Allan Mark "Boff" Whalley (born 6 August 1961) is the lead guitarist

Guitarist

A guitarist is a musician who plays the guitar. Guitarists may play a variety of instruments such as classical guitars, acoustic guitars, electric guitars, and bass guitars. Some guitarists accompany themselves on the guitar while singing.- Versatility :The guitarist controls an extremely...

 for the band Chumbawamba

Chumbawamba

Chumbawamba is a British musical group who have, over a career spanning nearly three decades, played punk rock, pop-influenced music, world music, and folk music...

.

Early life and education

Whalley was born Allan Mark Whalley in 1961 in Burnley

Burnley

Burnley is a market town in the Burnley borough of Lancashire, England, with a population of around 73,500. It lies north of Manchester and east of Preston, at the confluence of the River Calder and River Brun....

, Lancashire

Lancashire

Lancashire is a non-metropolitan county of historic origin in the North West of England. It takes its name from the city of Lancaster, and is sometimes known as the County of Lancaster. Although Lancaster is still considered to be the county town, Lancashire County Council is based in Preston...

. Before joining Chumbawamba he attended Art College in Maidstone

Maidstone

Maidstone is the county town of Kent, England, south-east of London. The River Medway runs through the centre of the town linking Maidstone to Rochester and the Thames Estuary. Historically, the river was a source and route for much of the town's trade. Maidstone was the centre of the agricultural...

 and worked in a supermarket and as a postman.

Musical career

Together with his fellow members of Chimp Eats Banana, Midge and Danbert Nobacon

Danbert Nobacon

Danbert Nobacon was a vocalist and occasional keyboard player in the Leeds based anarchist band Chumbawamba...

, he moved to Leeds

Leeds

Leeds is a city and metropolitan borough in West Yorkshire, England. In 2001 Leeds' main urban subdivision had a population of 443,247, while the entire city has a population of 798,800 , making it the 30th-most populous city in the European Union.Leeds is the cultural, financial and commercial...

 in 1981 and studied at the University of Leeds

University of Leeds

The University of Leeds is a British Redbrick university located in the city of Leeds, West Yorkshire, England...

, dropping out after a year before moving into the South View House squat

Squatting

Squatting consists of occupying an abandoned or unoccupied space or building, usually residential, that the squatter does not own, rent or otherwise have permission to use....

 in Armley

Armley

Armley is a district in the west of Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. It starts less than a mile from Leeds city centre. Like much of Leeds, Armley grew in the industrial revolution and had several mills, one of which is now the Armley Mills museum...

. He became a guitarist despite describing himself as being of "limited ability". He continued to play guitar and sing while doing a series of other jobs such as shopworker, newspaper delivery man, typesetter, and cartoonist.

Personal life

He is married to the American

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 photographer Casey Orr who he met in San Francisco in 1992.

The name Boff came from being nicknamed "College Boffin" by other workers at the Supasave supermarket in Burnley, where Whalley worked after leaving school. Whalley's first band Chimp Eats Banana had a song called "Supasave".

Beyond his musical career, Whalley has been prominent in the fell running

Fell running

Fell running, also known as mountain running and hill running, is the sport of running and racing, off road, over upland country where the gradient climbed is a significant component of the difficulty...

 scene, particularly in West Yorkshire

West Yorkshire

West Yorkshire is a metropolitan county within the Yorkshire and the Humber region of England with a population of 2.2 million. West Yorkshire came into existence as a metropolitan county in 1974 after the passage of the Local Government Act 1972....

, running at a relatively high standard. Touring and recording commitments have influenced the extent to which he has been able to pursue this activity. He was instrumental in the production of the Fellternative fell running fanzine

Fanzine

A fanzine is a nonprofessional and nonofficial publication produced by fans of a particular cultural phenomenon for the pleasure of others who share their interest...

in the early 1990s.

Quotation