Roger's Right Shoulder

(aka when the universe said copy + paste. Featuring poses, outfit twinning and also Neil Fairclough)

Brian and Roger bright white shirt day ^

‘I thought of London spread out in the sun,

Its postal districts packed like squares of wheat:

There we were aimed. And as we raced across

Bright knots of rail

Past standing Pullmans, walls of blackened moss

Came close, and it was nearly done, this frail

Travelling coincidence; and what it held

Stood ready to be loosed with all the power

That being changed can give. We slowed again,

And as the tightened brakes took hold, there swelled

A sense of falling, like an arrow-shower

Brian: ‘Ah yes I remember, very interesting musically, how fascinating to see the rehearsal vibe…’

Fans: ‘we are 100% here for the shorts’

Sir Brian May has loaned an astonishing selection of treasures from his personal archive of Queen memorabilia to a landmark exhibition in London. The display of Queen items forms part of the music section of the ‘Branding Britain: Built on Tradition, Shaped by Culture’ exhibition which is open at the Museum of Brands in Notting Hill, London now until 31st October 2026. Queen items loaned by Brian May and the Queen archive include two iconic stage costumes worn by Freddie Mercury, handwritten lyrics, original LPs, concert tickets, vintage T-shirts, and a nostalgic collection of 1980s newspapers and magazines that captured Queen’s global fame at its peak.

September 1975, Coliseum national opera, London

In July and August 1971, Queen played eleven gigs in Cornwall - their first sort of mini-tour.

Roger Taylor has said that his mother wasn’t keen to have the whole band and their convoy sleeping on her front-room floor in Hurland Road in 1971 - it was getting over-crowded with roadies, girlfriends and hangers-on - so they rented a small three bedroom cottage just outside Truro, in the picturesque village of Devoran. (Queen in Cornwall)

John: “We stuck all the equipment into one van and sailed off. We rented a cottage near Truro and stayed together. It was good, because we got to know each other really well. It settled us as a group. Roger did manage to find us some gigs as well, so we broke even.” (Sutcliffe, Queen Illustrated History, p. 26).

One of the other smaller photos on the back of the first Queen album is an image of Freddie standing in the open countryside, in what looks like the estuary of the Devoran River. The band would have gone walking along the river that leads to Restronguet during their holiday there, and would also have visited Flo’s Bar, one of Roger’s favourite pubs. (Queen in Cornwall - opinions are divided on whether the pic really shows Freddie, or actually Roger.)

And finally, look at this postcard that Freddie wrote home (transcript behind the cut):