Toyah Willcox captivated the audience in her role as the Queen and proved to everyone that she is not only a great singer but a superb actress and dancer. Richard O’Brien was well cast as the Queens brother and had the opportunity to perform the Time Warp not once but twice! Muddles, the princes companion, provided some well needed humour for the children.

However I did feel it had lost something of the traditional pantomime that the children love at Christmas. Where was the dame, the slap stick humour, the daft jokes and innuendos and the audience involvement? Fair enough, we all were roused to our feet to sing along with the Time Warp, but I did feel it was a very sophisticated production that will appeal much more to adults than the kids. 

Hope you had a great Christmas, and have a Toyahtastic, and peaceful, 2006 ;o))

Flamingo's in Blackpool, The George in Dublin, the Wasted Festival in Morecambe, the Hastings Beer & Music Festival, Live On The Lawn in Ayr, the Cookson Festival in South Shields, The Robin in Wolverhampton and various appearances at Butlins complexes.

As well as playing many of her own songs Toyah also played a number of covers at various shows this year. These included The Door's 'Hello I Love You', 'Hanging On The Telephone' by Blondie, 'Sweet Child 'O Mine' by Guns 'N Roses,'She Sells Sanctuary' by The Cult, and 'You Really Got Me' by The Kinks.

As well as the numerous live gigs Toyah also gave three, long awaited, 'An Audience With Toyah Willcox' evenings of music, chat, pictures, questions and memories.

Thanks to Katy McAleese, Stuart Huntington & John Shepherd for the pictures.

Many thanks to Merx and Angus Turner.

The 'Radio Times' describe Toyah as a "punk survivor" (Hogmanay, 31st December) and a " punk legend" (Holiday Monday 2nd January) in their listings.

Great to see Toyah so high up in the rankings.

"Like the Beatles, some bands have lost members, and I'm one from Toyah, almost. It's a story of a difficult choice I had to make at the time, and one that led me in a totally different direction to music.

For many years, until they moved, I lived behind the Bogen's house. So when Joel needed a keyboard player knowing I played naturally came to me. It was about 1978 and they had no track record at all yet, just another band. This woman with green and yellow hair just the same as our old budgie came in and sat down, and turned out to be very nice and friendly. I played with the two of them, and improvised to a chord list Joel gave me. The music was wild and anarchic and I was into (and still am) 1950s rock and roll. I played what I had to with little problem, and after my mum made us all tea and biscuits and sat chatting to Toyah with her eyes wide open with shock, they told me I had the job if I wanted it.

I had to stop and think for a day or two. I was about to take my A levels, and knew if I joined a band it would be full time as there was no point otherwise. In the end I said had they played something I enjoyed I would have joined (at the expense of my exams probably) but I wasn't going to risk my career academically unless it was my type of music. A couple of years later an appearance on Top Of the Pops showed I would have had an alternative career, and a probable lifetime as a celebrity should I choose it (which I would have), but on the parallel path got three dubious A level results, a degree and am now a qualified psychotherapist. I have little regrets as I can still play music and become a celebrity but it's not easy to qualify later in life if you missed out originally. I was one of the few people who heard Joel learn the guitar and practice for many years as he usually kept the window open and was at it for hours, often repeating the same few phrases the whole time as Toyah said."

David Howard, December 2005
www.kingsbury.tk

The Most Fertile Man In Ireland : Sky Movies 1 - Monday 26th December : 01.35am
The Most Fertile Man In Ireland : Sky Movies 5 - Saturday 31st December : 11.55pm
Twenty-four year old virgin, Eamonn Manley, lives with his mother in Belfast and is painfully shy with the ladies. Things change for Eamonn when Mary Malloy decides to make the first move and soon Mary realises that she is pregnant even though she was using birth control. The doctor discovers that Eamonn has an unusually high sperm count... His mother has the idea that he can help the local ladies who have had problems conceiving a baby... Director: Dudi Appleton. Starring: Kris Marshall, Kathy Kiera Clarke, Bronagh Gallagher, James Nesbitt, Kenneth Cranham, Toyah Willcox and Olivia Nash. 

The Green Room : BBC Radio 2 - Friday 30th December : 10.00pm
Presented by Fiona Bruce. Guests include: Toyah Willcox on being the wicked queen in Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs at Milton Keynes; director Rufus Morris on the stage adaptation of Herge's Adventures Of Tintin; Tony Graham, Artistic Director, Unicorn Theatre, talking about Tom's Midnight Garden - the first play at Britain's first purpose built professional children's theatre; and Sian Phillips on her role in the RSC's Great Expectations.

Never Mind The Buzzcocks : BBC2 - Saturday 31st December : 10.30pm
Comedy pop quiz hosted by Mark Lamarr, with team captains Phill Jupitus and Bill Bailey. Guests are Toyah Willcox, ex-A1 singer Ben Adams, Radio One's Annie Mac and comedian Alun Cochrane. An anniversary show, with special performances from X-Factor casualties Sumon Sunyal and Robert King.

Queen Mania : ITV2 - Tuesday 3rd January 2006 : 8.00pm

Toyah performed 'Don't Stop Me Now' on the 60 minute Queen tribute show.

Zoe Ball presents a celebration of the music of Queen to coincide with the 30th anniversary of the release of Bohemian Rhapsody. With performances from Melanie C, G4, Lesley Garrett, Heather Small, Tony Christie, Toyah Willcox, Myleene Klass and Russell Watson, and a special version of I Want To Break Free by stars of Coronation Street. Plus classic archive footage of Queen, and celebrities talking about the band.

