Benidorm loses a legend: How Sticky Vicky was loved by the Brits after she turned her ballet skills into an X-rated “sexy magic show” with table tennis balls seen by six million people – and a legal battle with her rival Sticky in the Barbara faced

The death of 80-year-old entertainment icon Victoria María Aragüés Gadea – better known as “Sticky Vicky” – who was once considered an “institution” by British tourists in Benidorm, will come as bad news for the millions who watched her performance during the past few years.

“I am sad,” her daughter wrote on Facebook this morning and confirmed that Vicky died early this morning, apparently after a long illness. She said the mother of two was “surrounded by family, with all our love.”

Grandma Vicky, famous for the so-called “vaginal magic show” she performed throughout her illustrious 39-year career, became a cult heroine after moving to the seaside town in 1980 and a creative new act at the height of post-Franco sexual liberation.

At the height of her success, the trained ballet dancer was even moved to compete in Spanish courts against entertainer “Sticky Barbara” as she fought for legal recognition of her world-famous moniker.

A guide to Benidorm once described her as a “must see” and claimed that leaving without seeing her show was like buying fish without chips or turning on the TV to “Ant without Dec” to look

Vicky finally retired in 2016, aged 72, after delighting generations with her X-rated tricks that made creative use of household items such as table tennis balls, razor blades and beer bottles.

Benidorm legend Sticky Vicky has died aged 80, it has been announced

Vicky trained as a ballet dancer for 15 years before starting her career in adult entertainment

Victoria was born on April 15, 1943 in Tenerife and grew up on Spain’s largest Canary Island during the first years of Francisco Franco’s dictatorship. After her father left the family, she moved to Barcelona with her mother and began her career as a dancer at a young age.

At the time of her retirement, Vicky Leyton – as she was later known – claimed to have worked since the age of 11 and trained as a classical ballet dancer for 15 years before making her way onto the world stage.

In the Catalan capital, Vicky achieved success as a contortionist and dancer, and as an adult managed the day-to-day operations of El Molino – the Windmill – a theater on Avinguda del Parallel in Barcelona.

With the death of Franco in 1975 and the relaxation of social norms in large Spanish cities, Vicky responded to the demand for more daring performances and developed a performance that removed unusual objects from sensitive areas.

Because the Spanish public was fascinated by her performance, Sticky Vicky moved to Benidorm on the east coast of Spain in the early 1980s. Since the explosion of package holidays in the 1960s, Brits have been hitting Spanish bars in search of sun, sea, sand and entertainment at an affordable price.

Vicky’s groundbreaking performance was well received by the Brits as she explored more creative versions of her original performance. “To do what I do, you have to have a lot of sensitivity,” she explained in a 2016 interview with El Español.

“It’s important to be delicate so that it doesn’t hurt the audience, especially women, to see it. It doesn’t work in the normal way. “You have to give it a touch of elegance.”

As her career progressed, she experimented with her performances, using things like light bulbs and razor blades to mesmerize audiences.

“It’s stuff that cost me a lot,” she said in 2016. “I’ve cut my lips several times over the years and had to go to hospital twice because a bottle broke.” The doctor asked me and I did it. don’t know what to say I was humiliated!’

Dancer and entertainer Vicky Leyton aka Sticky Vicky started performing at a young age

“Sticky” Vicky Leyton performs her famous performance in Benidorm, Spain in 2011

For nearly forty years, Sticky Vicky has held his own, entertaining millions of tourists with an X-rated show. In 2007, it was estimated that up to six million people saw her performance – more than the residents of Tenerife, Barcelona, ​​Benidorm and the capital Madrid combined.

READ MORE: Who is Sticky Vicky’s daughter María Gadea Aragüés? Meet the performer from Benidorm who followed in her mother’s footsteps with mature acrobatic performances

Two years later, Vicky’s success landed her in court, challenging her rival “Sticky Barbara” after she discovered she had registered the name Sticky Vicky as her own.

Judges sided with the real Sticky Vicky in 2009 after ruling that Spaniard Maria Rosa Pereira had acted “in bad faith” and told Vicky Leyton she was the rightful owner of the brand.

In the same year she appeared as herself as a supporting actress in the hit ITV sitcom Benidorm and opened Mel’s Mobility Shop in the first episode.

Vicky gave her last performance at the end of 2015 before undergoing hip surgery. She was diagnosed with uterine cancer early the following year and officially announced her retirement at the age of 72.

Two years ago, her daughter confirmed that her mother “won her battle against cancer with radiation and chemotherapy” but now suffers from dementia.

“It’s something that only happened recently and her memory is still good, but it’s clearly something that’s going to get worse.”

“I live with my mother and take care of her full-time,” she said at the time.

“She lives a quiet life and spends a lot of time at home, but hopefully after her second hip operation she can get out a little more.”

Vicky agreed to transfer the trademark of her stage name to her daughter, who announced that she would “come back with the show” that her mother did.

“It will be for British tourists in the Little England region where she used to perform, and I’ll be doing the same vaginal magic tricks my mum was known for, along with other things that give it a personal touch, like Balance tricks. .” And if the venue is big enough, there are also trapeze tricks and an aerial demonstration.”

“I will perform alone. “My mother is the legend and we will have to wait and see how the public appreciates me, but I am a hard worker and a survivor and I hope I will make her proud,” she said.

In July 2022, Vicky was hospitalized again after sustaining a knee injury while getting into a car. She was discharged after a few days in the hospital, but was quickly brought back when she began to experience pain and a possible infection.

Vicky (right) is photographed with her daughter in a social media post. Maria Gadea Aragues said she will continue her mother’s performance in Benidorm

Vicky was rushed to hospital at the age of 79 earlier this year after falling while getting into a car

Trained as a dancer, Victoria María Aragüés Gadea has spent a long career entertaining millions of people and redefining the boundaries of what can be considered entertainment in post-dictatorship Spain.

According to The Sun, she has earned a net worth of £3.5 million from her shows.

Looking back on her long career, she once thought: “I never thought I would be able to be on stage at my age and it’s all thanks to the English audience.”