Do Go On - 149 - Freddie Mercury and Queen

Episode Date: August 29, 2018

This week we look at a rock icon who has one of the most famous voices (and moustaches) in history! It’s the legend himself, Freddie Mercury! We look at his life growing up, his career with Queen, and Matt gives Freddie’s famous call and response a go!Melbourne LIVE show on October 13th : https://www.moshtix.com.au/v2/event/do-go-on-live/105917?&skin=4406&ref=hwlrUK shows : https://dogoonpod.com/events/Support the show and get rewards like bonus episodes: www.patreon.com/DoGoOnPodSubmit a topic idea directly to the hat: http://bit.ly/DoGoOnHat Twitter: @DoGoOnPodInstagram: @DoGoOnPodFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/DoGoOnPod/Email us: [e-mail] out Matt's new podcast Prime Mates: https://www.planetbroadcasting.com/our-shows/prime-matesReferences and further reading:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j40JKpvhr88https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Freddie_Mercuryhttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Queen_(band) Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Melbourne and Canada, we got exciting news for you. And we should also say this is 2026. Jess, what year is it? 2026. Thank God you're here. Right now, I'm in Melbourne doing my show with Serenji Amarna, 630 each night at the Cooper's Inn Hotel, having so much fun. We'd love to see you there.

Canada, we are visiting you in September this year. If you've somehow missed the news, we are heading up Vancouver, Calgary, Montreal, and Toronto for shows. That's going to be so much fun. Tickets for all this stuff, I believe, are online. And I'm here too. This podcast is part of the Planet Broadcasting Network. Visit planetbroadcasting.com for more podcasts from our great mates.

Hello and welcome. My name is Dave. What rap starts with Hello Everybody? All good ones. And I was just making a suggestion of how I think the show should start. Hello everybody. My name is Dave. And welcome to the Do Go On podcast.

My name is Dave. Warnocky and I'm here with Jess Perkins and Matt Stewart. He rhymed Dave with Dave. Yeah. Hey, that technically rhymes. It's no good. It's rhyme 101. I'm going to rhyme Jess with mess.

Nice. Matt. That's rhyme 102. Matt with Cat. Dave with... Dave. Exactly. Pave.

See? Dave doesn't rhyme with anything. Wave. Oh, okay, except for that. And orange. Okay, that works too. And purple. And silver.

It's mostly colors. My name rhymes with every color. That... A rainbow. Rainbow boy. A little rainbow boy. Little rainbow Dave. I'm going to change.

You know how I always update our nicknames in our group chat? Yes. I'm just going to change Dave to just the emoji of a rainbow. That's a real improvement because of the moment he's bin boy. No, he's boy who belongs in the bin. Oh, sorry. I forget that because you never see your own name. I know.

I forgot, I'm lonely girl. I don't remember why. Bearded one. That showed me. It shows that you. No discerning features. Just a floating beard. That's all we see.

Cut the beard off. You don't exist. Samson's hair, Matt's beard, no powers left. You are nothing. Thank you. The way we do this show is, I did get people to suggest ways of describing the show, and I don't have any of them ready.

I'll do one of them next week. You have a go. Have a crack. Describe this. Show to the listeners. Three obvious friends hang out. One teaches the other two about a topic that they've researched real hard. And we start the episode.

The other two don't know what the topic is. That's pretty good. And we start the episode with a question from the report giver to get us on to the topic. This question also could be real hard. Everything here is real hard. Rock. Rock hard. And Jess's question.

Which I always write. So here I am reading it right now. Ah, yes. Reading. Pointing out a laptop. That's how I read. Not a touchscreen, Jess. No, I know, but I must point to read.

This is something you've known about me for a long time. Love this character. Where are you from? I don't know. The not too distant future. I'm quite sick. What is the stage name of Farok Balsara? I know this, I think.

Well, first, can I just say, you're an idiot for getting a stage name. Forok. Come on. I think he's a Farok star. Is it Freddie Mercury? It is Freddie Mercury. All right, I stand corrected. That is a sweet name.