Queen Mania : ITV2 - Tuesday 3rd January 2006 : 8.00pm

December 1980: 'Toyah! Toyah! Toyah!' - Live! album relaeased.... 'Danced (live!) single released.... ATV Documentary TOYAH broadcast on ITV. Toyah guests on Minder.

December 1981: 'Four More From Toyah' (EP) released.... Toyah and band are on the UK/European 'Good Morning Universe' tour.... Christmas Eve concert, from Theatre Royal in Drury Lane, London, broadcast live! on BBC2's Old Grey Whistle Test to millions of viewers, and BBC Radio 1. 

December 1982: Toyah promotes 'Be Proud be Loud (Be Heard)' in Italy.... Appears on Pop Goes Christmas (ITV) with a host of other singers/bands. Toyah performs the Greg Lake classic 'I Believe In Father Christmas'.... Toyah and band do a mini tour of the UK. 

December 1983: 'The Vow' is released in the UK.... Toyah appears on various TV shows promoting the single.... Toyah and band travel the UK with the 'Rebel Run' tour. 

December 1984: Toyah spends December recording her, as yet untitled, new album. This would eventually be released in 1985 as 'Minx'.... The Ebony Tower, with Toyah, Laurence Olivier and Greta Scaachi, is shown on ITV. Toyah appears on the Christmas Eve edition of Pop Quiz. 

December 1987: Toyah films Midnight Breaks.... Completes her run as Mabel in Three Men On A Horse at the Vaudeville Theatre in London. 

December 1988: Prostitute/frippFRIPP tours Europe.... Boudicca is broadcast on BBC1, with Toyah and Tony Robinson. 

December 1989: Toyah appears as Mary Lou in Whale, at the Lyttleton Theatre, South Bank, London. 

December 1990: The Tale Of Little Pig Robinson is shown on UK TV.... Toyah records 'Kneeling At The Shrine' which is released in 1991 by Sunday All Over The World.... Toyah appears in concert with Girlschool, calling themselves the Shedevils, at the 'Women In Rock' festival.... Plays Miss Scarlet in the Christmas edition of Cluedo on ITV. 

December 1992: Toyah hosts the arts programme First Night on TV in the Midlands region.... Films a ten-part series for inclusion in Good Morning With Anne & Nick. 

December 1993: Toyah rounds off the highly successful UK 'Take The Leap!' tour.... Plays the title role in a mini UK tour of Peter Pan. 

December 1994: Toyah rounds off the 'Has God Ceased To Dream You?' UK tour.... Plays the title role in Peter Pan at the Chichester Festival Theatre. 

December 1996: Toyah appears in Jack & The Beanstalk at the Theatre Royal in Norwich. 

December 1997: Presenting TOYAH on VH1.... Appears in Jack & The Beanstalk at the Churchill Theatre in Bromley, Kent. 

December 1998: Toyah presents Boys From The Black Country - The Slade Story on BBC Radio 2.... Appears in Jack & The Beanstalk at the Richmond Theatre in Surrey. 

December 1999: Toyah continues to work on her autobiography, which would be published in August 2000, titled; 'Living Out Loud'.... Appears on the Slade tribute documentary It's Slade.... Plays the title role in Peter Pan at the Marlowe Theatre in Kent. 

December 2000: Toyah plays the Wicked Queen in Snow White & The Seven Dwarfs at the Gordon Craig Theatre in Stevenage, Kent. 

December 2001: Toyah places at number 48 in 'Q' magazine's '100 Greatest Women In Music' poll.... Helps launch the Christmas festivities in Stockport.... Plays the title role in Aladdin at the Plaza Theatre in Stockport. 

December 2002: Toyah appears naked in the 'Daily Mail'.... Guests on the Open House panto special, with Gloria Hunniford, on Channel 5.... Toyah records an interview for inclusion in the Rock Legends documentary, shown in January in Carlton/Central TV region of the UK.... Plays the title role in Aladdin at the Anvil in Basingstoke. 

December 2003: Helps launch Christmas festivities in Ashford, Dover and Whitstable.... Appears as the Wicked Queen in Snow White & The Seven Dwarfs at the Marlowe theatre in Kent.

December 2004: Toyah stars as the Wicked Fairy Queen in Sleeping Beauty at the Marlowe Theatre in Kent. She also attends the UK premiere of the Bobby Darin "biopic" film Beyond The Sea, and parties at Shirley Bassey's Christmas get-together. Toyah also guested in the audience of The X Factor and appeared on Blue Peter. Toyah was also all over the Christmas TV schedules.

December 2005: This year sees Toyah once again playing the Wicked Queen in Snow White & The Seven Dwarfs, this time at the Milton Keynes Theatre.

Star Surprises: Our fave gifts...

The celebs reveal all about the very best pressies they've ever found under the Christmas tree. Amazingly, they aren't all diamonds and sports cars.

TOYAH WILLCOX
'A lifesize terracotta statue of a horse and warrior. On Christmas day in 1991, my husband insisted I walk around the garden and there it was. I still love it.'

Also included in the article were: Christian Slater: Star Trek t-shirt, signed by William Shatner, Denise Van Outen: Cabbage Patch Kid doll, Oprah Winfrey: Bugs Bunny slippers, Jack Nicholson: A lump of coal (strange, but true!), Louise: A bulldog puppy, Jon Bon Jovi: An electric guitar, and Steve Martin: Peace and love all over the world. And a bicycle!

