THE Newark-based singer and musical producer Steve Steinman has created a monster with the musical Vampires Rock. The show has grown year on year and this year, like last, it features a star name in Toyah Willcox, who plays the Devil Queen.

"I'm an original and I'm a name," she boasts of her contribution. And she's not done there...

"I'm an award-winning singer and actress. And I have other things going on which I think adds kudos."

She's going to tell us exactly what...

"I have a single out, These Boots Are Made For Walking, with my band The Humans, which features my husband (King Crimson guitarist) Robert Fripp. And my co-writer is Bill Rieflin who has been drumming with REM for seven years. So that's a hell of a pedigree."

Boasting aside, Willcox admits that her involvement with the show has been a two-way street.

" It's a great, fun show. The songs are great. There's so much talent in the band and then there's the visual elements too. It's a show for people who like rock but want a different experience from just standing in a nightclub.

"It's easy to see why Steve has such a strong following because some of the songs are better than the originals."

Steinman first came to prominence by impersonating Meat Loaf on Stars in their Eyes and his first success with musical theatre came with his touring productions of the Bat Out Of Hell albums.

Mr Loaf isn't a fan, says Willcox.

"I know first-hand that Meat Loaf doesn't agree with people impersonating him but Steve does it so well.

"There's clearly a big audience out there for these rock shows. On this tour, we're going to places that Steve hasn't played before, so there's definitely a demand for it."

Toyah's career in music, which started in the early eighties with hits like It's A Mystery, Brave New World and I Want to Be Free, has been built on a quirky persona -- and the character of the Devil Queen is no exception. So how close is it to her own personality?

"The two are not always that far apart. A lot of the outfits I use in the show are made for me as an artist which I bring into the show. I've always been very visually based and I have fun with the character. I don't mind being the baddie or being booed, but I can also make the audience feel great sympathy towards me.

"I've actually got a pair of 10 inch heels but I only use them during the duet with Steve on Changes [most recently a hit for Ozzy and Kelly Osbourne] as I can hardly walk in them, let alone run around the stage. If I break my ankle on this tour, you're the first to know why!"

Not content with her commitments to Vampires Rock and The Humans, Willcox has found time to fit in a couple of other projects.

"I appeared in Casualty (this month) and I've got a film coming out called Three To Tango. It's about three women in their 50s getting to live their dreams."

Which is pretty much what she gets to do every time she drops in to Nottingham.

"I opened Calamity Jane in Nottingham and it was a phenomenal success. I love the atmosphere around the Square so I'm very fond of the city."

Vampires Rock, Royal Concert Hall, Thursday October 29, 7.30pm, £19.50/£22.50, 0115 989 5555.