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.”
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