She was on the programme primarily to comment on Pop Goes Christmas, originally broadcast on ITV way back on Boxing Day 1982, but also briefly talked about The Osbournes too. 

Toyah said: "Pop Goes Christmas was a Christmas special with all the favourite, current, pop artists. And they are such homely pop artists. You've got Shakin' Stevens. There's David Essex... 

"Why they had me I really do not know. I come out like a little gremlin, who just suddenly appears, looks like no one else... Black contact lenses, that are larger than my pupils, so I look like I'm on speed! 

"Everyone on the show got to do two songs. Everyone got to perform their current hit and then chose a Christmas song to do." 

A short clip from Toyah's 'I Believe In Father Christmas' performance from Pop Goes Christmas was shown. 

NB. Toyah only performed one song on Pop Goes Christmas :o)

Here we have... a pretty rare picture of Toyah.

The only information I have about this, is that it was, apparently, taken in Edinburgh sometime in 1978.

It was a small intimate concert given for the benefit of the Shallal Dance Theatre, and tickets were by way of voluntary donation.

• 'I Want To Be Free' is on the current playlist of Pheonix FM's 'Stuck In The 80s' show. The station serves the Brentwood and Billericay local community.

Residents of Ivy Cottage, a semi-detached thatched cottage, next to the Anchor Inn pub on Main Road, Wyre Piddle, were at home when the blaze broke out last Thursday. 

Keith and Eileen Attwood who are in their late 60s and neighbour Pete Bond, who is in his 70s, escaped unhurt. 

Luckily for the three, neighbours formed a human chain to save their belongings from the flames. 

Evesham and Pershore fire crews attended the blaze which broke out at 9.10am. It took officers until 1pm to put it out. 

David Bagnall, of Church Street, Wyre Piddle, watched as the blaze spread into the cottage. 

The 59-year-old said: "They thought the fire was getting under control but the wind had picked it up and made it worse. 

"The road was completely blocked off. Cars had to drive around on the bypass." 

Evesham sub-officer Julian Jenkins believed the fire was caused by a break in the chimney lining. 

Mr Bagnall said he believed Keith and Eileen Attwood have been staying at Toyah Willcox's cottage in the Vale since last Friday. 

Toyah Willcox could not be contacted as the Journal went to press. 

[ Worcester Journal - Thursday 8th December 2005 ]

Naomi, a "TV wannabe" is 'hypnotised' by Rajav and told she is a "bad new chat show host". The voiceover continues: "In the next dressing room is 80's pop star, Toyah Willcox. She's what they call, 'a celebrity'. She thinks she's being interviewed by a genuine TV wannabe who's desperate for the big time. Toyah hasn't the faintest idea that Naomi is hypnotised. Toyah's about to have the strangest interview ever!"

Naomi: "You began your career acting in films such as the legendary Quadrophenia. Did you and Sting have a jam in the evenings?

Toyah: "Actually, we did. He tried to teach me the harmonies to 'Roxanne', but I'm a really rubbish harmony singer."

HUMMING: Rajav tells Naomi (via her earpiece): "When the guest answers you will begin humming"

Naomi: As a genuinely talented person, does it bother you that members of the public become celebrities overnight wothout having any real talent? ]Naomi begins to hum]

Toyah: "No, because I think Andy Warhol was absolutely right. That everyone deserves their 15 minutes of fame... Do you know you hum in Concert Pitch A?"

TOILET BREAK: Rajav tells Naomi: "You're desperate for the toilet, but you have to finish the interview"

Naomi: "Are you glad that you did I'm A Celebrity...?" [Naomi fidgets in her chair, mimicking someone who is desperate for a slash]

Toyah: "I have no regrets about I'm A Celebrity.... It wasn't the pinnacle of my career, or my life, in any way, but I have no regrets. I did it because I wanted to be scared shitless, I wanted to do something dangerous, but it, actually, was a little bit boring! Naomi, have you got piles?"

Naomi: "Want toilet!"

Toyah: (laughing): "I'll wait!" [Toyah empties her galss of water into a jug and offers Naomi the empty glass]

Toyah: "Naomi. Piss in that!"

MONKEY NUTS: Rajav tells Naomi: "As soon as your guest starts to speak you'll start uttering 'monkey nuts... monkey nuts...'!"

Naomi: "What do you think is the most popular misconception that the public has about you, Toyah?" 

Toyah: "That I'm a woman!" [Naomi begins to mutter: 'monkey nuts... monkey nuts...']

Naomi: "Describe your personality for me in 10 words" [Naomi continues to mutter 'monkey nuts...']

Toyah: "Monkey. Nuts. Monkey. Nuts. Monkey. Nuts. Monkey. Nuts. Monkey. Nuts."

Naomi: Thank you very much indeed Toyah."

Toyah: "Is that it?"

Post interview, Toyah says: "I've just been interviewed by someone who didn't seem to be completely giving me their attention."

Naomi: "I didn't know what I was doing. I was just going with the flow."

Toyah: "Makes you wonder how powerful hypnosis is. I'm still to be convinced. I think if she ate a bowl of sick I'd have believed her more!!"

NB: This will be repeated on E4 and E4 Plus 1 in a few days time. See below for dayS and times.