Freddie Mercury is a fantastic stage name. So would Farok Mercury be. Oh, Farok. Farok. Ferock is so good. That is very good. Are we talking about Freddie Mercury? We're talking about Freddie. Great.

Oh, Farok. So for ages, my topics have all been voted on, which is always really nice. I really enjoy doing that. But it's kind of liberating then to be able to just choose. Oh, but it's also terrifying. It's terrifying. You're like, I mean... Is this right?

Is this good? Do people want to hear this? And then I went back through the hat to grab all the names of the people who suggested it. And it's been suggested a lot. Some people just suggesting Freddie Mercury, some people saying Freddie Mercury and Queen. Are you ignoring those people? No, I'll be doing a bit of both. But the focus is definitely on Freddie.

On Farok. On Farok. And roll. We will Farock you. That's got to be his autobiography. We are the... Tell me he's still alive to write it. I guess we'll find out.

Oh, dear. This was suggested by... Okay, here we go. Gina Thrap, Will White, Jocelyn Banford, Paul Sestep. and Derek Hurrigan, Kevin Packrad. I mean, Jess, it does sound a lot

you've logged it on to a random namegenerator.com. Thwack. When someone was named Thwack. Thrap. Oh, Thrap, sorry. Come on, mate. That's the sound that Spider-Man makes when he's... Jacks a-so.

Boom-boom-thrap. Boom-boom-thrap. We will, we will rock you. Boom-boom-thrap. Boom, boom, thrap. That's a bit of beatbox humor. I'm pretty good at it. Yeah, okay.

It was also suggested by Amelia Barceloni. This is not every single name. Just let me thank these people. I'd love he slipped into a slight accent. I didn't. Filoni! These names have been some of the best we've ever had, and we always get great names. This one's just one name.

it's Ashmita. Oh my God. And also by Cat Goldman. Okay? Thanks for letting me get through that so seamlessly. Wow. Every single one of those names was amazing. Thrap, really.

Thrap did stand out. Copping it. Copping it. What? Love. Yeah. Praise. Yeah.

How did you turn that positive thing I said into a negative thing? I don't know. I'm sorry, Jeff. Okay. Boom, boom. Thrap. Forak, Bolsara, was born on the 5th of September, 1946, in Zanzibar. Did you know that?

I did know that. Do you know where Zanzibar is now? Tanzania. God, you've got a little geography right by bye. The capital is Dary El Salam. And I think Zanzibar must be some sort of a restaurant or chain in America. Zanzibar. Yeah, because Jack.

Black in the song says, I won't make it, but I'll order in from Zanzibar. And then I'm fucking, Oh, cute a screen. That's a great tonight to stay song. Ah, it's a bit of an oxymoron. They're all great. It makes it a tortology, Jess.

But still. Jess, I still got slam dunked by you there. I love this supportive environment. I love it. He's even supporting. He's going, no, you really got me there. That's how supportive it is. Yeah.

Yeah, again, I'm saying positive. You're taking my tone all weird. I mean, mainly is your head cold. So pray for Bob. Yeah, I know. I think I sound kind of cool. Get it trending. No, all right.

Your face was like, ooh. His parents were from the, from a region of, of the then province of Bombay in British India. They'd moved to Zanzibar for his father's work. He worked at the British colonial office, think of some kind of civil servant. And Farok spent his childhood in India.

He began taking piano lessons when he was seven years old. And when he was eight in 1954, he was sent to a boarding school near Bombay. The school was called St. Peter's School. And this is where he started to call himself Freddie. Ah. Farok didn't cut it. Yeah.

Imagine like, imagine you put so much effort into naming a child, I assume. I guess you don't just do a random word name. Not when you come with Farok. Yeah. Oh man, they must have felt so good about that. But then the kid goes and changes it to like Fred. Yeah. You're like, are you serious?

