{"id":326308,"date":"2025-12-20T10:45:10","date_gmt":"2025-12-20T10:45:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/326308\/"},"modified":"2025-12-20T10:45:10","modified_gmt":"2025-12-20T10:45:10","slug":"why-did-england-hate-brian-mays-favourite-queen-song","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/326308\/","title":{"rendered":"Why did England hate Brian May’s favourite Queen song?"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Brian<\/p>\n

(Credits: Far Out \/ Paul Williams)<\/p>\n

Sat 20 December 2025 8:41, UK <\/p>\n

With Queen, Brian May<\/a> helped craft a collection of songs which are forever locked in the psyche of people across the globe. Despite the tragic passing of singer Freddie Mercury over 30 years ago, the group remain one of the most popular bands on the planet and their position at the top of the musical mountain is firmly cemented.<\/p>\n

Despite being regarded as one of the most successful bands around, Queen rarely get much respect in the inner sanctum of music rock circles. The band were simply too popular, too theatrical and too successful to be considered truly beloved by a genre so hell bent on rebellion. But when you reframe Queen as a pop act, they may just have been the greatest ever. Their range of songs proves that. <\/p>\n

While hits such as \u2018Bohemian Rhapsody\u2019, \u2018Don\u2019t Stop Me Now\u2019, \u2018Under Pressure\u2019 and \u2018We Will Rock You\u2019 are known word-for-word by almost all of the Western world, May prefers their lesser-appreciated material. However, as with many other artists, this is likely due to their best-known hits now being owned by the public because of their immense popularity.<\/p>\n

Although when it comes to performing live, there\u2019s no track May prefers to play rather than \u2018We Will Rock You\u2019<\/a>, but that doesn\u2019t translate it to being his favourite song by Queen. However, the feeling of sheer adulation runs through his body when they crank the hit to a packed-out arena in Manhattan or Munich is unparalled.<\/p>\n

During a conversation on\u00a0The One Show, May said: \u201cI still love playing them all, I have to be honest. I would have to say \u2018We Will Rock You\u2019. Especially as this is the moment when we\u2019re relaunching the musical that is named after that song. It always gives me a good feeling.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Freddie<\/a>A dashing Freddie Mercury in his younger years. (Credits: Far Out \/ Elektra Records)<\/p>\n

However, his favourite Queen song is \u2018The Miracle\u2019, which the band have never played live. As it\u2019s a personal song written by Mercury shortly before his death, in all likelihood, the reason why they\u2019ve refused to play it is because no other singer could do his words justice.<\/p>\n

During a Q&A on the band\u2019s YouTube channel, May disclosed: \u201cI\u2019m going to pick a song that not everybody knows out there, which is called \u2018The Miracle\u2019, which Freddie wrote that I always thought has a strange, unique magic to it. Especially because Freddie wrote it at a time when it was very hard for him to be optimistic, and it\u2019s just very beautiful. I\u2019ll go for that.\u201d<\/p>\n

Upon release in 1989, he told\u00a0Hard \u2018N\u2019 Heavy\u00a0of the optimistic track: \u201cWe got pasted to the wall for this in England. Everybody hated it for some reason.\u201d The track is rich in sentiment and, perhaps more importantly, optimisim. For a nation so deeply entrenched in the societal norm of stiffening the sinews of your upper lip and simply pushing onward through the drudgery of normal life, such a motif in a track was seemingly a step too far. <\/p>\n

The track was too gilded with hope to be considered realistic, and while escapism has often been a part of the national consciousness, in truth, Britain loves to submerge itself in normality. \u201cIt\u2019s very uncool to be idealistic in Britain, I suppose,\u201d explained May. \u201cThey said, \u2018How can they talk about peace,\u2019 and all that sort of stuff, then of course, China happened and everything. It seems very relevant to us.\u201d<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, drummer Roger Taylor added: \u201cIn England \u2018idealism\u2019 is \u2018naivety,\u2019 which is wrong, it\u2019s not. There\u2019s nothing wrong with idealism. Nick Lowe wrote that great song, great title \u2013 \u2018What\u2019s so bad about peace, love and understanding,\u2019 yeah, and what is so bad about.\u201d<\/p>\n

Although Mercury knew his life was coming to a tragic end, he still felt a sense of hopefulness about the world and refused to let his illness turn him bitter. For that reason, it holds a special place in May\u2019s heart as it offers him a poignant reminder of his late friend and his infectious personality.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

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