Presented by Fiona Bruce. Guests include: Toyah Willcox on being the wicked queen in Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs at Milton Keynes; director Rufus Morris on the stage adaptation of Herge's Adventures Of Tintin; Tony Graham, Artistic Director, Unicorn Theatre, talking about Tom's Midnight Garden - the first play at Britain's first purpose built professional children's theatre; and Sian Phillips on her role in the RSC's Great Expectations.

Then there were the two Cherry Red 'Safari Records Singles Collection' CD's. Covering Toyah's entire Safari singles and B-Sides from 1979 to 1983.

Who would have thought, even a few short years ago, that we would have had all these available at our fingertips? That 'Mayhem' would be available on CD, complete with extra songs and information on many of the songs that have remained a mystery for decades. That 'Love Is The Law' would finally be liberated from its vinyl tomb.

That 'Minx' would, once again, be out on CD, and updated so briliantly with excellent images, sleeve notes and even a message from Toyah.

It truly has been an amazing year for Toyah (music) fans. 2005 has definitely been a great one for all of our CD collections!

Rajal And His Evil Hypnotists : E4 - Monday 19th December : 02.35am
Rajal And His Evil Hypnotists : E4 Plus 1 - Monday 19th December : 03.35am
Rajal And His Evil Hypnotists : E4 - Tuesday 20th December : 11.40pm
Rajal And His Evil Hypnotists : E4 Plus 1 - Wednesday 21st December : 00.40am
Rajan and his evil team make a grown man petrified of Santa Claus, while 80s pop star Toyah has a most unusual chatshow experience - with no idea that her host is a hypnotised member of the public. Other trance subjects drink vinegar, pour ice down their trousers, arrest over 60s for underage drinking, and regress to a three year old in a supermarket.

The Most Fertile Man In Ireland : Sky Movies 1 - Monday 26th December : 01.35am
Twenty-four year old virgin, Eamonn Manley, lives with his mother in Belfast and is painfully shy with the ladies. Things change for Eamonn when Mary Malloy decides to make the first move and soon Mary realises that she is pregnant even though she was using birth control. The doctor discovers that Eamonn has an unusually high sperm count... His mother has the idea that he can help the local ladies who have had problems conceiving a baby... Director: Dudi Appleton. Starring: Kris Marshall, Kathy Kiera Clarke, Bronagh Gallagher, James Nesbitt, Kenneth Cranham, Toyah Willcox and Olivia Nash. 

The first Christmas of the 90's saw Toyah play Miss Scarlet in a special festive edition of Cluedo. Here are the thoughts of a Cluedo fan:

"The show producers must have realised that they needed strong characters by now, as the casting of vivacious Toyah Willcox showed.

Toyah was great in the part, with all of the men drooling over her; yet still being a complete b*tch to everyone - especially her step-mother.

Like others in the Christmas Special, she was made to look very similar to her card equivalent - especially her hair style.

Toyah is best known for being an 80's rock singer ("It's A Mystery" and more); but she also has a very strong acting career behind her. Major parts for her have been as Miranda in both "Prospero's Books" and "The Tempest", but she has narrated a couple of children's television series (e.g. "The Teletubbies") and has made many guest appearances in shows as herself." 

The latter received two stars and the former a very respectable three. Both reviews are quite positive about the releases, with the suggestion that 'Safari Singles 2' could start some sort of Toyah renaissance, and that 'Minx', though patchy, does indeed serve a Toyah fan well!!

If I manage to get hold of the full versions of these I'll add them to this page...

• Toyah received a namecheck in an article in the 'Birmingham Post' on 6th December. The article was on the joy of scratchy old vinyl in comparison to the i-Pod: All I want for Christmas is a record player - "If anything, the experience of listening to singles was more thrilling. Apart from a wonderful Toyah four-track EP, cunningly called Four From Toyah, most of the records lasted little more than three minutes. Everything, however, naff was a joy on vinyl."

• Toyah's aforementioned appearance on the BBC Four programme, Don't Watch That, Watch This, was a, not very amusing , blast from the past clip of the Christmas edition of Top of The Pops. With the original footage of Toyah performing 'It's A Mystery', with added footage of a person holding up cue cards with the 'IAM' lyrics, complete with lispish spellings. A joke two decades out of date and possibly already used by Not The Nine O'clock News or Three Of  A Kind way back in the mists of televisual time...

Snow White

Star-studded panto of the familiar variety but low on smut and high on dialogue, singing and dancing. Toyah Willcox goes for broke as the Wicked Queen with Rocky Horror's Richard O'Brien as her hideous henchman. Suzanne Shaw, the blonde one from Hear'Say, is Snow White.

Milton Keynes Theatre (0870 060 6652)

Last week I read two short articles about two celebs, Chris Eubank and Toyah Willcox.

Chris, like many celebrities before him has had it all but has now lost it and last week he was declared bankrupt with debts of £1.3 million. Chris had a fortune of £10 million but has now lost it all, and lost his wife and family to boot. What a shame. I hate to hear about these stories but it just reminds me how poorly educated we all are in the ways of wealth and what to do with money when we get it.

Someone who is much more disciplined after having had her fingers burnt is Toyah Willcox. She says:

"I have a very rigid rule – 40% of my income goes to the taxman, 30%-40% goes into savings and I live off 20%. I have earned millions and because I let other people invest it I lost millions. I decided 15 years ago to do everything myself and two years later I was a millionaire again"

Wow! I am impressed, particularly by her discipline and application of her wealth system. It just shows what you can do when you set your mind to something – and how quickly wealth can be achieved when you take responsibility for your money and get going. 