We gave you an interesting name. We gave you the name of a prince and you've taken a dog's name. What are you a little dog? Fred. If you're going to be cold, Fred, will you sleep on the floor, your dog? You'll never be a superstar with that name. Boy, were they wrong. Ooh, sizzle.

Oh, really? Does he have a noteworthy life in some way? At the age of 12, we started his first band. I just want to say, throughout this entire report, there are some very good band names. His first band when he was 12 was called The Hectics. That's a great band. Love it. Especially for a 12-year-old.

Pretty clever. It makes you think. The hectics. I get it. Or is it the hectics? My God, it works on two levels. Life at 12. They covered a lot of music

such as Cliff Richard and Little Richard, specifically Richards. And Freddie wowed his fellow students with his ability to listen. to a song on the radio and then play what he'd heard on the piano. I'm really glad he said that. I thought it was going to be, wowed his fellow students by his ability to listen to a song on the radio.

Check this out, guys. Oh, wow. How is he doing that? I can hear it too. Not as good as me. This kid is some kind of genius. That is a talent. Playing by ear, yes.

To play it back. Absolutely. That means like he goes with his ear, goes, Matt's grabbing his ear like a trumpet. Is that what that means? Yes, he could play the piano like an ear trumpet. Yes. I'm really glad Matt translated that.

Two. Two hander. Yeah, I can play by ears. Freddie. He could only do one. In 1963, when he was 17, he moved back to Zanzibar where his parents were still living. And not long after he returned, though, Freddie and his family fred from Zanzibar for safety reasons due to the 1964 Zanzibar revolution.

I mean, you did to say they Fred Zanzibar. I was going to let it go, but then Matt and I, we locked up. It's not funny because it was bad. Lots of people died. Lots of people died. Fred. Fled. Sorry.

Freddie and his family fled. Brilliant. For safety reasons. Oh God, I wish I'd heard that bit before I jumped in. I had said it. Due to the 1964, Zanzibar Revolution in which thousands of Arabs and Indians were killed. So they left and they went to England. So they moved to the UK and he enrolled in Ilesworth Polytechnic, which is now known as

the West Thames College in West London, and he studied art there. He ended up earning a diploma in art and graphic design. I might not have known that. I didn't know that. I didn't know that. Huh, thank you. This has been worth it. After he graduated, he joined a few bands.

He worked selling secondhand clothes in Kensington Market with his girlfriend, Mary Austin. In 1969, he joined a Liverpool-based, band ibex, later renamed wreckage. What's ibex? How's that spelled? I-B-E-X. Oh, I-B-E-X. Ibex.

It sounds like a, yeah, like some sort of a thing you drop into a water. It fizzes up and it makes your tummy feel better. Effervescent. It's an effervescent. It's an effervescent. Have an ibex and lie down. Isn't that a saying? Yeah.

Goes all the way back to that band. You're thinking of an Alka-Selt. Alka Salsa. That's a good band name. Freddie and the Alka Sousers. Mimni, mini, mini, meo. That's a guitar song. Just to find that out of her ear.

When the band, Rackage, failed to take off. That sounds like a Dimeback Darrell side project. Yeah, it does have a metalish vibe about it. Well, then he joined a second band called Sour Milk Sea. Did you mean that as a joke, wreckage failed to take off? No. It was pretty good. It's a pretty good accident.

Then yes. That wreckage was a pretty good accident. Thank you. Sadly, wreckage crashed and burned. Yes. Yeah, this is all worth it.

So he goes and joins another band and then, by earlier the next year, though, they'd broken up as well. So he was... Is he playing piano and singing? Is that his forte? Yeah, yeah, yeah.

He took up guitar later as well, but his main things were, yes, singing and the piano. And listening. And listening. To radio specifically. On stage.

Early on, that was the encore. The band. He'd come out with a little tape deck. But he put it really close to his own ear. Take this out. As he nods to the crowd, that was a good act out, that. And everyone is just losing it.

