Hello.
My name is Toby. I am an actor, writer and comedian.
I was going to write this in the third person in order to give the impression that I have “people”. But I don’t. So, hello!
Here’s my latest news (November 2021):
I’m still largely isolating due to living with a vulnerable person, but still trying to keep busy and pay the rent…!
Fergus Dunford (who looks suspiciously like me) is still popping in to Coronation Street – his latest appearance was on November 1st but there are lots of opportunities to catch up with scenes and clips if you want to see what Weatherfield’s traffic warden is up to. I’m very much enjoying playing him, see him in action here.
Fergus in the factory during his latest Corrie appearance
I am back on BBC Radio 4 Extra from Saturday 13th November for 3 weekends, presenting the science-fiction hour The Seventh Dimension and sprinkling it with arcane facts and due reverence. It’s nice to be doing it during Doctor Who‘s birthday week, so I’ll doubtless be mentioning that, as well as introducing a play (Mr Origami) by Tenko‘s Jill Hyem, a thriller about disappearing prisoners and government experimenters (Dracula in White), and some short spooky stories with a Scottish flavour. As ever I will endeavour to sprinkle the whole thing with joy and facts and due reverence.
With Peter Purves and a little chum(bley) making the documentary for the Galaxy 4 DVD.
I feature on the commentary and the documentary for the forthcoming release of Doctor Who‘s Galaxy Four – we only filmed the documentary at the beginning of September and the disc is out very soon : probably our quickest turnaround.
I had the sad duty of writing the Guardian obituary for that brilliant writer Bob Baker – last of the Pertwee scribes – and you can find it here.
XS Malarkey – my award winning, 24 year old comedy club – has opened its doors again after over a year of lockdown shows (we ran weekly throughout the pandemic). We have some great acts and shows coming up – including John-Luke Roberts, Olga Koch, Jain Edwards, Joe Sutherland, Sara Baron, and John Hastings – and they kick off at 8pm at our usual venue of The Bread Shed in Manchester. Our online shows went so well we are going to continue with them, bringing you fantastic acts from around the world on the first Sunday of every month at 8pm on our Twitch channel. The next one features will be on December 5th, but there’s an archive of clips from previous shows up there right now!
Joe Lycett, Chris Kehoe and Sophie Duker are amongst the brilliant acts we have had at XS Malarkey recently
My podcasts are all up and away. They just clocked up over 100, 000 downloads across 100 episodes which I am told is very good (we only launched a year ago)! They are all about Doctor Who : there’s Too Much Information (a fact-filled, episode-by-episode breakdown), Indefinable Magic (whimsical vocal essays inspired by some random aspect of the the show), and Happy Times and Places (commentaries with the aim of positivity). They are released under the blanket title of Toby Hadoke’s Time Travels. My Podbean podcast page is here. My Patreon Page is here.
I have directed a new set of episodes of the Dan Dare/Buck Rogers type spoof Dick Dixon in the 21st Century by the brilliant Jonathan Morris. It has a great soundscape (thanks Darrell MacLaine) and a terrific cast including Kieran Hodgson, Dan Starkey, Terry Molloy and Sooz Kempner. Jonny has packed it with jokes and characters who will definitely strike a chord with anyone who likes what I like. The latest two episodes have just been released – they are called The Love Bug and Menagerie a Trois (click on the links for previews) and got 8/10 from Sci Fi Bulletin and 5 stars from setthetape.com.
And here’s the general stuff about me if you’re interested (which I’m guessing you might be as you are here, so thanks!):
My one man show Moths Ate My Doctor Who Scarf sold out at the Edinburgh Fringe before embarking on a national tour, international dates and a West End run. The radio version was released on CD by the BBC and was nominated for a Sony Award. The follow up – My Stepson Stole My Sonic Screwdriver – joined its predecessor for a double bill at the Garrick Theatre in 2013. My radio work includes afternoon plays, a Fright Night presentation and topical comedy and has been nominated for a BBC Audio Drama Award.
I am a regular performer at the Comedy Store, Manchester (New Stuff every second and last Sunday of the month), the 99 Club Leicester Square, and have been resident compere at the award winning XS Malarkey comedy club for 23 years.
I also like old TV and can spot a character actor in a crowd from space. I have written about such passions for national newspapers and magazines, and spoken about them on documentaries and TV news programmes. My podcast, Toby Hadoke’s Who’s Round, has run to over 250 episodes, and my new lot, Toby Hadoke’s Time Travels, have hit 50, 000 downloads.
But I’m an actor really. I have appeared in Holby City, An Adventure in Space and Time, Phoenix Nights, The Forsyte Saga, Emmerdale, Coronation Street and Casualty 1907, the forthcoming feature film Six Minutes to Midnight (2020) and dozens of radio plays. I also present the weekend science fiction hour, The 7th Dimension, on BBC Radio 4 Extra.
