Toyah Willcox set for Edinburgh shows with Now That’s What I Call A  Musical - 'the songs connect in an instant'

Compilation albums were nothing new - K-Tel mastered the genre a decade earlier - but they became multi-platinum selling albums which took the best of the charts and delivered the perfect package of hits to millions of turntables and CD players.

Pretty much every single iconic single of the 80s can be found on the albums, so the only surprise it has taken this long to use that as the basis of a musical. Written by comedian Pippa Evans and choreographed by Strictly judge, Craig Revel Horwood, Now That’s I Call A Musical celebrates the decade of pop that still resonates to this day.

The current UK brings it to the Playhouse Theatre in Edinburgh from February 25-March 1, when the star name above the door will be the iconic Toyah Willcox. Tickets here.

She lands in the capital fresh from appearing at 80s festival Rewind - in Dubai! - and spends a week at the helm before passing on to fellow stars Sonia, Sinitta and Carol Decker from T’Pau.

“It is incredibly entertaining,” she said. “I saw it while rehearsing in Hull last week, and it is exceptionally good. It is brilliantly written and the choreography is superb - among the best I have seen - and it is complete entertainment.”

Toyah appears as herself in the musical which tells the story of two women preparing for a school reunion and looking back on how their lives have gone - and how the gathering slots all the pieces into place.

“The songs are all part of our collective story, and what I love about this show is they aren’t just dropped in - they are placed as part of the story.” said Toyah. “The power of a show like this is every song means something different to every person in the audience. There are a lot of memories attached to them - when I was in the audience watching, I could sense it. Some people have had wonderful experiences to these songs.

“And the connection is instant - you hear that very first bar and you know the song straight away.” That’s also a tribute to the songwriters and artists whose songs filled every ‘Now’ album which sold by the truck load. Toyah’s classic singles sit perfectly within the playlists.

“The albums were so much fun - that was your party playlist,” she said. “My record label told me I was going to be on them - it was your way of saying you’d arrived. A very few artists did not want their songs on the albums - but 99% of us did!”

The 80s chart stars endure to this day with huge revival tours such as Rewind appealing to cross-generation audiences. Toyah returns to Scotland with the Human League, The Christians, Altered Images, ABC and T’Pau for a gig in Slessor Gardens in July.

It is one of several festivals she is playing. Factor in the recent launch of two short stories and a documentary on Visage frontman, Steve Strange, and her schedule for 2025 is as busy as ever. Which explains why she is also jumping into Now That’s What I Call A Musical for one week.

“I couldn’t commit to a tour of two or three months and rehearsal,” she said. “I was free this week so I come straight in from Dubai - but we (Carol, Sonia and Sinitta) are all busy. I know every single song by each artist on the show, and have toured with them - their songs come on and pull at your heartstrings and memories.” “I’m not quite ready to retire yet! This is a great job - the best thing in the world to do. I never get up thinking I don’t want to go to work. I’ve done this for 45 years. It’s my craft.”