I hope Chris Eubank learns the same lesson.

Have a great weekend.

[ The Wealth Company - Friday 9th December 2005 ]

Okay, I know this "memory" is a repeat from last year (well, if the BBC can get away with it on a daily basis...) but seeing as 'I Believe In Father Christmas' is adding a festive feel to the recent 'Mayhem' CD release, I thought it was worth another trip doon Yuletide Memory Lane!

Toyah performs the Greg Lake classic 'I Believe in Father Christmas'. 

In 1982, when ITV still bothered making half decent "entertainment" programmes, Pop Goes Christmas brightened up the network's Christmas schedules. 

A whole plethora of pop stars; Culture Club, Musical Youth, The Nolans, Mari Wilson, Shakin Stevens, Toto Coelo, David Essex, Dexys Midnight Runners and many more performed their favourite Christmas hits. 

Toyah, accompanied by Joel Bogen and Keith Hale (both looking slightly festive) performed 'I Believe in Father Christmas'. She looked gorgeous, with bright blue eyeshadow, black contacts, cool black (partial) see-through outfit, huge ankh, and carrot orangey hair with red bits. 

The performance is all the more memorable because of the spookesome Egyptian shapes Toyah threw throughout the song! 

"I wish you a hopeful christmas, I wish you a brave new year 
All anguish pain and sadness, Leave your heart and let your road be clear 
They said there’ll be snow at christmas, They said there’ll be peace on earth 
Hallelujah noel be it heaven or hell, The christmas you get you deserve." 

Richard O'Brien (Rocky Horror & Crystal Maze), Suzanne Shaw (Hear'Say), Toyah Willcox, Warwick Davis (Harry Potter) and Duncan Breeze (A Night at the Musicals) star in Snow White & The Seven Dwarfs.

Box Office: 0870 060 6652 (bkg fee) / Ticketmaster: 0870 444 6060 24hr (bkg fee)
In Person: Milton Keynes Theatre, Marlborough Gate, Central Milton Keynes MK9 3NZ

The Bucks Herald/Aylesbury Today: GET READY TO BOO AND HISS, IT'S TIME FOR PANTO!

Milton Keynes Theatre has a star-studded line-up for their panto this year, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. In the goodies corner are Hear'Say singer Suzanne Shaw in the title role and Warwick Davis, most recently seen as Professor Flitwick in the Harry Potter films, as Prof, one of the dwarfs. The baddies are Toyah Willcox as the Wicked Queen, and Richard O'Brien, of Rocky Horror Show fame, as her Henchman. Get ready for plenty of booing and hissing!

Find out exactly why Toyah and the cast of Snow White & The Seven Dwarfs have been "down on our hands... on the floor in a mass sympathetic crawl" in the panto rehearsal room.

www.toyahwillcox.com

Robert Fripp: 'If you love music, become a plumber':

King Crimson founder, Robert Fripp, talks to Robert Sandall about the hostility he's faced throughout his career

Cradling a nice cup of tea in the kitchen of his home on the River Avon in Worcestershire, Robert Fripp looks more like a kindly country vicar than a veteran of the English prog-rock scene. 

Now 59, he hardly needs to describe himself as "very English, a Dorset man" because, despite leaving the county of his birth four years ago, he still speaks with a strong West Country burr.

The character who back in 1969 made his name singing with dystopian fervour about a 21st Century Schizoid Man with King Crimson now lives in a spacious and tidy Georgian terrace house. 

It would seem the only remotely schizoid aspect of his life now relates to his marriage. Fripp's wife is Toyah Willcox, the '80s pop siren, actress and voice of the Teletubbies. That she inhabits a different continent on planet entertainment has not, however, disrupted a 20-year relationship. Fripp sounds every inch the adoring husband. 

And when he describes his last job - playing guitar in Seattle with Peter Buck of REM in a project run by REM's drummer and Fripp's mate, Bill Rieflin - he sounds as if he's got it made.

And yet, and yet… This is a rare interview because, according to Fripp, his fellow countrymen don't like him much. His reputation abroad is god-like, and nowhere more so than in Argentina, where Crimson, he says, rank second only to the Beatles "because life there is so hard, music isn't entertainment, it's nutrition". 

At home, it's another story. Despite having recorded albums with musicians of the calibre of David Bowie, Brian Eno and David Sylvian, Fripp feels hugely under-appreciated here. Few performers have committed so many bad reviews to memory and pronounced so firmly on the "toxic hostility, negativity and antipathy" that they inspire. 

Fripp's twisty rock-outs with Crimson, his solo soundscapes and the heavily treated guitar pieces he calls "Frippertronics" have brought out the nasty side of the rock press, as well as rubbing audiences up the wrong way.

"When I go to New York or Tokyo or Buenos Aires, people come up to me on the street and ask me where I'm playing in town. Whereas I traipsed around England for years, facing calls of 'Yer a c**t, f**k off!" Fripp remembers the hecklers as clearly as the rude reviewers.

He first heard the "c" word directed at him at the Marquee in 1975; the last time was at the Albert Hall in 2003. "I was booed off every night." 

It all started to go wrong, he believes, when Crimson got lumped in mistakenly with prog rock's show-off tendency after their bass player Greg Lake left to form Emerson, Lake and Palmer. 

