Chris Foreman

Christopher John Foreman (born 8 August 1956), nicknamed Chrissy Boy, is an English musician, songwriter, and composer. In a career spanning more than 45 years, Foreman came to prominence in the late 1970s as the guitarist for the English band Madness.

Early life Christopher John Foreman was born in University College Hospital on 8 August 1956, and raised in St Pancras, London, England. His parents, John Foreman and Rita Alden, separated in 1970, and he lived with his father and his brother, Nat, near a railway in Kentish Town.

Foreman came from a long line of music hall performers, clowns, dancers and one circus ringmaster. was known on the folk-scene as a music hall revivalist. John Foreman was born in Somers Town on 13 January 1931.

Music Madness

Foreman started jamming with keyboardist Mike Barson, after bonding over their favourite artists. Foreman and Barson then formed The North London Invaders with saxophonist Lee Thompson in 1976. After many band name and personnel changes, the group became Madness in 1979.

Foreman was one of the group's main songwriters, mostly writing music with other members, usually Suggs or Lee Thompson, providing the lyrics. Songs Foreman has co-written include "Baggy Trousers", "Cardiac Arrest", "Our House", "Madness (Is All in the Mind)", "Yesterday's Men", and "Uncle Sam".

Foreman reunited with all seven original Madness members in 1992. In 2005 Foreman announced that he was leaving the band, citing "the petty, time consuming bollocks that goes on in the band" as his reason for leaving. However, on 30 November 2006, it was confirmed that Foreman was returning to play on Madness' forthcoming UK Christmas tour. He later revealed in 2009 that he left because of a combination of how he felt about the band releasing a ska cover album and the bands behaviour: "I left because we were doing this album of ska covers (as the Dangermen), and, to me, it seemed a bit desperate. We started off doing really quirky stuff, and then one day we're back doing Israelites. And a couple of the guys were getting on my nerves a bit. I said to them not to put 'Going for a sabbatical' in any press releases, but of course they did. And I suppose it was in a way." In that same interview, Foreman's return was put down to him being "drawn by the strength of the new material". He initially said he had a "long way to go" before he could get back to touring again, but expressed hope of achieving remission and returning to performing in 2026. During his time off, Madness continued touring, with Kevin Burdett filling in for him; Burdett had previously deputised for Foreman during his break from the band from 2005 to 2006. Foreman made his comeback performance with Madness on 7 June 2026 at the Summer Fest at the Beach in Weston Super Mare.

The Nutty Boys/Crunch! After Madness disbanded in 1986, he formed a new band The Madness with Thompson, Suggs and Chas Smash, but they broke up after releasing their debut album, the eponymous The Madness. Then Foreman, alongside Thompson, created another group called The Nutty Boys with Thompson on lead vocals. They released an album called Crunch! in 1990. The band continued to be known as Crunch!, and played in London every couple of years.

Videography Axecam In 2006, Foreman began using a Samsung D600 mobile phone attached to his guitar to record short videos from his position on stage during live Madness performances to provide his fans with a unique perspective from the "guitar's eye view". He coined the term "Axecam" to describe this filming technique. By December 2008, he had acquired a higher quality digital Flip video camera which he attached to the shoulder strap of his guitar using an "Axecam holder", crafted by a member of the stage crew just before Madness went on stage at The O2 Arena on 19 December 2008. The new "Axecam" produced a far more stable picture and Foreman posted the first video from this performance ("It Must Be Love") to the MadnessStudio2008 Channel on YouTube on 20 December 2008.

Chrissy Boy Meets And Greets... Foreman also maintains a series of videos made with the Axecam entitled "Chrissy Boy Meets And Greets...", in which he meets famous people that have either appeared alongside Madness at festivals, or that have attended awards ceremonies with Madness. In August 2023, Foreman separated from his wife and moved out of the family home to a rented bungalow in Peacehaven. He bought a house in Telscombe in September 2024, where he currently resides. He is 5'6 tall.

Health In August 2025, Foreman revealed that he had been diagnosed with myeloma, a treatable but incurable form of blood cancer. He first experienced symptoms earlier that year, including severe pain in his upper back and shoulders, which led to an MRI scan and the discovery of a spinal tumour. Following radiotherapy and a spinal tap procedure, Foreman stated that his kidney function - initially at 12% - had "greatly improved." In June 2026, Foreman announced that his cancer had gone into full remission.