Toby Robins
Encyclopedia
Toby Robins was a Canadian actress of film, stage and television.
Toby Robins starred in hundreds of radio and stage productions in Canada from the late 1940s through the 1960s, working with such stars as Jane Mallett
, Barry Morse
, John Drainie
, Ruth Springford
, James Doohan
, and many others. She appeared in a number of television and film roles beginning in the mid-1950s, and hosted the first-ever CBC Television
series, The Big Revue
in 1952. In Toronto she played in repertory with Lorne Greene
, Mavor Moore, and Don Harron. At the Crest Theatre she played the leading parts in Cat on a Hot Tin Roof
, Dream Girl and many others.
Robins became a popular television personality as an original member of the cast of the long-running CBC television series Front Page Challenge
in 1957, remaining with the program until 1961. Originally hosted by Alex Barris
and later Fred Davis
, Front Page Challenge was a current events series disguised as a panel-style game show in a similar format to the American What's My Line?
. Panelists had to guess the news story or person behind a news story by asking questions of the guest; after the game portion, the guest was then interviewed informally by the panel.
Although Robins was initially criticized for asking simple and sometimes unintelligent questions, she soon found her journalistic sea legs and before long was holding her own alongside the more experienced journalists, including her co-panellists Gordon Sinclair
and Pierre Berton
. She left the series in a salary dispute in 1961 and was replaced by future senator
Betty Kennedy
(who remained with the show until its demise in the 1990s). Robins returned to the show from time to time as a guest panelist.
In 1964 Robins relocated to London and she appeared in a number of film and television productions, including Space: 1999
(the two-parter "The Bringers of Wonder", which was later re-issued as the telefilm Destination Moonbase Alpha) and in 1981 she played Melina Havelock's ill-fated mother in the James Bond
film For Your Eyes Only
. In London she appeared in such dramas onstage as The Relapse, The Latent Heterosexual, Flip Side, and The Aspern Papers.
in 1986, one week after her 55th birthday. In 1991, her family founded the Breakthrough Toby Robins Breast Cancer Centre in London
, which was opened in 1999 by HRH The Prince of Wales, with the aim of producing a coordinated program of research to tackle breast cancer. It is the first dedicated breast cancer research centre in the United Kingdom
, and directly linked to one of the most renowned cancer facilities in the world, the Royal Marsden Hospital.
Jane Mallett
Jane Mallett was born in London, Ontario, Canada. She was a notable Canadian stage and film actress, born Jean Dawson Keenleyside....
, Barry Morse
Barry Morse
Herbert "Barry" Morse was an Anglo-Canadian actor of stage, screen, and radio best known for his roles in the ABC television series The Fugitive and the British sci-fi drama Space: 1999...
, John Drainie
John Drainie
John Robert Roy Drainie was a Canadian actor and television presenter, who was called "the greatest radio actor in the world" by Orson Welles....
, Ruth Springford
Ruth Springford
Ruth Springford was a Canadian radio, stage, television and film actress....
, James Doohan
James Doohan
James Montgomery "Jimmy" Doohan was a Canadian character and voice actor best known for his role as Montgomery "Scotty" Scott in the television and film series Star Trek...
, and many others. She appeared in a number of television and film roles beginning in the mid-1950s, and hosted the first-ever CBC Television
Canadian Broadcasting Corporation
The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, commonly known as CBC and officially as CBC/Radio-Canada, is a Canadian crown corporation that serves as the national public radio and television broadcaster...
series, The Big Revue
The Big Revue
The Big Revue was a Canadian variety television show. It was the first ever production of the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation's television network when both debuted in 1952. The show was directed by Norman Jewison and written by John Aylesworth and Frank Peppiatt...
in 1952. In Toronto she played in repertory with Lorne Greene
Lorne Greene
Lorne Greene , was the stage name of Lyon Himan Green, OC, a Canadian actor.His television roles include Ben Cartwright on the western Bonanza, and Commander Adama in the science fiction movie and subsequent TV Series Battlestar Galactica...
, Mavor Moore, and Don Harron. At the Crest Theatre she played the leading parts in Cat on a Hot Tin Roof
Cat on a Hot Tin Roof
Cat on a Hot Tin Roof is a play by Tennessee Williams. One of Williams's best-known works and his personal favorite, the play won the Pulitzer Prize for Drama in 1955...
, Dream Girl and many others.
Robins became a popular television personality as an original member of the cast of the long-running CBC television series Front Page Challenge
Front Page Challenge
Front Page Challenge was a long-running Canadian panel game about current events and history. Created by comedy writer/performer John Aylesworth and produced and aired by CBC Television, the series ran from 1957 to 1995.-Synopsis:The series featured notable journalists attempting to guess the...
in 1957, remaining with the program until 1961. Originally hosted by Alex Barris
Alex Barris
Alex Paul Barris, CM was an American-born Canadian television actor and writer. He was a writer and panelist for the game show Front Page Challenge. He was born in New York City. He was 81 when he died due to complications from a stroke he suffered a year earlier.Alex Barris left behind a wife and...
and later Fred Davis
Fred Davis (broadcaster)
Fred Davis was a Canadian broadcaster, best known as host of the CBC Television programme Front Page Challenge for nearly all of its 38-year run....
, Front Page Challenge was a current events series disguised as a panel-style game show in a similar format to the American What's My Line?
What's My Line?
What's My Line? is a panel game show which originally ran in the United States on the CBS Television Network from 1950 to 1967, with several international versions and subsequent U.S. revivals. The game tasked celebrity panelists with questioning contestants in order to determine their occupations....