At the time, Fripp was more interested in his sound-lab experiments with Eno and others than in fretboard pyrotechnics. But, three decades of name-calling later, he has almost abandoned live work in Britain and has not been looking forward to his first solo dates in many years to promote his latest album, Love Cannot Bear/Soundscapes - Live in the USA.

Fripp's lack of interest in talking up the new CD and tour is in line with his distrust of the music business. "Being a professional musician doesn't mean you spend 12 hours a day playing music. It means you spend up to 12 hours a day taking care of business, dealing with litigation, with the various characters who've stolen your interests, or fending off hostile lawsuits from former members of the band." 

He spent most of the '90s embroiled in disputes with management, record companies and lyricist Pete Sinfield, "who considers himself in relation to Crimson the way Roger Waters does to Pink Floyd". 

Given a choice, Fripp says, he prefers to spend his time leading seminars with Guitar Craft, a non-profit organisation of mad-keen axemen which he founded in 1985 and most of whose members are amateur players. "I recommend my students not to be professional unless they really have to be. I tell them, 'If you love music, sell Hoovers or be a plumber. Do something useful with your life.' "

This programme looked at Money, and the financial independence: 

Toyah said: "Money, probably, has become more important to me in my career as I've got older."

"My big money weakness is property. I see somewhere and think, 'I have to have that!'."

"I am a saver. My husband says that when my purse opens it screams in pain."

"I've downshifted in the last three years. The estate we lived in was a white elephant. It cost £100,000 a year just to run the gardens. We felt we'd never be able to slow down. We freed up ourseleves from owing something to the place we lived in."

Rajal And His Evil Hypnotists : E4 - Tuesday 13th December : 10.30pm
Rajal And His Evil Hypnotists : E4 Plus 1 - Tuesday 13th December : 11.30pm
Rajal And His Evil Hypnotists : E4 - Sunday 18th December : 11.00pm
Rajal And His Evil Hypnotists : E4 Plus 1 - Monday 19th December : 00.00am
Rajan and his evil team make a grown man petrified of Santa Claus, while 80s pop star Toyah has a most unusual chatshow experience - with no idea that her host is a hypnotised member of the public. Other trance subjects drink vinegar, pour ice down their trousers, arrest over 60s for underage drinking, and regress to a three year old in a supermarket.

What Women Really Want : UKTV Style - Wednesday 14th December : 00.00am
What Women Really Want : UKTV Style Plus 1 - Wednesday 14th December : 01.00am
Money. It's grumpy old men with heels on! Er no, it's feisty high-profile women of all ages giving forth on everything from sex and singledom to plastic surgery and pregnancy. Today's hot topic is money - find out what Toyah Willcox, Jenny Eclair, Nadia Almada and other celebs have to say about loot. Narrated by Ulrika Jonsson.

Don't Watch That, Watch This! : BBC Four - Thursday 15th December : 11.00pm
Don't Watch That, Watch This! : BBC Four - Friday 16th December : 1.30am
Irreverently edited news footage. The comedy archive-fest comes to a climax with a cast including Toyah Willcox, John Humphreys and George Thingy, the American President.

Shoestring : UKTV Drama - Monday 19th December : 2.05am
Find The Lady. Our favourite crumpled private eye investigates the reported murder of a seaside beauty queen. More vintage crime cracking with Trevor Eve. Starring: Trevor Eve, Michael Medwin, Doran Godwin, Christopher Biggins, Toyah Willcox, and Gary Holton.

In Saturday's Mail, agony aunt Virginia Ironside triggered a fierce debate when she condemned therapy as a fraud. She wrote that having spent £54,000 on different therapist over many years, almost nothing had alleviated her depression. So is she right that the thousands of Britons who spend millions on counselling every year are wasting their money? Here, four celebrities who have been through therapy give their own trenchant opinions on both sides of the debate.

PERFORMER Toyah Willcox, 47, has had a long-distance marriage with guitarist Robert Fripp, 59, for 19 years. His playboy past drove her to a therapist, but it failed to help. In their unusual relationship, she lives in a 17th-century manor house in Worcestershire while he is based thousands of miles away in the US. They have no children. She is currently rehearsing to appear in a pantomime in Milton Keynes.

I came to the same conclusion as Virginia Ironside after seeking help for the deep-rooted jealousy I experienced about my husband's past.

When I met Robert, I had only had two serious relationships, whereas he was a bachelor who had famously been quoted as saying he'd slept with seven women a day when he was touring in the seventies.

After we announced our marriage and I moved in with him, I found his phone never stopped ringing, even in the middle of the night, with old girlfriends calling him up. They typically asked if he fancied one last fling, or whether he was doing the right thing getting married.

I knew Robert loved me and was finally, at the age of 40, ready to settle down, but I got so upset about it I ended up in tears.

I told Robert how I felt and he reassured me and suggested I talk through my anxieties with a psychotherapist he recommended.

I agreed, thinking it would help curb my feelings of distrust for Robert, which were making me aggressive towards him. The therapist, a man at least a decade older than me, only asked for a small voluntary payment of £15.

He let me talk about my concerns, but then suggested it was unnatural for a woman to be so possessive of her man. He even tried to make me belive that should my husband stray, I would be to blame.

He was a very successful, respected therapist and had I been a more vulnerable or fragile person, I might have listened to him. Instead, after my second session, I just felt belligerent. The therapist again tried to tell me that my instincts were wrong, and even had the audacity to ask me what was wrong with infidelity.

It became very clear he condoned extra-marital relationships, and I actually felt I was being primed to be a stay-at-home wife who should turn a blind eye to any infidelities. The therapist was following his own agenda, not mine, and his behaviour was remarkably dangerous. I don't like to think what might happen if he gets hold of a weaker character.

Fortunately, I stopped our sessions there and then. Later, I doscovered he'd had an affair with at least one of his female patients, so my instincts had been correct.

Robert and I did survive because we spent a few days seeing an American relationship counsellor together, who talked common sense and made us realise that we both had to acknowledge each other's history and move on together, which we have done very happily.

That kind of positive help can be useful. It's the counselling which makes you feel worse about yourself which is so damaging.

[The others interviewed were; Magenta Devine, Anna Raeburn, and Les Dennis]

Many thanks to Alec Kelly for this article.

Formidable Eighties punk turned television everywoman Toyah Willcox releases a new live DVD, Wild Essence – Live In The 21st Century, on November 28th through Cherry Red Records. 

The 80-minute concert was taped just two months ago with a four-piece live band and a brass trio, all adding up to true punk cacophony. 

The 16-song set includes covers of The Cult (She Sells Sanctuary), Guns ‘N’ Roses (Sweet Child Of Mine) and Martha & The Muffins (Echo Beach). Extras on the DVD include an exclusive backstage interview, extensive discography, previously unseen photos and four classic videos from her past – I Want To Be Free, Thunder In The Mountains, Brave New World and Rebel Run.

• Toyah was recently mentioned in the live stage show of The League Of Gentlemen - Are Behind You! The second part of the show is in the form of a pantomime and one of the show's characters has just climbed up the beanstalk to find himself in the giant's Local Shop:

Mickey: Hello?
echo: 'ello... 'ello... 'ello...
Mickey: Is anybody there?
echo: there... there... there...
Mickey: Toyah Willcox!
echo: 'cox... 'cox... 'cox...
Mickey: (giggles childishly) hee hee - cocks! 

Thanks to Chris Limb for the information

• The 'Daily Mail', (26th November), mentioned Toyah in an article on 2005's pantomimes.

• Yet another namecheck for Toyah, in a 'Telegraph' (29th November 05) article about the latest series of I'm A Celebrity... Get Me Out Of Here!: "In the I'ma Celebrity jungle, Jenni Bond is buried with a colony of rats and Toyah Willcox forages in a foul-smelling bog. Prankish, maybe; childish certainly. ... "

Whether you think cosmetic surgery is sad, superficial vanity or a brave attempt to keep the march of time at bay, it's not often a household-name star admits to having had facial surgery. It's even rarer when she decides to make public a detailed, personal diary which gives a blow-by-blow account of the whole process, from the critical decision and the search for the right surgery, to the nerve-wracking waiting period, the surgery itself, the recovery and on to the final transformation.

Yet that is exactly what Toyah Willcox did earlier this year when she launched a book detailing her own facelift experiences. As she embarks upon an "Audience with Toyah..." national tour, including a trip to Fife, here the former punk tells Michael Alexander why she felt compelled to write the book and why she thinks more celebrities should "come clean" on having had surgery.

In her latest publicity pictures, Toyah Willcox looks younger than her 47 years, but then she's not scared to admit she had a face lift two years ago. Feeling and looking tired after a year touring in the title role of Calamity Jane, and after years of contemplation, she decided to freshen herself up because she "couldn't look at herself in the mirror any more". Battling "inner turmoil" about whether she was being vain or shallow - even as she prepared to go into theatre for the operation - she now says she has no regrets spending £7500 on the controversial surgery which, she says, rejuvunated her self-esteem.

She only wished more celebrities would be honest with the public and themselves, however, by admitting they too have had surgery.

"I don't know anyone presently in the industry who has not had cosmetic procedures done," the flame-haired diva told me from her home in London, her trademark lisp instantly recognisable.

"Ninety per cent of people in entertainment wouldn't even class botox as a cosmetic procedure. And the audiences wonder why these people never seem to age!"

Toyah said she felt compelled to write her book, Diary Of A Facelift, for so many reasons, but one of the many is that she feels cosmetic surgery is not about vanity and A-list superstars, but increasingly about "survival" in a world where most people live longer than ever, raising questions about stars' rights to remain in the workforce.

"Good health comes from diet and exercise, but I feel very strongly that dishonesty is not right," she continued. "If the A-list stars keep getting younger yet deny they have had surgery, they are, in a way allowing the inappropriate surgeons to prosper and the brilliant surgeons to exist in secrecy. We all deserve equality when it comes to seeking self-improvement - as we all increasingly are. But I don't think surgery's a necessity to get on in the entertainment industry. I had a body dismorphic disorder. I did it to improve my self-esteem, and it worked 100%. But that was a personal thing for me. No one should ever have plastic surgery because others have told them to."

Although her facelift is topical and is bound to be mentioned when she holds her "Audience with..." event in deepest, darkest Lochgelly on Sunday, the star says she won't be saying too much about it. "Some people might not even be able to look at a syringe. Most of those who have fainted when I've talked about it in the past have been men. I even had a cameraman pass out on me once! So I won't be going into too much detail. A lot of people out there won't want to know!"

So what, then, can the audience expect?

"It's going to be very informal and I will be singing because I'd be mad to do this and not be singing. We'll be doing it in two halves. In the first half I'll be talking about my life with anecdotal statements and giving an insight into showbiz. I'm in control of that part because I know what I'm going to talk about.