Look at him go. It was honestly breathtaking. Yeah. Yeah. A couple of years earlier, though, in 1968, a guitarist by the name of Brian May, a student at London's Imperial College and a bassist named Tim Stafel decided to form a band. Brian placed an ad on a college notice board for a drummer and Roger Taylor, a young dental student, auditioned and got the job. The group called themselves Smile. I like it.

Did you say so Freddie joined? No. Oh, he's not in yet. Because he's got a famous smile as well. Oh, he does. Good point. No, so it's just Brian, Roger, and a guy called Tim. And the dentist.

Roger's a dentist. The drummer. Really? Yeah. So, is that why they called smile? Because of the... Oh, maybe. I didn't see them much more obvious.

Freddy's got a very famous smile. I think you'll find. That man who's not yet in the band. What about the dentist? Oh, yeah. I heard it. So in a classic Beatles situation,

Tim left Smile. To join the Beatles. To go join a band called Humpy Bong. No. No, no, no. I mean, smile was bad enough. But you left that for Humpty Bong.

Well, please tell me that they went on to become like Led Zeppel or something. He needs this. This is a tragic story He needs this one Please Please Humpy bong

I think I know what I think I know the other decision here Later, suckers Bong on boys That was Humpy Bong with their hit Humpin and bonging all night Humpy Bong I'd love to know the story

behind the name I'd love to hear some humpy bong Um So after Tim left, Freddie Mercury joined. And at this stage, it's just Freddie, Brian and Roger. He's a little fun fact. So Tim, the one he left to join Humpy Bong. Humpy Bong eventually split up.

No. He went on to join another couple of bands and played music for a little while. Led Zeppelin. He did not join Led Zeppelin. He finally left music in the late 70s to concentrate on a flourishing business as a freelance animator and model maker. His work includes Thomas the Tank Engine. Wow. So he did work with the Beatle.

True, yes. So he was fine. He did well. He did well. Probably lived a better life. Than a rock and roll life. Hmm. Well, let's hear how Freddy's life went.

There's only way is up. Yes. And then possibly down. The only way is up. Not one of their songs. I just going to say, I don't recognize that humpy bong classic. So the following year, 1971, smile were joined by bassist John Deakin. Freddie encouraged the band name change to Queen

despite initial reservations from the other band members and their management everyone was like ooh, I don't know about that We prefer smile Yeah, smile is really good So this is a quote from Freddie about the name Queen because it's very regal obviously And that sounds splendid

Oh yeah, I guess it is a bit regal Oh hang on, queen has two meanings I want to say two I mean one is the band Queen Yeah Which I guess in some ways didn't even exist at that stage. So it was just the regal one. Right.

Well, as he goes on to say, it's a strong name, very universal and immediate. I was certainly aware of the gay connotations, but that was just one facet of it. So it doesn't, you know, anyway. And it's regal. And it's regal, obviously. Because that's, yeah, isn't the queen's name? The. That's right.

That's her first name. Yeah. So the Humpy Bongs also quite a regal name. 50% regal. Yeah. Yeah, yeah. We, fuck, we should have been the do go on. Fuck.

One quarter regal. Oh, I feel like an idiot. So Queen's got gay connotations. Yes. You see an openly gay man at this time. You did mention a girlfriend before. No, he's not at this time. Right.

But he was aware of the connotations. Yes. Interesting. So at about this same time, sort of as they're rebranding into Queen, This is when he changed his surname to Mercury. So now he is in full Freddie Mercury. It's a flight. Amazing name.

So good. He also used his graphic design skills to design the Queen logo called the Queen Crest, shortly before the release of the band's first album. The logo combines the zodiac signs of all four members. So it has two lions for Leo, because that's Deacon and Taylor, a crab for cancer and two fairies for Virgo. Where Virgo's? I was a little fairies.

Are we fairies? It's not fairies, but it's a virgin. A virgin woman. Yeah. Well, fairies. What is a fairy if not a virgin woman? Thank you, Matthew. I take it back.

