Strictly Come Dancing's Toyah Willcox turned down partners over 'inappropriate' fears

Toyah Willcox has admitted that she turned down certain Strictly Come Dancing partners over fears of coming across as 'inappropriate'. The 80s pop singer, 68,took part in the 2024 edition of the BBC Saturday night favourite, which returns to screens for its next outing in a matter of days, but explained that she had to turn down certain potential partners before the show went to air because of the age gap.

In the end, Toyah was paired up with Neil Jones, who was 42 at the time, and was satisfied with that because she could cope with the 24-year age gap.

During an appearance on Friday's edition of Good Morning Britain,host Rob Rinder put it to her that she had been 'offered a couple of young dancers' before entering the competition, and Toyah confirmed that had been the case.

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She added: "I did not want to be with someone who was so young that was going to have to work with me so intimately, it would've felt completely wrong. I chose Neil Jones because I liked him, I loved every minute with him. But that age gap wasn't so enormous."

When Kate Garraway asked if she felt being paired with someone younger would make her look older, Toyah confirmed that was not the case at all. She said: "It would've been just inappropriate! I have no worries about looking older, I'm 68 so I'm perfectly aware of that."

In 2024, the series was eventually won by comedian Chris McCausland, whilst others such as Love Island star Tasha Ghouri, JLS singer JB Gill and Miranda actress Sarah Hadland all reached the final. For Toyah, her journey in the competition ended relatively early as she was eliminated in the second week.

But the songstress, who is preparing to go back on tour, insisted that she 'disagreed' with the negative feedback on the programme and has full confidence in her abilities on stage. She said: "I loved every minute, but I disagreed with everything the judges said. I was brilliant! And that's my mindset. You can say whatever you want, but up there, I am brilliant!"

Toyah has been in the industry for several decades now and has achieved success with hit singles like It's A Mystery. She has also had an illustrious career on screen, having appeared opposite late Hollywood actress Katharine Hepburn, and worked with George Cukor, who directed Judy Garland for a brief period during the tumultuous production of The Wizard of Oz and then worked with the torch song legend once again on A Star Is Born.

But when it comes to her wish list, the performer admitted that one thing that's left on it is a part in Star Wars, and she is determined to land herself a role in the hit sci-fi franchise at some point.

She said: "I'm desperate to do Star Wars. Every where I go in the world, I say I'd like to do Star Wars! I will not give up until I do it!"

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