"The second half though will take the form of a question-and-answer session, and it can go anywhere. I love doing that. It's usually very funny. People ask me the most bizarre questions and it can really go off at a tangent.

"This will be my first tour. I've never done anything like this before. But it's not new for me. The thing is a lot of the work I've done the public have not seen. I do motivational talks. I do them in private and have never done them before a public audience. I've done 20 years of after-dinner speaking. This tour will be a very real thing to do. To be face to face with an audience just feet away, it'll be nice, fun and informal."

Billed as a chance to "meet Toyah and hear her inspirational, funny and unorthodox life story", the audience will certainly have plenty of material to ask about in her diverse career, fro mher days as an iconic rock star in the 1970s to the TV presenter and author. Musical accompaniment will come from Chris Wong, the guitar player of her curent band line-up.

The remainder of this article is an abdriged version of Toyah's official biog, available to read, in full, at www.toyahwillcox.com/bio.html

Many thanks to Alec Kelly for this article.

Personal Passions : BBC Prime - Friday 9th December : 3.45am
Toyah Willcox talks to Peter Curran about her drive to restore the glories of a garden once owned by Cecil Beaton.

The Most Fertile Man In Ireland : Sky Movies 5 - Monday 12th December : 11.35pm
Twenty-four year old virgin, Eamonn Manley, lives with his mother in Belfast and is painfully shy with the ladies. Things change for Eamonn when Mary Malloy decides to make the first move and soon Mary realises that she is pregnant even though she was using birth control. The doctor discovers that Eamonn has an unusually high sperm count... His mother has the idea that he can help the local ladies who have had problems conceiving a baby... Director: Dudi Appleton. Starring: Kris Marshall, Kathy Kiera Clarke, Bronagh Gallagher, James Nesbitt, Kenneth Cranham, Toyah Willcox and Olivia Nash. 

Rajal And His Evil Hypnotists : E4 - Tuesday 13th December : 10.30pm
Rajal And His Evil Hypnotists : E4 Plus 1 - Tuesday 13th December : 11.30pm
Rajan and his evil team make a grown man petrified of Santa Claus, while 80s pop star Toyah has a most unusual chatshow experience - with no idea that her host is a hypnotised member of the public. Other trance subjects drink vinegar, pour ice down their trousers, arrest over 60s for underage drinking, and regress to a three year old in a supermarket.

What Women Really Want : UKTV Style - Wednesday 14th December : 00.00am
What Women Really Want : UKTV Style Plus 1 - Wednesday 14th December : 01.00am
Money. It's grumpy old men with heels on! Er no, it's feisty high-profile women of all ages giving forth on everything from sex and singledom to plastic surgery and pregnancy. Today's hot topic is money - find out what Toyah Willcox, Jenny Eclair, Nadia Almada and other celebs have to say about loot. Narrated by Ulrika Jonsson.

Never Mind The Buzzcocks : BBC2 : Boxing Day : Time TBC
Toyah joins host Mark Lamarr and guests for a festive edition of the irreverent music quiz show.

The Frank Skinner Show : ITV1 : Still waiting to be confirmed

This item was designed specially for Toyah in the 1990's by Emma Forrest.

Emma said: "I designed this piece for Toyah and she discussed designs with me as we produced it to fit her exact measurements. It is featured on her web site (gallery roon one) and picures of her wearing it are used regularily and were recently used to promote her 80's tour nationwide. It took me 6 months to make and includes a poem we wrote based on song lyrics that she sent me. It is made in silver, copper and resin and is a complete one off. It will be hard to part with it but it is sat packed in a box and really should be enjoyed by a fan as it not only has a fantastic history but is a magnificent piece."

www.emmaforrestdesign.com

What's On Magazine went along to the launch of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs - the all new panto set to appear at Milton Keynes Theatre this Christmas. 

A star-studded cast will be taking to the stage at Milton Keynes Theatre this year in a brand new pantomime.
Former pop star Suzanne Shaw will star as the beautiful Snow-White in this action-packed production by First Family Entertainment.

Suzanne enthused: 'I am very excited as this is my first panto and it's the biggest in the UK. It's a brand new show which is great to get involved in with right from the start.'

Toyah Willcox is busy polishing up the poison apple as she returns to panto as the wicked queen and the writer and star of the Rocky Horror Show Richard O'Brien promises to get audiences dancing in the aisles as the queen's henchman. 

Toyah said: 'The best parts in panto are being evil, funny, witty women! 

''I love doing pantomime. It's one of the only forms of theatre where you see three generations of people in the audience and it is often a child's first taste of the theatre.'

Film star Warwick Davies, Harry Potter's Professor Flitwick, plays the leader of the seven dwarfs Prof and performer Duncan Breeze is the hero, Prince Charming.

Warwick said: 'Prof is like Captain Mannering with a little bit of Frank Spencer in there. The one that looks least likely to be in charge! This panto shows the dwarfs in a darker light. We wanted to get a bit more mystery into it and make it a bit spookier.'

This dazzling performance is set to get people of all ages into the Christmas spirit with glittering costumes, original Disney songs, side-splitting comedy and lots, lots more!

• Toyah - Live 2006
Friday 24th February : Skegness (full band)
Saturday 25th February : Bognor (full band)
Friday 17th March : Minehead (full band)
Saturday 18th March : Skegness (full band)

A number of the above dates are subject to change. 
Check out Dreamscape's LIVE section for dedicated pages on Toyah's past 2005 gigs.