John Arlingham Toye (18 April 1936 – 28 April 1992) was an English television presenter and newsreader on

Scottish Television Scottish Television (now legally known as STV Central Limited) is the ITV (TV network), ITV network franchisee for Central Belt, Central Scotland. The channel — the largest of the three ITV franchises in Scotland — has been in operation si ...

for more than 20 years, and is best known as the former anchor on its flagship news programme ''

Scotland Today ''Scotland Today'' was a Scottish regional news programme covering Central Scotland, produced by STV Central (formerly Scottish Television). Despite its name suggesting a national remit, the programme was actually limited to stories around STV's C ...

''.

Life and career

John Toye was born in

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

, England, into a musical family. His father was the conductor and composer Geoffrey Toye, and his mother was Dorothy Fleitman. As a child, he spent time in America and was once rescued from a cruise ship torpedoed en route to Britain during the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. He studied classical music in America and spent time living with

Navajo The Navajo or Diné are an Indigenous people of the Southwestern United States. Their traditional language is Diné bizaad, a Southern Athabascan language. The states with the largest Diné populations are Arizona (140,263) and New Mexico (1 ...

Native Americans, before attending drama school in London. Toye began his career in the theatre, spending ten years in jobs ranging from Shakespearean roles to building stage scenery. He married Sheila Ward, a scenic designer, in the early 1960s while still a struggling actor. After working in touring theatre, he applied for a job with STV (then known as

) in 1964. His first role on television was as a presenter on ''Today Is Tuesday'' before becoming the main anchor on the station's main early evening flagship news programme, ''

'', in September 1972. His almost nightly appearances on STV in the 70s turned Toye into a well-known figure in central Scotland, and he regularly appeared off screen, opening shows or making presentations for charities and other worthwhile causes. A revamping of ''Scotland Today'' in 1984 brought his news presenting to an end, although he remained with STV for a brief spell presenting a weekly consumer programme, ''What's Your Problem?'' before being sacked during the summer of 1986, as part of an overhaul of the current affairs at STV. In 1986, Toye appeared in court for drunk driving, for the second time in three years, and was warned that if he appeared again he would be sent to prison. He moved to

South Molton South Molton is a town and civil parish in the North Devon district, in the county of Devon, England. The town is on the River Mole. In 2021 it had a population of 6225. South Molton is a market town trading mostly in sheep and cattle. There wa ...

Devon Devon ( ; historically also known as Devonshire , ) is a ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by the Bristol Channel to the north, Somerset and Dorset to the east, the English Channel to the south, and Cornwall to the west ...

in 1990 to start a new life, but failed to relaunch his career and spent the next few years battling against alcoholism combined with depression and financial worries.

Death

Toye was found dead at his Devon flat on 28 April 1992. A shotgun lay next to his body. He was 56 years of age. His funeral was held at South Molton Parish Church in Devon on 15 May 1992, and he was later cremated. His wish was that his ashes should be scattered on the

River Clyde The River Clyde (, ) is a river that flows into the Firth of Clyde, in the west of Scotland. It is the eighth-longest river in the United Kingdom, and the second longest in Scotland after the River Tay. It runs through the city of Glasgow. Th ...

. At an inquest held on 29 May 1992, the

coroner A coroner is a government or judicial official who is empowered to conduct or order an inquest into the manner or cause of death. The official may also investigate or confirm the identity of an unknown person who has been found dead within th ...

recorded a verdict of suicide. Shortly after his death, the ''

Scottish Daily Record The ''Daily Record'' is a Scottish national tabloid newspaper based in Glasgow. The newspaper is published Monday–Saturday and its website is updated on an hourly basis, seven days a week. The ''Record'' sister title is the '' Sunday Mail''. ...

'' ran the headline "John Toye may have fired the trigger but STV loaded the gun", a quote that was attributed to his one time co-presenter on ''Scotland Today'', Bob Cuddihy. Cuddihy maintained that Toye never recovered from being axed as the presenter of ''Scotland Today'' and was treated very poorly by STV. When once asked how he would like to be remembered, Toye replied: "Just as a nice guy who tried to do a good job." John Toye's ashes are interred in

Rosneath Rosneath () is a village in Argyll and Bute, Scotland. It sits on the western shore of the Gare Loch, northwest of the tip of the Rosneath Peninsula. It is about by road from the village of Kilcreggan, which is sited on the southern shore ...

cemetery, close to his former home at

Clynder Clynder is a Hamlet (place), place on the western shore of the Gare Loch, Argyll and Bute, Scotland. Historically in the Dunbartonshire, County of Dunbarton, Clynder is one of a string of small settlements on the Rosneath Peninsula. It is almost ...

on the

Gare Loch The Gare Loch or Gareloch () is an open sea loch in Argyll and Bute in the west of Scotland, and it bears a similar name to the village of Gairloch in the north west Highlands. The loch is well used for sailing, recreational boating, list of ...

. A headstone marks the spot, titled "John Toye Actor".

References

Daily Record (Scotland) The ''Daily Record'' is a Scottish national tabloid newspaper based in Glasgow. The newspaper is published Monday–Saturday and its website is updated on an hourly basis, seven days a week. The ''Record'' sister title is the '' Sunday Mail''. ...

30 April 1992 * Herald (Glasgow) 30 April 1992 *

16 May 1992 * Herald (Glasgow) 30 May 1992 {{DEFAULTSORT:Toye, John 1936 births 1992 deaths 1992 suicides British television presenters STV News newsreaders and journalists Suicides by firearm in England