The idea for Madam & Eve originated with Stephen Francis, an American expatriate. The three founding creators of the Madam & Eve strip, Harry Dugmore, Rico Schacherl, and Stephen Francis, first worked together on Laughing Stock, a satirical magazine launched in Johannesburg in 1988. Following the closure of the magazine (after 13 issues), the three worked on other projects in the greeting card division of the same company. That company folded, and the trio launched Madam & Eve in July 1992. Dugmore left the partnership in 2001.
