Toyah Willcox Reveals Terrifying Knifepoint Attack Ahead of ‘Strictly Come Dancing’ Debut

As Toyah Willcox prepares for her debut on Strictly Come Dancing this weekend, the 66-year-old singer has shared the chilling story of being attacked at knifepoint during her teenage years. In her autobiography Living Out Loud, Toyah opens up about the harrowing experience and how she managed to narrowly escape the situation, according to the Mirror.

Toyah recalled that the attack occurred while she was out walking with her friend Dawn. The pair had been spending time in a café frequented by a dangerous gang. “Dawn was more worldly-wise than me. She enjoyed male company and didn’t seem disturbed by the fact that these guys were armed up to the hilt with knuckle-dusters and blades,” Toyah wrote, via the Daily Mail.

As they left the café and went window-shopping, the group decided to head to a nearby park. Toyah felt uneasy and begged her friend to leave, but Dawn brushed off her concerns. “Don’t be such a stick in the mud, it’ll be fun,” Dawn told her.

While Dawn wandered off with one of the men, Toyah was left alone with another. She tried to fend him off with idle conversation, but the situation escalated when the man pulled a knife on her. Dawn, realizing the danger, turned pale and quickly left.

“Knowing that fear would do nothing but work against me, I decided I had to follow the process until I had the right moment of escape,” Toyah wrote. In a daring move, she led the attacker into the park’s public toilets. Realizing he was drunk, Toyah saw her opportunity. When the man put down his knife to unzip his trousers, she found the strength to act. “That was my strength and my opportunity,” she recalled.

The experience left a lasting mark on Toyah, but her bravery and quick thinking helped her survive the terrifying ordeal. Now, as she gears up for her first dance on Strictly Come Dancing, Toyah continues to show the same resilience and determination that helped her during that dark chapter of her life.