Chris Hyndman
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Christopher Edward Hyndman (March 3, 1966 – August 3, 2015) was a Canadian interior decorator and television personality, who was co-host of the afternoon talk show ''
Steven and Chris ''Steven and Chris'' is a Canadian television talk show that aired on CBC Television from 2008 to 2015. The show was hosted by Steven Sabados and Chris Hyndman, formerly of the home renovation shows ''Designer Guys'' and '' Design Rivals'', who ...
'' on
CBC Television CBC Television (also known as CBC TV) is a Canadian English-language broadcast television network owned by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, the national public broadcaster. The network began operations on September 6, 1952. Its French-l ...
until his death in August 2015.


Career

Hyndman worked in the makeup department of the
Hudson's Bay Company The Hudson's Bay Company (HBC; french: Compagnie de la Baie d'Hudson) is a Canadian retail business group. A fur trading business for much of its existence, HBC now owns and operates retail stores in Canada. The company's namesake business div ...
before becoming a makeup artist for
Citytv Citytv is a Canadian television network owned by the Rogers Sports & Media subsidiary of Rogers Communications. The licence of the original Citytv station, granted the callsign of CITY-TV by the CRTC on November 25, 1971 to Cable Television Ass ...
at the invitation of television personality
Jeanne Beker Jeanne Beker, (; born 19 March 1952) is a Canadian television personality, fashion editor, and author. Family Jeanne Beker was born in Toronto, Ontario to father Joseph Beker and mother Bronia Beker, two Jewish Holocaust survivors born in Koz ...
. Hyndman and his husband
Steven Sabados Steven Sabados is a Canadian television host, designer and writer, who frequently appeared in television programs with his husband and business partner Chris Hyndman and as one of the hosts of ''The Goods'', a daytime talk show on CBC Television. ...
launched the interior design firm Sabados Group in 1992. Aside from private clientele, they also did
set design Scenic design (also known as scenography, stage design, or set design) is the creation of theatrical, as well as film or television scenery. Scenic designers come from a variety of artistic backgrounds, but in recent years, are mostly trained ...
work for various television productions in the
Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...
area, and later starred in the first three seasons of ''
Designer Guys ''Designer Guys'' was a Canadian design show on HGTV (Canada), HGTV, created by Mary Darling (television producer), Mary Darling and produced by WestWind Pictures. Debuting in 2001, the first seasons were hosted by Chris Hyndman and Steven Sabados ...
'', a Canadian design show. In 2004, Sabados and Hyndman debuted a new show with a similar format, titled ''
Design Rivals ''Design Rivals'' was a Canadian design show, which premiered on HGTV in 2004. The series featured designers Chris Hyndman and Steven Sabados redesigning living spaces for clients. Following from the duo's earlier series ''Designer Guys'', in w ...
'', and a makeover show called ''So Chic with Steven and Chris'' in 2005. According to Beker, Hyndman did not originally have aspirations of becoming a television personality himself, but was active in supporting Sabados' goals while being personally content to work behind the scenes."Chris Hyndman 'saved my life' says friend Jeanne Beker"
CBC News CBC News is a division of the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation responsible for the news gathering and production of news programs on the corporation's English-language operations, namely CBC Television, CBC Radio, CBC News Network, and CBC.ca. ...
, August 5, 2015.
He became an on-air personality, initially reluctantly, only when a television producer suggested that they work together as a duo because of their unique and telegenic chemistry.


Personal life

Hyndman was born in
Ottawa Ottawa (, ; Canadian French: ) is the capital city of Canada. It is located at the confluence of the Ottawa River and the Rideau River in the southern portion of the province of Ontario. Ottawa borders Gatineau, Quebec, and forms the core ...
and grew up in the
Avalon Peninsula The Avalon Peninsula (french: Péninsule d'Avalon) is a large peninsula that makes up the southeast portion of the island of Newfoundland. It is in size. The peninsula is home to 270,348 people, about 52% of Newfoundland's population, according ...
of
Newfoundland and Labrador Newfoundland and Labrador (; french: Terre-Neuve-et-Labrador; frequently abbreviated as NL) is the easternmost province of Canada, in the country's Atlantic region. The province comprises the island of Newfoundland and the continental region ...
. He first met Sabados through mutual friends at a Toronto bar in 1988. They moved in together three months later. Despite being a longtime couple off-screen, they did not publicly acknowledge their relationship until 2007. They married a year later.