. Panelists had to guess the news story or person behind a news story by asking questions of the guest; after the game portion, the guest was then interviewed informally by the panel.
Although Robins was initially criticized for asking simple and sometimes unintelligent questions, she soon found her journalistic sea legs and before long was holding her own alongside the more experienced journalists, including her co-panellists Gordon Sinclair
Gordon Sinclair
Allan Gordon Sinclair, OC, FRGS was a Canadian journalist, writer and commentator.-Early life:Sinclair was born in the Cabbagetown neighbourhood of Toronto, Ontario. In 1916, before finishing his first year of high school, Sinclair dropped out to take a job with the Bank of Nova Scotia...
and Pierre Berton
Pierre Berton
Pierre Francis de Marigny Berton, was a noted Canadian author of non-fiction, especially Canadiana and Canadian history, and was a well-known television personality and journalist....
. She left the series in a salary dispute in 1961 and was replaced by future senator
Canadian Senate
The Senate of Canada is a component of the Parliament of Canada, along with the House of Commons, and the monarch . The Senate consists of 105 members appointed by the governor general on the advice of the prime minister...
Betty Kennedy
Betty Kennedy
Betty Kennedy, is a Canadian broadcaster, journalist, author, and retired Senator, who is best known as a panelist on the CBC television show Front Page Challenge ....
(who remained with the show until its demise in the 1990s). Robins returned to the show from time to time as a guest panelist.
In 1964 Robins relocated to London and she appeared in a number of film and television productions, including Space: 1999
Space: 1999
Space: 1999 is a British science-fiction television series that ran for two seasons and originally aired from 1975 to 1977. In the opening episode, nuclear waste from Earth stored on the Moon's far side explodes in a catastrophic accident on 13 September 1999, knocking the Moon out of orbit and...
(the two-parter "The Bringers of Wonder", which was later re-issued as the telefilm Destination Moonbase Alpha) and in 1981 she played Melina Havelock's ill-fated mother in the James Bond
James Bond
James Bond, code name 007, is a fictional character created in 1953 by writer Ian Fleming, who featured him in twelve novels and two short story collections. There have been a six other authors who wrote authorised Bond novels or novelizations after Fleming's death in 1964: Kingsley Amis,...
film For Your Eyes Only
For Your Eyes Only (film)
For Your Eyes Only is the twelfth spy film in the James Bond series and the fifth to star Roger Moore as the fictional MI6 agent James Bond. It marked the directorial debut of John Glen, who had worked as editor and second unit director in three other Bond films. The screenplay by Richard Maibaum...
. In London she appeared in such dramas onstage as The Relapse, The Latent Heterosexual, Flip Side, and The Aspern Papers.
Death
Toby Robins died from breast cancerBreast cancer
Breast cancer is cancer originating from breast tissue, most commonly from the inner lining of milk ducts or the lobules that supply the ducts with milk. Cancers originating from ducts are known as ductal carcinomas; those originating from lobules are known as lobular carcinomas...
in 1986, one week after her 55th birthday. In 1991, her family founded the Breakthrough Toby Robins Breast Cancer Centre in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, which was opened in 1999 by HRH The Prince of Wales, with the aim of producing a coordinated program of research to tackle breast cancer. It is the first dedicated breast cancer research centre in the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
, and directly linked to one of the most renowned cancer facilities in the world, the Royal Marsden Hospital.
Partial filmography
- ScandalousScandalous (film)Scandalous is a 1984 British-American comedy film directed by Rob Cohen and starring Robert Hays, John Gielgud and Pamela Stephenson.-Partial cast:* Robert Hays - Frank Swedlin* John Gielgud - Uncle Willie* Pamela Stephenson - Fiona Maxwell Sayle...
(1984) ... as Pamela Reynolds - Princess Daisy (1983) ... as Eleanour Kavanaugh
- For Your Eyes OnlyFor Your Eyes Only (film)For Your Eyes Only is the twelfth spy film in the James Bond series and the fifth to star Roger Moore as the fictional MI6 agent James Bond. It marked the directorial debut of John Glen, who had worked as editor and second unit director in three other Bond films. The screenplay by Richard Maibaum...
(1981) ... as Iona Havelock - No 1: Licensed to Love and Kill ... as Scarlet Star
- Destination Moonbase Alpha (1976) ... as Diana Morris
- Paul and MichellePaul and MichellePaul & Michelle is a 1974 drama film directed by Lewis Gilbert. It is sequel to the 1971 film Friends by the same director and lead actors.-Synopsis:...
(1974) ... as Jane - FriendsFriends (1971 film)Friends is a 1971 film directed by Lewis Gilbert and written by Gilbert, Vernon Harris and Jack Russell. The soundtrack by Elton John and Bernie Taupin was released as the Friends album. The film was nominated for Golden Globe Award for Best English-Language Foreign Film at the 1972 Golden Globe...
(1971) ... as Mrs. Gardner - Husbands and Lovers (1970) ... as Hedwig
- The Naked RunnerThe Naked RunnerThe Naked Runner is a 1967 British espionage film directed by Sidney J. Furie and starring Frank Sinatra, Peter Vaughan, Edward Fox. It was the last film Sinatra made with Warner Bros...
(1967) ... as Ruth - Game for Three Losers (1964) ... as Frances Challinor
- The Big RevueThe Big RevueThe Big Revue was a Canadian variety television show. It was the first ever production of the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation's television network when both debuted in 1952. The show was directed by Norman Jewison and written by John Aylesworth and Frank Peppiatt...
(1952) ... as Co-host - Parking on This Side (1950) ... as The Girl