Were you ever a crazy super fan?

I don’t know if I’d describe myself as a crazy super fan, but definitely a super fan of Madness. As a kid their music just hit the right chords with me and I was hooked. This was back in the days when the local paper shop would have band badges, poster specials, sew on patches and more for the band of the day and I bought everything with my pocket money. Throughout my teens I’d buy everything they released. By my twenties I was buying rare imports and unusual editions/alternate sleeves. By my mid 20s the internet was a thing and I set up one of the first Madness fans sites on the internet. The site grew to be the largest Madness site out there with a huge print archive, detailed discography, fanzines, comics and more. Then out of the blue an email from Woody, the drummer, soon followed by emails from Suggs the singer, and some early Madness cohorts. A mailing list was launched which grew to a huge number of members. That led to me being able to interview Chas Smash plus long term Madness producers Clive Langer and Alan Winstanley. Finally got to meet the band in 2000 when they played my hometown of Newcastle.. although by then I’d moved to Canada and it just worked out I was taking a trip home at the time. Got very drunk with several members of the band back at their hotel after the gig, ended up passing out in the cubicles of the bogs, waking up and stumbling around the hotel until I found a friends room and crashed on their floor! Still a fan to this day, still love their new music. Their latest album is undoubtedly one of their best… and I have it on CD, LP, Cassette, Coloured vinyl, and digital download!