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Freddie Mercury felt Queen would ‘freak out’ over covering song in early days | Music | Entertainment

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This week’s Queen the Greatest Live official YouTube series continues a look back at some of the band’s most memorable covers during their concerts.

Most recently they have shared rare footage of Freddie Mercury leading the group in a medley at Wembley Stadium back in 1986.

This included Ricky Nelson’s Hello Mary Lou, Little Richard’s Tutti Frutti and Elvis Presley’s (You’re So Square) Baby I Don’t Care.

And now fans are treated to the frontman and the band performing Peggy Lee’s Big Spender, made a hit by Shirley Bassey in 1967.

This week’s footage includes Freddie singing the track at Queen’s 1975 Hammersmith Odeon concert and at Wembley in 1986.

Freddie told Hit Parader in 1977: “Sneaking my cabaret influences into our act was done slowly.

“Could you imagine me doing Big Spender when we were first starting? As a rock band?

“They’d freak. Now we do more a combination of rock ‘n’ roll and theatre.”

Next week’s episode looks back at “An Unforgettable Moment”, whatever that could be…



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Here’s exactly what to expect at 2000trees festival – plus 1 thing to be prepared for | Music | Entertainment

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June 10, 2026

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Trees sign in the main arena

2000trees is nestled in the middle of Upcote Farm (Image: @JezPennington)

Who would’ve thought a quiet corner of the Cotswolds could host one of the UK’s most exciting music line-ups. Tucked away on Upcote Farm in Cheltenham, independent rock festival, 2000Trees, has been going strong since 2007. This year is taking place again on July 8 – July 11.

Across four days, and six stages, the festival is jam packed with everything from alt-rock to hardcore. This year’s headliners include Neck Deep, Alkaline Trio and Funeral For A Friend but the line up also features a range of fan favourites and rising stars. A key date on the festival calendar, ‘Trees’ is a favourite among bands and fans alike and it’s easy to see why. As someone who’s admired the festival’s previous line-ups, I’m slightly embarrassed to admit last year was my first time, but it’s safe to say it didn’t disappoint. Here are five things you can expect:

Alexisonfire

The festival features some of the best artists in the scene (Image: Carla Mundy)

1. You can catch every band if you want to

​​At most festivals, seeing all your favourite bands involves a lot of stressful scheduling and mad dashes between stages miles apart. Because of Trees’ compact layout, it’s possible to go from one stage to the next with little effort. This makes it the ideal setup for discovering new artists without missing out on your favourite acts in the process. There’s one exception to this – the Forest Stage, which is a short walk from the main action, but nestled in amongst some trees making it the perfect place to hide out from the hustle and bustle of the festival.

2. It sticks to its core value of being a family festival

Unlike many rock festivals, 2000trees goes out of its way to be inclusive for families. There’s a dedicated family campsite, and a Forest School for kids to try their hand at den-building. Meanwhile, the Word Stage doubled up as a storytelling space for children in between podcasts and Drag Queen talks.

There was even a children’s play area by the main stage, where you’d spot kids dancing, doing mini-circle pits or just chilling on blankets as their parents soaked up the music. Most importantly, other festival goers respected the space families took up, creating a nicer atmosphere for everyone to enjoy.

Poster of 2000trees line up

Tickets are still available for this year’s festival (Image: SUPPLIED)

3. Festival goers are committed to fancy dress – no matter the weather

Fancy dress has become part of the 2000trees tradition, and last year’s heatwave didn’t stop fans from going all out. I saw one man multiple times sweating it out in a full tiger costume as he clamboured across the front barriers. There were a group of lads dressed as pints of beer, multiple Heroes chocolates, and even someone wearing a fully functioning Guitar Hero rig which was powered by a generator on his back.

This year’s fancy dress theme is ‘2000memes’ so get prepared to come as your favourite internet meme, and be ready to see some outrageous outfits.

4. It’s well organised and easy to navigate

There’s no doubt that at some festivals it’s hard to find the facilities, but at 2000trees this was never an issue. The layout was simple and stress-free, you were never too far from a toilet or a much-needed water refill. Food vendors were spread across the site, and the queue for essentials like coffee or merch were never long.

There was a general store near the arena entrance, alongside a store for emergency camping gear. Even in 30°C heat, I never felt like I was baking in a queue for too long which is always a bonus when you’re hoping to get a toilet break before seeing your next band.

