Whilst The Beatles are the most significant band of all time, as John, Paul, George and Ringo were coming apart, another fab four was emerging out of London and from the 1970s until 1991, they would become the second biggest band in history.
Freddie Mercury, Brian May, Roger Taylor and John Deacon formed Queen from the remnants of Smile, and throughout the early years, London was their home and part of their DNA.
If you just want to see the sights of their biggest successes, then Wembley is where Queen performed the best 20 minutes of live music ever as part of Live Aid in 1985, they also performed famous concerts at the Hammersmith Odeon and the Rainbow Theatre.
However, if you want to truly see their history, a private tour can help you discover the hidden gems and locations that inspired the Bohemian Rhapsody.
Imperial College Union
Whilst most of the concert venues Queen performed in are too famous and too huge to be part of a luxury tour, one major exception is Imperial College Union, where Queen played their very first concert as Queen on 18th July 1970.
This was so early that John Deacon had not even joined the band, and was only a couple of years after Brian May had graduated.
Imperial College Union is an important venue for the late 1960s and early 1970s rock scene in London but is an essential place for Queen fans to visit to see the early history of the group.
Ealing Art College
On the subject of important universities, Ealing Art College (now part of the University of West London) was where Frederick Bulsara obtained a degree in art which allowed for the creation of the now-iconic heraldic Queen logo.
However, it was not just important because Freddie Mercury happened to study there; it also was directly responsible for Freddie joining Queen.
At the same time that Freddie was pursuing his degree, singer Tim Staffell was also on a graphics course, and the pair became friends.
Tim was part of a band called 1984 with Brian May, that band eventually disbanded so the pair could form Smile together, and Freddie Mercury, as a fan of Smile, asked to join and eventually replaced Tim once he quit to pursue a career as a model maker, designer and animator.
Metropolis Studios
There are several great London studios that Queen have worked in, and you could develop a fantastic and insightful private tour just by travelling to all of them. However, alongside De Lane Lea, Trident and Olympic, arguably the most important Queen studio is Metropolis.
The first three are important for chronicling the Queen’s rapid ascent, from a glorified film dubbing studio to the grander stages of Trident and Olympic. On the other hand, Metropolis is where Freddie Mercury said farewell.
Metropolis Studios is where Innuendo was recorded, which included the famous performance of The Show Must Go On which Freddie Mercury achieved in one take after a shot of vodka in one of his finest vocal performances in a life full of them.
As well as this, it was also the home of Queen from early 1991 until 24th November, where Freddie Mercury recorded anything he could get his hands on for what would become Made in Heaven, the final Queen album.
This included Mother Love, believed to be the final vocal performance of Freddie Mercury, and a song he would ultimately not live long enough to finish. Brian May, poignantly, would sing the final verse himself later.
Metropolis is one of the few studios around London that can offer studio visits, which is something a private tour company can help with if you like.
Garden Lodge
Notable for its extremely high wall, Garden Lodge in Kensington was Freddie Mercury’s home from 1980 until 1991.
It was also where his final statement was prepared 24 hours before he died, where he revealed that he was HIV positive and was dealing with AIDS-related complications.
It was bequeathed to Mary Astin, his first love, closest friend and the woman he claimed would have been his wife.
The Lost Kensington Tavern
The site of what was Kensington Tavern is a vital part of Queen’s history, as it was the place where Freddie Mercury first met Roger Taylor and Brian May, as well as where Mary and Freddie first met.
Whilst it was sadly demolished in 2014, it is still such an important part of Queen’s hidden history that the site of the founding of London’s greatest band still needs to be visited.
