Absolutely fantastic! This is only my second day here, so I’m nice and fresh. I’ve been asked back before but only for a few episodes here and there, but I’ve never been asked back on a full time basis. I was asked quite a few years ago to do a couple of episodes. I’ve always said if I came back, I’d want to commit to it and feel that there was a real creative reason for me to come back – not just be a wedding guest. That didn’t really appeal to me. I also said that if I did come back, I’d want to have good storylines.
Will you be wearing the same sorts of clothes as you did as teenager Toyah?
(Laughs) Oh no, they’ll be completely different outfits. Toyah is in her mid-thirties now, so her style has changed a bit.
I’m still finding her, at the moment. I left in 2003 to go to London with Spider who was setting up a juice bar down there. When I had my meeting with Kate (Oates) a couple of months ago, I said I need a sense of what’s been happening for the last few years. It’s important to me that there are still things we cling onto from the original character. So I insisted she’s still vegetarian and that her relationship with Leanne is still strong. Toyah has grown, matured. She’s had relationships, she’s moved and travelled. There will be a combination of old elements and new ones.
Did you look back at
old episodes to remind yourself of how you were?
Oh yes, I looked at old tapes – it was horrendous! But it also made me feel nostalgic. We were so young, just these two sisters who were rough around the edges. It’s weird. I didn’t recognise myself. My voice was different, I look different.
Oh yes, I looked at old tapes – it was horrendous! But it also made me feel nostalgic. We were so young, just these two sisters who were rough around the edges. It’s weird. I didn’t recognise myself. My voice was different, I look different.
My heart was very much saying yes on my drive back to Bristol, but it was such a huge decision. I didn’t want to undo any good work I did the first time around. I’ve been a jobbing actress for thirteen years and when you come back into a show like this, you’re completely committed. I’ve been doing my homework and watching the show as much as I can, but I’ve also kept up with it anyway.
We first met Toyah when she was a gobby teenager. Later, she became an eco-warrior and I loved that – that’s when she got her own identity. She came of age. Out of all the Battersbys, she was the one who wanted to better herself the most. Ken took her under his wing and she was also close to Roy – I loved those relationships. When we meet her now, as an adult, she’s trained as a counsellor – which makes a lot of sense, with everything she went through, especially the rape. She’s a very caring and nurturing person.
Is there anything
else you would like to comment upon concerning your return to the cobbles?
It wasn’t the reason, but it does feel fitting that it’s 20
years ago next year since The Battersbys appeared. They are one of those really
memorable families. It’s worked out really nicely. In the canteen,though, I’m
like, “Where are the knives and forks? What do I do with my empty bowl? Where’s
the coffee machine?’Jane was the first person I spoke to in the whole world when they asked me to come back. She was brilliant. I was in touch with her the whole time, she was like my counsellor. She’s one of my best friends. She was delighted when I finally made my decision.
We haven’t had the chance yet to celebrate, but we will do. It
was crazy back then. I clung to Jane, we were a bit like rabbits in the
headlights. The publicity that surrounded our family was huge. There were polls
saying we were the worst thing to have ever happened to the Street. It was just
a crazy, crazy time. I look back and I wish I’d have kept a diary. For a good
year, it was a complete whirlwind.
Ruth Owen, twitter: @Ruth1722
See also Ruth's interviews with...
See also Ruth's interviews with...
- Jane Danson, who plays Leanne Battersby. Read it here.
- Lucy Fallon, who plays Bethany Platt. Read it here.
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1 comment:
Toyah B. left the show just before I started watching, so it will be interesting for me to get to know this character from scratch.
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