Jay Foreman (comedian)

Jay Foreman
Foreman in 2015
Born (1984-10-04) 4 October 1984 (age 40)
Stanmore, London, England
EducationUniversity of York
Spouse
Jade Nagi
​
(m. 2021)​
Children2
RelativesDarren Foreman (brother)
Musical career
GenresMusical comedy
Instruments
  • Vocals
  • guitar
Years active2005–present
Websitewww.jayforeman.co.uk
YouTube information
Channel
Years active2006–present
Subscribers1.55 million[1]
Total views217.8 million[1]
100,000 subscribers2017
1,000,000 subscribers2021
Last updated: 14 July 2024

Jay Foreman (born 4 October 1984) is an English comedian, YouTuber, cartography enthusiast, educator, and singer-songwriter.

Early life and education

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Foreman was born on 4 October 1984.[2] He was raised in a Jewish household in Stanmore, London, with his brother and sister.[3] His brother Darren is a beatboxer and musician going under the pseudonym Beardyman.[4]

From 1996 to 2003, Foreman was educated at Queen Elizabeth's School,[5] a state grammar school for boys in Barnet, north London, followed by the University of York, where he began performing comedy songs on acoustic guitar in 2005.[6]

Career

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Foreman performing at the Musical Comedy Awards 2022

Foreman was featured as the BBC New Talent Pick of the Fringe 2007, won Best Newcomer at the Tuborg Musical Comedy awards 2009,[7] and came third at the Musical Comedy Awards 2010.[8]

In 2009, Foreman contributed jingles to the weekly comedy podcast Answer Me This!,[9] and in 2011 and 2012, supported comedian Dave Gorman on Dave Gorman's PowerPoint Presentation tour.[10]

Foreman presented The General Election Xplained, a series of educational videos to explain the election process for schoolchildren in Key Stages 3 to 5.[11]

For several years, he has also performed shows at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe, which include Disgusting Songs For Revolting Children (And Other Funny Stories), No More Colours and Mixtape.[12]

Jay Foreman's songs have been heard on BBC Radio 4, Radio 4 Extra, The One Show, and London Live TV.[13]

YouTube

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Foreman created his YouTube channel in April 2006. Its content focuses on a variety of comic educational series such as Unfinished London, Politics Unboringed, and Map Men (presented with Mark Cooper-Jones), as well as music videos for his songs and clips from his comedy shows.

Unfinished London

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Unfinished London is a series of educational YouTube videos that began in 2009, with each video or set of handling a specific area of the evolution of London's infrastructure, urban planning, and local government. The series was initially only meant to exist as a single episode to function as a skills showcase but the reception convinced Foreman to continue making them.[14]

Politics Unboringed

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Politics Unboringed was a series of educational YouTube videos that ran between 2015 and 2017. Each episode is roughly five minutes long and handles various topics relating to British politics. Foreman has no plans to bring the series back, stating that "with everything that’s going on, I now find it impossible, irresponsible even, to maintain the cheery, neutral tone that the series used to have."[14]

Map Men

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Main article: Map Men

Map Men is a edutainment mini-series[15][16] which premiered in 2016, and is currently in its fourth season. Foreman writes and presents the show with its co-creator Mark Cooper-Jones.[15][16][17] A mix of comedy and geography,[17] its videos regularly attract 1-5 million views on YouTube.[15][16][18]

Personal life

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Foreman married Jade Nagi, in 2021.[19] They have two children: Ellis, born in July 2022 and another son born November 2023.[20][21] He also has two siblings; a brother and a sister.[22]

Foreman created a political ad for Green Party candidate Siân Berry during the 2016 London mayoral election, covering her proposed policy to close London City Airport and convert it into a new residential neighbourhood.[23] While he stated that it was "not good business leaving [the ad] on display",[24] Foreman has broadly expressed similar political sentiments throughout his various series alongside a somewhat light-hearted disdain for Reform UK.[25]

Foreman's family is Jewish, and in a statement written for the London Jewish News in 2018, he described his fondness for his family's Jewish traditions, even though Foreman himself is an atheist.[22]

Awards and nominations

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Year Award Category Work Result Ref.
2009 Musical Comedy Awards Best Newcomer Won [26]
2010 Musical Comedy Awards Main Award Third place [26]
2021 11th Streamy Awards Learning and Education Map Men Nominated [27]