Marshall Amp mascot being pushed onto the main stage

The Marshall Amp took the spotlight during Letlive’s set on the main stage (Image: @JezPennington)

5. It’s super clean (by festival standards)

This is an important but rare one: The site was already being cleared of rubbish by the time the last acts finished on Saturday night. The cup deposit scheme (pay £1.50 and get it back when you return your cup) meant hardly anything was left on the ground. Even the toilets stayed surprisingly clean throughout the day. They were stocked with loo roll, regularly cleaned, and aside from one unfortunate instant, not completely horrifying.

Above all, the festival’s vibe was warm and welcoming. Artists often call 2000trees ‘a chilled hangout with friends’, and I can’t disagree. It’s full of good music, kind staff, and hopefully this year – plenty of sunshine!



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Queen’s Roger Taylor announces new album and tour with first single out now | Music | Entertainment

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June 10, 2026

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The record’s first timely single Come on Summer (It’s Party Time) featuring the Ndlovu Youth Choir, famous for the Zulu version of Bohemian Rhapsody.

Meanwhile, the full track listing is as follows: A Beautiful World – Feat. The Ndlovu Youth Choir, Violence Insane, What Really Matters, Don’t Photograph Food, I See You Now, Chump, Spit In His Eye, Jealous Guy (cover), Come On Summer (It’s Party Time) – Feat. The Ndlovu Youth Choir and A Great Big Beautiful World (reprise) – Feat. The Ndlovu Youth Choir.

If that wasn’t enough, the Queen drummer is heading back on a UK tour this September with the following dates: Newcastle O2 City Hall (21st), Edinburgh Usher Hall (22nd), Birmingham The Alexandra (24th), Manchester Opera House (25th), London Roundhouse (28th) and Swansea Building Society Arena (29th).

On the theme of Violence Insane in a Beautiful World, Roger elaborated: “There is a theme, you know, it’s in the title really, what a beautiful world we live in, don’t f*** it up. There seems to be all this insanity at the moment. The violence in the world seems to be as bad as it ever was, at any point, and certainly in my lifetime. It’s just horrific, a lot of insane violence. And we do seem to be f***ing up the world, plastics in the sea, you know, and all these awful wars everywhere and hatred born of different religions.”

The drummer added that he intended the tone of the album to be a hopeful one: “It’s a beautiful world, you know. And kindness is very important, I think, it seems to be forgotten quite a lot. So, that is basically the sort of underlying theme.”

On embracing a plethora of sounds and styles on his new record, Roger shared: “I like the idea of eclecticism. I like the idea of different things, you know? I mean, the great example being the Beatles. I always thought that their albums were very eclectic, especially the later albums from Revolver onwards. You never knew what the next track was going to be, and it was totally different to the track before it. We always tried to do that in Queen. We tried to make a lot of different things and fearlessly tread where no sane man would. Yeah, I think people are really going to like the surreal stuff.”

Violence Insane in a Beautiful World can be pre-ordered here – doing so allows first access to tickets for Roger Taylor’s 2026 UK Tour.



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11 best England football songs ranked to get you into the World Cup mo | Music | Entertainment

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June 10, 2026

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Music and football have crossed over for decades. In 1990, Luciano Pavarotti’s flawless rendition of Nessun Dorma, from Puccini’s Turandot, was chosen as the theme for BBC coverage of the FIFA World Cup in Italy. The song was as perfect as it was sublime, a swelling tide of hope facing off against operatic tragedy. I can’t hear it without picturing Gazza’s tears when England lost to West Germany on penalties in the semi-final. The closing “Vincero” (I will win) captured soccer’s drama and passion, catapulting Big P to number two in the charts. The whole world was football crazy that year, and not for the first time.

The earliest footie song, The Dooley Fitba’ Club, was written in the 19th Century and re-recorded as Football Crazy in 1960 by Scots folk duo Robin Hall & Jimmie Macgregor. BBC TV’s Tonight show and radio play helped it seep into the public consciousness. Three years later, the sound of the terraces dominated the charts for the first time when the Dave Clark Five romped to No 1 with Glad All Over. Their “Tottenham Sound” – north London’s boisterous answer to Merseybeat – consisted of instantly catchy songs inspired by the White Hart Lane crowds. Clark, a life-long Spurs supporter, loved the club so much he tried to buy it, and his beefy and unique booming drum beat – developed with engineer Adrian Kerridge – influenced glam rock. Freddie Mercury said Queen got the idea for 1977’s We Will Rock You from Dave Clark’s Bits & Pieces. The B-side, We Are The Champions was also terrace inspired. Wolverhampton’s Slade channelled a similar blend of rowdy rock with hefty hooks and choruses. Hits like Cum On Feel the Noize and Mama Weer All Crazee Now were regularly blasted over stadium speakers to hype up pre-match crowds, although their one football song, 1978’s Give Us A Goal (complete with old-school grumbles like ‘Stop your fancy footwork now!’), conked out at No 62 in the charts. The ultimate goal for soccer-loving English musicians has long been to craft the perfect England song, one that captures the hopes, thrills and disappointments of the beautiful game. And so, after seven decades of football-rock cross-overs, what England anthems were the greatest? Here’s my verdict.

11. We’re On The Ball – Ant & Dec

Ant and Dec

The official England song for the 2002 World Cup was this cheesy but likeable high-energy fan favourite which reached the Top 3. Adapted from Harold Spiro’s novelty song, On The Ball, the insanely catchy chorus names the squad’s key stars in the squad as the Geordie poppets build the excitement: ‘It’s Neville to Campbell, Campbell to Rio, Rio to Scholesy, Scholesy to Gerrard, Gerrard to Beckham, Beckham to Heskey, Heskey to Owen to Nodd (five one)!’ – recalling England’s celebrated 5-1 victory over Germany in 2001.

Sven’s Army was marching forward, they pledged. ‘A nation re-united/And England comes alive/Golden balls is captain/And Heskey makes it five’. (There was no Nodd, they mangled the words, “to God”). The video features Ant dressed as Sven Goran Eriksson. Spiro, a staunch Spurs fan, previously wrote the Novello-Award-winning Nice One Cyril, inspired by Tottenham Hotspurs’ cracking left-back, Cyril Knowles. Performed by the Cockerel Chorus, it went Top 15 in March 1973.

(Image: INSTAGRAM)

10. (How Does It Feel To Be) On Top Of The World – England United

Spice Girls (How Does It Feel to Be) On Top of the World 1998

FA-endorsed as England’s official song for France 98, England United were an unlikely supergroup made up of Echo & The Bunnymen, Ocean Colour Scene, Space & The Spice Girls.

Channelling the optimism of the times, the song mixed Britpop and mainstream pop turning it into a very 90s Top Ten smash. The Bunnymen’s Ian McCulloch and Johnny Marr wrote it. They spurned the temptation to include terrace chants and went instead for jangling guitars, a driving rhythm and a sublimely uplifting feel.

The gently infectious chorus comes loaded with mellow optimism. The song soars, the harmonies lift. It’s perfect pop. The only problem is we got beaten by Argentina on penalties at the knock-out stage. On the plus side they persuaded David ‘Batts’ Batty to be in the music video.

(Image: Dave Hogan)

9. Jerusalem – Fat Les

Euro 2000 Football Championships England Song

A surprisingly stirring rendition of William Blake and Sir Hubert Parry’s patriotic 19th century masterpiece. Actor Keith Allen brought in choirs and an orchestra to do Blake’s words and Parry’s composition justice. Produced by the Pet Shop Boys, it was the official England song for Euro 2000 and went Top Ten.

Fat Les, who’d had earlier success with Vindaloo, are a ‘supergroup’ dreamed up by of Allen, Blur bassist Alex James, and artist Damien Hirst. The video featured The London Community Gospel Choir and cameos from a young Alfie Allen (Keith’s Game Of Thrones star actor son, in goal), Danny Dyer (in a West Ham away shirt), and a quick flash of Lily Allen (Keith’s popstar-to-be daughter). Blake’s poem was transformed into an unofficial English national anthem in 1916 when composer Parry set the verses to music.

Commissioned during World War I to boost morale, the poignant rallying tune turned the poet’s plea for spiritual renewal into an enduring patriotic staple. Many England fans believe that the majestic Jerusalem should be England football’s national anthem rather than the British God Save The King.

(Image: -)

8. England’s Irie – Black Grape feat. Joe Strummer & Keith Allen

England’s Irie

The Clash had always refused to appear on Top Of The Pops, so this hit song marked the late Joe Strummer’s first appearance on the show. Black Grape’s breezy Euro 96 single captures the Manchester band’s swaggering essence, mixing together funky rock, hip-hop breaks and Joe’s raspy intro.

Driven by a laid-back groove, the infectious track peaked at No 6 in 1996. Not so much terrace rock, as a cool, breezy, slacker stroll into Britpop history. Irie indeed. Shaun Ryder’s lyrics – ‘My wife’s lactating, I’m spectating, it’s a football thing’ – are surreally bonkers.

(Image: MTV)



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