness with curator Claire Wilcox: On Wednesday, an exhibition opens at the V&A titled Club To Catwalk: London Fashion In the 1980s. It’s taking the space previously occupied by the Ballgowns show, in the centre of the fashion room, split over two levels. Lower level is catwalk. Upper level is club. Both levels are amazing… “And then we have an outfit worn by Toyah by Melissa Caplan“.

• V&A: Club to Catwalk: About the Exhibition: Discover the creative explosion of London fashion in the 1980s in a major exhibition at the V&A. Through more than 85 outfits, Club to Catwalk: London Fashion in the 1980s showcases the bold and exciting new looks by the most experimental young designers of the decade.

• The Wall Street Journal: King’s Of The Wild Frontier: Club Culture and fashion collided head-on in 1980s London. As the city’s new nightclub scene became ever more frenetic and fantastical, young designers such as Rifat Özbek, Betty Jackson and John Galliano sought inspiration for their collections in the basements of West End venues.

• The Telegraph: From Club to Catwalk: Back to the Eighties: It was the ‘weird and wonderful’ clubbers who decided what we wore in the Eighties, says designer Wendy Dagworthy.

• Grazia: Club to Catwalk: London Fashion in the 1980s – An AMAZE New Exhibition At The V&A: If you enjoyed the V&A’s most recent block-busting exhibition, David Bowie Is, then there’s a strong chance you’ll like the next thing to pop up at the revered West London museum.

• Ultravie: From Club to Catwalk | Spandex and Sparkles at The V&A: Lycra pants, over-sized tees and form-fitting knits are coming out of the closet for the V&A’s fashion exhibition this summer.

Snow ‘apocalypse’ in Sussex leaves hundreds of motorists (and Cheryl Baker) stranded for up to ten hours in freezing weather
 
• 80s pop stars among hundreds trapped
• Minus temperatures force Red Cross to be drafted in to help
• Vehicles jackknifed on A23, making access hard for emergency vehicles
• Parts of A23 and M23 worst hit by freezing weather and delays

Cherly Baker, Toyah Willcox, and pop group Rizzle Kicks were among hundreds of motorist trapped for up to ten hours on motorways in Sussex and Kent. The Red Cross dispatched emergency teams to help people stranded in the freezing conditions on the A23.

• Continue reading at the London Evening Standard.

• Birmingham Mail: The Tube broke the mould – and a few new bands too: An interview with Chris Phipps, Toyah’s co-presenter on Look! Hear! and Assistant Producer on The Tube. The article also includes a rare photo taken at Pebble Mill in 1981.

• This is North Devon: Adam Ant, Suggs and Toyah head to North Devon: They are just some of the names waiting in the wings to entertain you this autumn. North Devon Theatres announces a new season to brighten up winter nights.

• TellyMix: I’m A Celebrity 2012: Limahl missing his gadgets: “I can’t compare it to anything I have done before. And yet if my own heroes and heroines, Christopher Biggins, Toyah Willcox and Sheila Ferguson, can do it, then so can I.”

• Big Weekends: Here and Now, Bognor, March 2013: Join us at Bognor Regis for Here and Now, a brand new break showcasing some of the biggest and best stars of the 80s.

• BBC Radio Two: Both ‘It’s A Mystery’ and ‘I Want To Be Free’ have been played on BBC Radio Two over the last few days. Toyah and Robert Fripp were also the subject of one of the questions on last night’s Eggheads on BBC2.

• Bennett Griffin: What will we do for Children in Need? “It’s A Mystery”!! – I don’t ever recall Toyah sporting the look Jackie opted for but, hey ho, it was all for a good cause!

• I’ve (or should I say Falling To Earth has) taken the leap to Twitter. Not sure why. Except that I wanted to follow @toyahofficial :)

• The Blitz Kids: Toyah 1980 by Gerard McNamara. A classic live shot from the, legendary, ‘Ieya Tour’.

• Some great live shots of Toyah that the photographer doesn’t seem pleased with!

• Toyah at The Ruby Lounge: Photo #1 and photo #2 (courtesy of Man Alive! at flickr). ShatterJapan.com – new website coming soon.

• The running order for Let’s Rock The Moor (Saturday 12th May): 3.20pm: Nick Heyward, 4.10pm: Toyah, 5pm: Modern Romance, 5.50pm: Boney M, 6.55pm: Heaven 17, 7.55pm: Go West, 8.55pm: Billy Ocean. (Subject to change: Source: Lets Rock The Moor Twitter)

• Why have a mere t-shirt when you can have a Toyah Harrington? Take a look.

• Toyah is mentioned in The Digital Fix review of Doctor Who: Ace Adventures DVD box set. (Someone needs to tell them that “Toyah wigs” are back!)

• The UK Top 40 on the day that ‘Four From Toyah’ entered. Many of those singles bring back many memories… (Thanks to PJ)