There's also a crown inside the queue, and the whole logo is overshadowed by an enormous phoenix. And the whole symbol bears a... It seems like there's a lot going on. There's a lot going on. I don't think... I don't know if I know the Queen Crest. I have it here.

I reckon, yeah, I reckon I would have must have seen it, but... Yeah, you know it from like there. Oh, yes. It does look like a country's coat of arms. Well, that's it. Yeah, it has quite a passing resemblance to the Royal Coat of Arms of the United Kingdom. But it represents each member of the band. In 1973, Queen signed a deal with Trident and EMI as their managers.

By July of that year, they released their debut album, an effort influenced by heavy metal and progressive rock. The album was very well received by critics. Gordon Fletcher of Rolling Stone called it superb, and Chicago's Daily Herald called it an above-average debut. Whoa. I'd probably put the superb review bigger on my poster, and then above-average I'd make that a little bit more.

Yeah. But that's just me. Yeah. Actually... You didn't do graphic design, did you? Probably a bit more on brand for me to make it above average. Yeah. It's more fun.

Yeah. What year is this now? This is 1973. 73, right. Yeah. That's cool. So he's in his mid-20s, ready this time? 47 was his birth, was it?

Yeah, that's right. Already got an old amount, nice. He's doing pretty well. However, even the critics, well, received it really well. It drew, like, not a great or not a huge mainstream attention. The lead single was Keep Yourself Alive and it's sold quite poorly. their second LP, which was Queen 2. So the first one's called Queen.

The second one's called Queen 2. Back in the habit. Was released the following year, which is like quite a quick turnaround. Oh, for sure. So it's in 1974. Second album's out. Features... Also, back in those days, it's not like you can just plug your guitar into a laptop.

Yeah. Like it's an effort. They did smash albums out. The Beatles really so many in there. That's true. Yeah. It's crazy when you find out that the Beatles, were not around for a long period of time.

So, yeah, they bring out the second album, and it's got that iconic image taken by a photographer called Mick Rock. Fuck an amazing name. For Rock. Mick For Rock. Of the four of them there. And that photo was the basis for the Bohemian Rhapsody video the following year. The album reached number five on the British album chart

and became the first Queen album to chart in the UK. Seven Seas of Rye reached number 10 in the UK, giving the band their first hit. I don't know if I know that song. Oh, man, it's great. Really good piano intro. Yeah, right. What's it called?

Seven Seas of Rye. Seven Seas of Rye. I'm a very casual queen fan. My parents would have had the queen greatest hits when I was a kid. That would be my... So if it's on that, I know it. It is. Oh, okay.

All right, I know it well. Love it. You'll probably... You'll know it when you're... you hear it because it is one that album the greatest hits would be my introduction to Queen you know as a kid

I probably know a little bit more now but I still don't know all of it obviously but that's a good one and you said the Bohemian Rhapsody film clip was the following year is that from that album or a separate release? Yeah it's from that album so on their second album actually no I beg you I beg you pardon it's on the following year

their third album which I'll get to in a second and I'll talk more about that video as well The album is the first real testament to the band's distinctive layered sound and features long, complex instrumental passages, fantasy-themed lyrics and musical virtuosity. So in 1974, sheer heart attack reached number two in the United Kingdom, sold well throughout Europe and went gold in the US. It gave the band their first real experience with international success.

So they are killing it at this point. They're doing really, really well. And at this point, they start to move away from progressive tendencies of their first two releases with more radio-friendly songs. Like they're kind of trying to, I don't know, just be a bit more commercially available. So Shear Heart Attack introduced a new sound and melody pattern that would be refined on their next album called A Night at the Opera. Right. So that's a big, big famous one.

Yeah. So a night at the opera came out in late 1975, taking its name from a popular Marks Brothers movie. At the time, it was the most expensive album ever produced. I couldn't find a dollar figure on that, and I couldn't find what surpassed it. But I could just, I found in several different places that said it was the most expensive album ever produced at the time.

