Toni Arthur

Arthur is most remembered as one of the presenters of the children's programmes Play School and Play Away with Brian Cant and Lionel Morton. She also presented Woman's Hour, TV-am's breakfast show and many other programmes.

In 2010, Arthur criticised modern children's TV programmes and called for gentler programmes to allow toddlers to build up reassuring relationships with presenters.[2]

After releasing their first single, the traditional songs "The Cuckoo" / "A Rich and Rambling Boy", under the name The Strollers on Fontana Records (TF 598) in July 1965, Toni released several folk music albums in the late 1960s and early 1970s with her husband, Dave Arthur. These included Morning Stands on Tiptoe (1967),[3] The Lark in the Morning (1969) and Hearken to the Witches Rune (1971). With her husband, she recalls travelling the world, singing in folk clubs.

"Hearken to the Witches Rune" was released on the red Trailer label in the UK in 1971. The tracklist is as follows: "Alison Gross", "Tam Lin", "A Fairy Tale", "The Fairy Child", "Broomfield Hill", "The Standing Stones", "The Cruel Mother", and "Alice Brand". All are traditional songs. Some copies of this album came with a 'Magic In Ballads' booklet.[4]

It was while Arthur was performing in a folk club, she has said, that a BBC producer approached her about auditioning for a children's BBC programme called Play School. She gained the job, even though, she says she was wearing "an incredibly short skirt."[1]

Arthur also appeared on a BBC album that was a spin off from the BBC children's programme Play Away in 1977. Ready Steady Go - Play Away was full of songs in the Music Hall style. She appeared as a solo artist on tracks such as "Doctor Foster Tours The World", "Running, Stretching, Racing", "Why Does The Winkle Always Turn To The Right?" and "Night Express North Bound". She also performed many ensemble songs with Brian Cant, while Jonathan Cohen, Spike Heatley and Alan Rushton (who had all played at Ronnie Scott's) formed a tight band. Brian and Toni weave a "night on the town" narrative in and out of the songs about Music Hall, coffee bars and gambling. The back cover of the album sleeve also featured a board game.

Arthur has written several plays and books, including All The Year Round - A Compendium of Games, Customs and Stories, which was a children's book of crafts for celebrating the seasons. This was published by Puffin Books on 27 August 1981, ISBN 0140313206.

In 2003, Arthur directed A Very Naughty Boy by Adrian Poynton, based on the life of Graham Chapman. It won a first prize at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe.