Toyah Willcox reveals key to 38-year marriage with Robert Fripp and why they had no children
13 February 2024, 09:25
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They've been married for nearly 40 years.
It takes a unique chemistry for a couple to stay together for nearly four decades, and on the surface, Robert Fripp and Toyah Willcox might've seemed an unlikely match.
Fripp is a left-field guitar virtuoso and sonic sorcerer, renowned for his career with King Crimson as well as collaborations with the likes of David Bowie and Brian Eno.
On the other hand, Willcox was more of a familiar face in the new wave scene, fronting the eponymous band Toyah before pursuing a solo pop-rock career alongside acting.
Despite any perceived differences, the pair wed in 1986, and have been lovingly married ever since.
In fact, in a rare new insight into their love life and long-term marriage, Toyah has revealed that their differences and "independent careers" is what keeps their relationship fresh and re-energised.
Their careers have taken a turn in recent years, after their Sunday Lunch series went viral, which now sees them touring together as Toyah and Robert.
Talking to The Mirror about what it's like being happily married and on tour together, Willcox revealed: "It's exactly the same as being married for 38 years, it's good."
"We both come from very different genres," Toyah said, before Robert added: "But we complement each other well, I have a wonderful time being out working with my wife, may I say, even having greater fun than when we were at home together."
Touring together makes a total change for the married couple for the first time in their lives, as they've spent much of their careers being separated due to busy schedules.
Lockdown, like most of the world, brought them back together: "It was probably the first time since we've been married that we were actually together one day after the other on a continued basis," Fripp continued.
"Up until that point, we'd only be together about eight weeks of the year because of our touring schedules."
Struggling with the isolation from the music worlds they've called home for their entire careers, Toyah previously admitted she was "losing" Robert so decided to do something about it.
That's when they started Sunday Lunch, a YouTube series where they'd perform cover versions of The Rolling Stones, Black Sabbath, Bowie, Billy Idol, Neil Young, Eurythmics, and The Sex Pistols.
It proved so popular that the pair turned it into a live performance and started touring with one another.
Toyah & Robert's Sunday Lunch - Pretty Vacant
Talking about their tours together, Toyah said: "If I'm working with other musicians that is purely a working relationship. But when we're working together I feel strangely more at home with the experience because I have a lifetime companion with me."
"When I'm on my own you just become a bit more of a self-surviving professional, whereas when you're together, everything is shared."
Robert added: "I adore my wife. My wife is lots of fun to be with. My wife is constantly mischievous, and one of her favourite little things is to make me jump," before Toyah joked: "It does make me aware I might give them a heart attack!"
Explaining the secret to their long-lasting marriage, Toyah revealed: "I think we're both very independent. And because of our independent careers, we can have breathing away from each other."
"I would say to any couple trust and allow that in your relationships. Having these breathing space spaces, I think are really, really valuable."
She also admitted that not having children in the equation has liberated them and let them live their lives as they wished.
"We don't have children, we never even considered having children. Hats off to those people who do because that commitment is extraordinary," Willcox continued.
"I think with us we've managed to remain unique and independent as well as being a couple."
"We both travel the world independently of each other working, and we come back together because we want to - there's always a freshness in our marriage."
