Brian May has once again insisted that rock band Queen will never play Glastonbury due to his longstanding political differences with founder Michael Eavis.
The guitarist, 78, and drummer Roger Taylor, 76, have toured with US singer Adam Lambert under the “Queen and Adam Lambert” moniker since 2012, taking in shows at arenas around the world.
However, the band – originally fronted by the late Freddie Mercury – have never graced the Pyramid Stage in the fields of Worthy Farm, Somerset, and it doesn’t look like they will be any time soon.
May told the Daily Mail: “I wouldn’t do Glastonbury next year because of the politics of the people who run it. Unless that changes, I won’t do it.”
The longtime animal rights activist, who resigned as the RSPCA’s vice-president in 2024 over “appalling” welfare standards exposed in the charity’s Assured Farm certification scheme, said it was Eavis’s stance on badger culling in particular that he took issue with.
“They like killing badgers, and they think it’s for sport,” he claimed, “and that’s something I cannot support because we've been trying to save these badgers for years, and they are still being killed for years, so that’s the reason we’re missing out on it.”
Eavis, 90, who is also a dairy farmer, previously branded May a “danger to farming” and criticised him for his opposition to the badger cull, which is aimed at preventing the spread of bovine tuberculosis.
May is the co-founder of the Save Me animal welfare organisation, which campaigns against fox hunting and badger culling.
In an appearance on BBC Radio 2 in 2019, the “We Will Rock You” musician said Queen would not perform unless “things changed radically”.
“No, we won’t [perform], and there are lots of reasons for that. One is that Michael Eavis has frequently insulted me and I don’t really particularly enjoy that,” he said.
“What bothers me more is that he is in favour of the badger cull, which I regard as a tragedy and unnecessary crime against wildlife.”
The Independent has contacted Glastonbury representatives for comment.
Glastonbury is currently in its traditional fallow year, which allows the grounds of Worthy Farm to recover. It is scheduled to return in 2027, amid rumours that pop singer Harry Styles could be one of the headliners. The British artist and former One Direction star announced his new album this week.
May told the Mail that he was unsure when Queen would be back onstage: “We’ll take it day by day.”
“It was time to take a break and spend time with family, take stock,” he continued. “But never say never about not coming back, the rebuild of Queen Two is coming back, and there are a couple of things you haven’t heard.”
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