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Lee Thompson and Chris Foreman of Madness tell us what it's like to be a superstar - and why success means broken-down vans!
TRYING to talk to two members of Britain's top pop band at the same time is ... well, madness! And Madness certainly do have a lot to talk about! "Every year we say to people that the last few months have been our most hectic ever, but this year tops the lot," Lee Thompson told me.
"It's just as well we like to work," added Chris Foreman with a grin. When I met them, Madness had just finished a huge tour around the country, they'd just seen their latest LP "7" climb the charts, and their film "Take It Or Leave It" had had rave reviews all round Britain.
"We enjoyed making the film," said Chrissy. "We'd always enjoyed making videos, and when someone suggested making a film, we all jumped at the chance.
"None of us were kidding ourselves that we were great actors or anything. The story is simply the group's rise to success, so we just had to be ourselves.
"A lot of the joking you see in the film was us really larking about and having a laugh. It came out well in the film so we left it in. We come over exactly the same on film as we do in real life - that's what it's like in Madness all the time!"
"You've certainly got to have a sense of humour to be in this group," agreed Lee.
So, we've heard the records, seen them on TV and film. Where do Madness go next?
"Well, we're about to go trekking off overseas again to do some dates in Europe and Australia," said Chrissy.
"Then I suppose we'll have to get down to writing a book," joked Lee. "Seriously, though, maybe a Madness book would be a good idea sometime in the future - if we get a spare minute!"
What the band are really looking forward to is a return visit to Japan.
"After Britain, it's the best place in the world," Lee and Chrissy chorused. "The crowds just go absolutely bananas - pure Madness. It's a fascinating place to look at, too - and the food's good."
Naturally, in a place like Japan, our lovable bunch of nutters stick out like the proverbial sore thumb. But over here, when they're not together as a group, they're rarely recognised.
"Suggs gets recognised a lot," said Chrissy. "He doesn't mind chatting to fans or signing autographs, but sometimes it can be a bit much."
Lee, however, can whizz round on his bicycle near his London home without attracting a single stare. "I've only just got the bike," he said. "I decided it would be a good idea as it's much easier to get round town in than a car. It's good exercise, too." None of the band are interested in any of the flashy trappings that their success could pay for. Despite their fame and fortune, there are no big heads here!
In fact, when Madness visited Holland recently to pick up an award for their record sales, they refused flatly to travel in limousines.
"When we got back to London, our record company sent round an old van to pick us up," said Chrissy with a chuckle.
"We prefer to travel like that. Only trouble was, it broke down so we had to get out and push!"
- Contributed by Fredd Boeuf
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