The life and instances of Benidorm legend Sticky Vicky

Once hailed as an ‘establishment’ by British vacationers in Benidorm, the dying of 80-year-old leisure icon Victoria María Aragüés Gadea – higher often known as ‘Sticky Vicky’ – will come as sombre information for the hundreds of thousands who loved her act over time.

‘I’m left with a damaged coronary heart,’ her daughter wrote on Facebook this morning, confirming Vicky had died earlier right this moment, reportedly after a protracted sickness. She stated the mother-of-two was ‘surrounded by household, with all of our love’.

Grandmother Vicky, remembered for her so-called ‘vaginal magic present’ carried out over an illustrious profession spanning 39 years, grew to become a cult hero after transferring to the coastal metropolis in 1980 and innovating a artistic new act on the peak of post-Franco sexual liberation.

At the peak of her success, the skilled ballet dancer was even moved to battle rival entertainer ‘Sticky Barbara’ within the Spanish courts as she fought for authorized recognition of her world-famous moniker.

She was as soon as described by a information to Benidorm as a ‘must-see’, claiming that leaving with out experiencing her present could be like shopping for fish with out chips or turning on the TV to see Ant with out Dec.

Vicky lastly retired from her act in 2016, aged 72, after beautiful generations along with her X-rated methods that made artistic use of family objects together with ping-pong balls, razor blades and beer bottles.

Victoria was born in Tenerife on April 15, 1943, rising up on the most important of Spain’s Canary Islands by means of the early years of Francisco Franco’s dictatorship. She moved to Barcelona along with her mom after her father left the household and commenced her profession as a dancer from a younger age.

At the time of her retirement, Vicky Leyton – as she later grew to become identified – she claimed she had been working because the age of simply 11, and put 15 years into coaching as a traditional ballet dancer earlier than discovering her toes on the world stage.

In the Catalan capital, Vicky discovered success as a contortionist and dancer, in grownup life managing the day after day operations of El Molino – the windmill -, a theatre on Barcelona’s Avinguda del Parallel.

With Franco’s dying in 1975, and the relief of social norms in Spain’s massive metropolitan cities, Vicky met demand for extra risqué exhibits, innovating a efficiency that concerned eradicating uncommon objects from delicate areas.

With the Spanish public captivated by her act, Sticky Vicky moved to Benidorm on Spain’s east coast within the early Nineteen Eighties. Since the bundle vacation explosion of the Sixties, Brits had been filling Spanish watering holes, searching for solar, sea, sand and leisure at an reasonably priced value.

Vicky’s pioneering act was obtained effectively by the Brits as she explored extra artistic spins on her authentic efficiency. ‘To do what I do you have to have a variety of delicacy,’ she defined in a 2016 interview with El Español. 

‘It’s vital to be delicate in order that it does not harm the general public to see it, particularly girls. You cannot do it in an strange manner. You have to present it a contact of magnificence.’

Over the course of her profession, she experimented along with her efficiency, making use of things together with lightbulbs and razorblades to wow audiences.

‘These are issues which have price me rather a lot,’ she stated in 2016. ‘Over the years, I’ve minimize my lips a number of instances and I needed to go to the hospital twice as a result of a bottle had damaged down there. The physician requested me and I did not know what to say. I used to be embarrassed!’ 

For practically forty years, Sticky Vicky stored up the act, entertaining hundreds of thousands of vacationers with X-rated present. In 2007, it was estimated as many as six million had seen her efficiency – a determine bigger than the populations of Tenerife, Barcelona, Benidorm and the capital of Madrid put collectively.

Two years on, Vicky’s success discovered her in court docket, difficult rival ‘Sticky Barbara’ after discovering she had registered the identify Sticky Vicky as her personal.

Judges sided with the true Sticky Vicky in 2009 after ruling Spaniard Maria Rosa Pereira had acted in ‘dangerous religion’ and telling Vicky Leyton she was the authorized proprietor of the trademark.

The identical yr, she appeared as herself as a supporting actress in ITV’s hit sitcom, Benidorm, opening Mel’s Mobility Shop within the first episode.

Vicky carried out her final present in late 2015 earlier than present process a hip operation. Early the following yr, she was recognized with uterine most cancers and formally introduced her retirement aged 72.

Two years in the past, her daughter confirmed her mom had ‘received her struggle in opposition to most cancers with radiotherapy and chemotherapy’ however had since been recognized with dementia.

‘It’s one thing that is come on fairly lately and her reminiscence continues to be good nevertheless it’s clearly one thing that is going to worsen.

‘I’m dwelling with my mum and am performing as her full-time carer,’ she stated on the time.

‘She’s dwelling a peaceable life and spending plenty of time at house however hopefully she’ll have the ability to get out a bit extra as soon as she has had her second hip operation.’ 

Vicky agreed to switch the trademark on her stage identify to her daughter, who introduced she would ‘return with the present’ her mom did.

‘It will likely be for British vacationers within the Little England space the place she used to carry out and I’ll be doing the identical type of vaginal magic methods my mum was well-known for together with different issues to present it a private contact like stability methods and if the venue is large enough, trapeze stunts and an aerial efficiency.’

‘I’ll be performing alone. My mum’s the legend and we’ll need to see how the audiences take to me however I’m a tough employee and a survivor and hopefully I’ll do her proud,’ she stated. 

Again in July 2022, Vicky was hospitalised after hurting her knees when getting right into a automotive. She was launched after a couple of days in hospital, however was returned shortly when she skilled ache and a doable an infection. 

Victoria María Aragüés Gadea skilled as a dancer and introduced leisure to hundreds of thousands over a prolonged profession, redefining the bounds of what might qualify as leisure in a post-dictatorship Spain.

According to The Sun, she achieved a internet price of £3.5mn by means of her exhibits. 

Looking again on her prolonged profession, she as soon as mirrored: ‘I by no means thought I may very well be on a stage at my age, and it’s all because of the English public.’