References

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  1. ^ a b "About Jay Foreman". YouTube.
  2. ^ @jayforeman (4 October 2020). "I am now the same age as Homer Simpson" (Tweet). Retrieved 19 September 2021 – via Twitter.
  3. ^ "TwitLonger — When you talk too much for Twitter". www.twitlonger.com. Archived from the original on 29 July 2021. Retrieved 11 August 2021.
  4. ^ Unfinished London – A Documentary by Jay Foreman (beardyman's brother) and Paul Kendler. Beardyman. 18 December 2009. Archived from the original on 21 December 2021. Retrieved 29 August 2021 – via YouTube.
  5. ^ "Comedian and musician Jay Foreman winning plaudits after building his career online". Queen Elizabeth's School, Barnet. 15 July 2011. Retrieved 31 August 2017.
  6. ^ "Jay Foreman". jayforeman.co.uk. Archived from the original on 15 May 2009. Retrieved 20 February 2010.
  7. ^ "Tuborg Musical Comedy Awards". Archived from the original on 9 May 2009.
  8. ^ "Musical Comedy Awards". 20 August 2014. Retrieved 6 February 2019.
  9. ^ "The Answer Me This! Players". answermethispodcast.com. 2 January 2007.
  10. ^ "Jay Foreman on tour with Dave Gorman! |". www.dittoproductions.co.uk. Archived from the original on 20 February 2022. Retrieved 1 October 2017.
  11. ^ "The Election Xplained". Archived from the original on 13 May 2011. Retrieved 13 June 2011.
  12. ^ "Jay Foreman, comedian tour dates : Chortle : The UK Comedy Guide". www.chortle.co.uk. Retrieved 4 April 2017.
  13. ^ Donaldson, Brian (17 March 2020). "Jay Foreman: 'One of the most fun things about performing for kids is that it's impossible to out-gross them'". The List. Archived from the original on 16 June 2020. Retrieved 16 June 2020.
  14. ^ a b Gilbert, Peter (13 January 2023). "Unfinished London returns to uncover the quirky history of The Tube map". North West Londoner. Retrieved 2 January 2024.
  15. ^ a b c Khomami, Nadia (31 October 2023). "Britons go map-crazy, with geographical games and books becoming bestsellers". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Archived from the original on 6 April 2024. Retrieved 6 April 2024.
  16. ^ a b c Keogh, Glen (6 April 2024). "'Horrible Geography' jokers the Map Men chart out a path to fame". The Sunday Times. ISSN 0140-0460. Archived from the original on 1 April 2024. Retrieved 6 April 2024.
  17. ^ a b Burton, Katie (22 November 2023). "Map Men: where comedy meets geography". Geographical. Archived from the original on 6 April 2024. Retrieved 6 April 2024.
  18. ^ "MAP MEN - YouTube". www.youtube.com. Retrieved 8 April 2024.
  19. ^ Foreman, Jay [@jayforeman] (8 August 2021). "Wife!" (Tweet). Archived from the original on 18 August 2021. Retrieved 29 August 2021 – via Twitter.
  20. ^ Foreman, Jay [@jayforeman] (21 July 2022). "I have a son!!!" (Tweet). Archived from the original on 22 July 2022. Retrieved 22 July 2022 – via Twitter.
  21. ^ Foreman, Jay [@jayforeman] (18 November 2023). "I have ANOTHER son!!!" (Tweet). Retrieved 14 October 2024 – via Twitter.
  22. ^ a b "TwitLonger — when you talk too much for Twitter". TwitLonger. 30 March 2018. Archived from the original on 27 March 2022.
  23. ^ Let's Close London City Airport, 8 March 2016, retrieved 22 June 2022
  24. ^ Jay Foreman (8 March 2016). Comment from @JayForeman. Retrieved 24 August 2024 – via YouTube.
  25. ^ Foreman, Jay [@jayforeman] (14 June 2024). "Got a leaflet from Reform through the door. Passive-aggressively opened the door and handed it back to the man saying I didn't want it. Thought that was a mini victory, but now realise I've saved them paper and they'll give it to someone else" (Tweet). Retrieved 14 October 2024 – via Twitter.
  26. ^ a b "About the Musical Comedy Awards". Musical Comedy Awards. 12 December 2018. Retrieved 14 March 2022.
  27. ^ "11th Annual Winners". The Streamy Awards. 12 December 2021. Retrieved 8 January 2022.
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