A British couple on a round-the-world motorcycle journey has been detained in Iran and charged with espionage. Craig and Lindsay Foreman, who set off from London last October on a quest to explore different cultures and document global perspectives, were arrested by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps while crossing central Iran in early January. 

Zero evidence has been provided so far, and the couple’s family strongly denies the claims. Lindsay’s mother called the charges “completely baseless,” emphasizing that their journey was about travel and cultural learning, not espionage.

A British Foreign Office spokesperson acknowledged the situation, stating, “We are deeply concerned by reports that two British nationals have been charged with espionage in Iran,” and emphasized that officials are addressing the matter directly with Iranian authorities.

Lindsay and Craig, both 52,  left London at the end of October, with Lindsay, a psychologist and life coach, aboard her 2007 XL650V Honda Transalp, “Hans,” and Craig, a carpenter, riding an 800 XCA Triumph Tiger. Though they were relatively new to riding, having only obtained their full motorcycle licenses in August 2023, their inexperience didn’t stop them from devising an ambitious plan to experience as many cultures as possible. Their journey was set on a 216-day timeline that would have them arrive in Brisbane, Australia in late June, just in time for Lindsay to attend the International Positive Psychology Association (IPPA) World Congress. 

It was a related convention, the European Conference on Positive Psychology, held in July 2024 in Innsbruck, Austria, that sparked what Lindsay described on her Facebook page as the “slightly bonkers idea of motorcycling around the world” on her way to the IPPA event. She aimed to interview “invisible voices” from different cultures, asking the central question: “What does living a good life mean?” Follow-up questions explored which intentional activities people believed could have the greatest impact on their communities and the world, and finally, each participant was asked to share a one-line message of hope for the world. Lindsay intended to share the results at the Brisbane event. 

By December 23, 2024, the Foremans had covered 12,449 miles across 13 countries and interviewed 149 people for the project, referred to as #PPK2K, for “Positive Psychology Knee-to-Knee.” Their goal was to reach Brisbane having logged “at least 35,000 miles and 365 interviews with participants from 25 countries.” On December 30, the couple crossed into Iran from Armenia, planning to spend just five days riding in the Islamic Republic before entering Pakistan. 

On January 2, Lindsay posted glowing reports of the couple’s time in Iran, accompanied by photos of the two hanging out and dining with smiling locals. “Despite differences in culture, language, and traditions, we’ve seen something beautifully universal: kindness, humor, hospitality — and a shared love of good food!”

Then suddenly, radio silence. It’s assumed the couple was arrested by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps in the south-central province of Kerman on January 3, just one day before they were scheduled to cross into Pakistan. And while the couple’s family has been in regular communication with the British Foreign Office since their capture, there is no British Embassy in Iran that would have allowed the couple to receive direct consular assistance. 

On February 18, Iranian Judiciary spokesman Asghar Jahangir announced the official charge of espionage, stating that the couple had “entered Iran under the guise of tourists” and “gathered information in multiple provinces of the country.”

According to the BBC, Jahangir went on to say the pair had been under surveillance for “some time,” and that their arrest was part of a coordinated intelligence operation. “These individuals were cooperating with front organizations linked to the intelligence services of hostile and Western countries under the pretense of research and investigative activities.”

Additionally, the chief justice of the Kerman province, Hojatoleslam wal-Muslimeen Hamidi is reported to have said: “According to intelligence and security agency monitoring, the connection of these individuals with several institutions affiliated with intelligence services has been confirmed, and further investigations are ongoing.”

Nuts, right? Yet also not a huge surprise. How many times have we seen baseless charges leveled against visitors from Western countries in recent years? And of the dozens of arrests made by Iran’s elite Revolutionary Guards, almost all were charged with espionage and other security-related crimes, all without evidence. 

The Foremans were well aware of the risks, as shown in Lindsay’s Facebook posts, where she shared how friends and family had urged them not to travel through the Islamic Republic. In another post she cited the UK government’s Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) website, which warns against all travel to Iran, citing that British and British-Iranian dual nationals are at “significant risk of arrest, questioning or detention.”

“We want to find out for ourselves,” reads one of Lindsay’s posts. “That is why we are here. We are facing our fears and defying recommendations from friends, family and the FCDO travel advice because we believe that wherever they come, from (most) humans are good, kind people wanting to live a good life – and we want to give them a voice.”

Any seasoned traveler would be quick to agree with Lindsay that no matter how oppressive a country’s government may be, the vast majority of its citizens will be revealed to be kind and welcoming. It’s equally understandable to feel the urge to share those experiences in a world that often rushes to vilify entire populations based solely on cultural or religious bias. 

Less relatable is the decision to overlook the seemingly obvious risk that interviewing everyday Iranian citizens about what constitutes a satisfying life in order to “give them a voice” might not sit well with the country’s ultra authoritarian regime.

In a best-case scenario, Lindsay and Craig are being used as political pawns to negotiate concessions from other countries, but there is a very real chance the Foremans could be imprisoned for years — a very tough lesson indeed. 

While it’s easy to tsk-tsk the couple for apparent oversights, we might gain more by appreciating and drawing inspiration from Lindsay’s earlier reflection: “This trip constantly reminds me that when we strip away misunderstanding, what’s left is simple and powerful: our shared light. And when we choose to shine together, we can light up the world.”

This might be a terrifying outcome, but let’s keep in mind that treasures abound in every corner of the globe, and many moto travelers have reaped the bounty of Iranian culture without issue. In the end, it’s always important to heed warnings about reactive regions, but even more vital to understand and respect the sensitivities at play. 

Author: Jamie Elvidge

Jamie has been a motorcycle journalist for more than 30 years, testing the entire range of bikes for the major print magazines and specializing in adventure-travel related stories. To date she’s written and supplied photography for articles describing what it’s like to ride in all 50 states and 43 foreign countries, receiving two Lowell Thomas Society of American Travel Writer’s Awards along the way. Her most-challenging adventure yet has been riding in the 2018 GS Trophy in Mongolia as Team AusAmerica’s embedded journalist.