HAZEL O'CONNOR

HANGING AROUND

Hazel O'Connor like Toyah, was another budding young thespien from the West Midlands (uk) turned onto punk. Only this time hailing from Coventry. But like her brother (who played guitar in the Flys) it was punk what threw her into the big time. He taught her how to write songs and she went down the Roxy watched bands and become a punk. She hit fame with the leading role in UK punk film 'Breaking Glass' released in 1980. She also wrote all the songs for it. It charted the rise of a fictional punk band through the seedy pub circuit to stardom and was fronted by a peroxide Hazel. She got TV acting roles from the movie and fronted her own band which had chart success with new wave top 20 jobs like 'Eighth Day' in the early 80's.
Hazel also dated Strangler Hugh Cornwell at this time and was signed by the Stranglers management albion. She stuck by Hugh as he done 8 weeks in Pentonville for drugs but had faded from Hugh's affections and the publics gaze by the time the 90's came around. However she continued acting and creating music and reignited her stage career with regular 80's revival gigs during recent years.
However in January 2022 aged 68 she became very ill after suffering a severe bleed on the brain, but is thankfully making a steady recovery. She now lives in France.

Background image - Hazel live on stage 1981