Death

On August 3, 2015, Hyndman was found unresponsive in a laneway directly below the condominium unit he shared with Sabados in Toronto, shortly after 11 p.m. EDT. He was pronounced dead shortly after. He was 49 years old. Hyndman and Sabados had just returned from a vacation in
Barbados Barbados is an island country in the Lesser Antilles of the West Indies, in the Caribbean region of the Americas, and the most easterly of the Caribbean Islands. It occupies an area of and has a population of about 287,000 (2019 estimate). ...
one day earlier."Chris Hyndman’s death is a loss to the national family"
''
Maclean's ''Maclean's'', founded in 1905, is a Canadian news magazine reporting on Canadian issues such as politics, pop culture, and current events. Its founder, publisher John Bayne Maclean, established the magazine to provide a uniquely Canadian perspe ...
'', August 4, 2015.
While no confirmed cause of death has been released, the
Toronto Police Service The Toronto Police Service (TPS) is a municipal police force in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, and the primary agency responsible for providing law enforcement and policing services in Toronto. Established in 1834, it was the first local police ser ...
indicated that it was not considered a criminal matter, leading many to suspect it may have been a suicide. Two days after his death, his mother told the media that Hyndman was a sleepwalker, and she believes he fell off the couple's balcony during a sleep walk. In May 2016, Sabados said he does not share this view. Following Hyndman's death, production and airing of ''Steven and Chris'' was suspended pending a decision from Sabados on whether he wanted to continue the show on his own or with a new co-host. On August 21, 2015, Sabados announced that he would not continue the show, resulting in its cancellation. In May 2016, Sabados gave his first in-depth media interview since Hyndman's death, telling
Heather Hiscox Heather Hiscox (born 18 November 1965) is a Canadian news anchor who hosts '' CBC News Now'' from 6 to 10 a.m. on weekdays on CBC News Network. She was also the host of the CBC's former flagship morning television program '' CBC News: Morning' ...
of CBC News that Hyndman was the "idea guy" in their personal and professional partnership."Steven Sabados reflects on Chris Hyndman and the 'strength that he gave me'"
CBC News CBC News is a division of the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation responsible for the news gathering and production of news programs on the corporation's English-language operations, namely CBC Television, CBC Radio, CBC News Network, and CBC.ca. ...
, May 24, 2016.
Around the same time, Sabados announced that he was creating a new daytime talk show, '' The Goods'', to premiere on CBC in fall 2016 with co-hosts
Jessi Cruickshank Jessica Shaia "Jessi" Cruickshank (born July 17, 1983) is a Canadian television personality. She is the former co-host of MTV Canada's program ''The After Show'' and its various incarnations including ''The Hills: The After Show'' and ''The City ...
, Andrea Bain and
Shahir Massoud Shahir Massoud is a Canadian chef and television personality, best known as a cohost of the CBC Television daytime talk show '' The Goods''."The Goods, CBC's new daytime show, adds Andrea Bain and Shahir Massoud to cast"
CBC News CBC News is a division of the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation responsible for the news gathering and production of news programs on the corporation's English-language operations, namely CBC Television, CBC Radio, CBC News Network, and CBC.ca. ...
, July 20, 2016.
According to Sabados, while he couldn't imagine returning to television on his own or with a single replacement co-host for Hyndman, the new show's four-host panel format felt more comforting and freeing for him.


References


External links


''Steven and Chris'' program website
cbc.ca; accessed August 4, 2015 * {{DEFAULTSORT:Hyndman, Chris 1966 births 2015 deaths 21st-century LGBT people Canadian interior designers Canadian television talk show hosts Participants in Canadian reality television series Canadian LGBT broadcasters People from Ottawa People from Newfoundland (island)