And it's like, how much? Right. I think the most expensive one now would be Guns and Roses, Chinese democracy, that one that took him like 18 years. And they spent millions of dollars on it. And then when it finally came out, it was like, oh, is that what you got? Cool. I imagine it would have been a hit if they released it's right on the back of one of those.

What was the album before? That double. Anyway, that doesn't matter. Used your illusion or something like that? Yeah, I think so. So this is the album that Bohemian Rhapsody was on, which was number one in the UK for nine weeks. It's still the third best-selling single of all time in the UK. Wow.

It's a past only by Band-Aids to They Know It's Christmas, and Elton John's Candle in the Wind. It's the best-selling commercial single in the UK. So, yeah, huge. The Bohemian Rhapsody video is generally considered to be the first true music video ever produced, because before that, bands would make short promotional films or videos of songs before, but they were usually made specifically to go onto a certain TV show. So like they'd be talking about this album and then they'd play this clip.

So like Bohemia Rhapsody, the video was quite unique. And Rolling Stones was, this is in an article, is talking about the impact of Bohemian Rhapsody. It says its influence cannot be overstated, practically inventing the music video seven years before MTV went on the air. So it's kind of a first, which is pretty cool. That's pretty cool. Hey Jess, do you talk it all about when they toured Australia?

My next sentence is, The bands A Night at the Opera Tour began in November 1975 and covered Europe, the United States, Japan and Australia. Yeah, cool. I think they, the story that I've never looked this up or anything, but I think they played in Sumbry early on before they were big. Which is like, Sumbry is like, I think Kana, jokingly, kind of seriously referred to as sort of like Australia's Woodstock. Woodstock, yeah.

It was a big festival out in the outer suburbs of Melbourne. And they were on before, I think they were on maybe second last as how I understand it before. It's the guy's name. He's saying, Billy Thorpe in the other states. I remember my dad would say, yeah, I went to, what's it called again? Sunbury. Sunbury, yeah, saw Thorpey. Like, did you see Queen?

I didn't know they were there. I've got to call him after this. And yeah, so Thorpey, I think was sort of headlining and Queen were on before. And the way it was told to me, I think by an uncle who maybe was there, was the crowd basically, they were quite agro while Queen were on, going, get Thorpey up. We want Thorpey. Oh, my God.

That's crazy. And then they became huge. Yeah. And they would have already, like, you can't imagine that they were. ever would have been that far off what they'd become. Yeah, right. If your second, you know, second headline. Yeah.

And that sounds like they very quickly were doing well. Yeah, like first album was successful. But Thorpey. Yeah. Which is amazing because it's like the Thorpey thing obviously didn't carry over into our time, but he was obviously massive in Australia. At the time, yeah.

At the time, yeah, in the 70s. Yeah, isn't that insane? Loudest band in Australia, I think they saw the time. It will damage your hearing more than any other band. You're welcome. All your money back. So, yeah, they were touring all over the world. And Freddie was very well known for his live performances.

He had a highly theatrical style, but often evoked a great deal of participation from the crowd. A bit of crowd work. No, not crowdwork, but like, where are you from? What do you do? Banker. Oh, you're shit. All right.

Here's another song A two, three, four This song's called This guy's a wanker banker A bit of improv Rhyms Which means it's funny All right

I'm going to need an occupation A place And a wacky name Banker Bank Mr Banks Fuck you He was

He was described as a performer Out to tease Shock And ultimately charm You're a banker Classic tease. Classic tease. He's just a bully.

Yeah. You say tease. I say real piece of shit. Tease shock and ultimately charm his audience with various extravagant versions of himself. You're a digger. Nah, you're all right. Let's give this guy around to applause. Nah, just joke about it.

You're all right, man, yeah. All right, here's a free t-shirt. I'm going to quote here from a guy called David Bowie. Familiar? We've done a report on him. The David Bowie? The David Bowie. Is that the stage's name of Johnny Cash?

Yes. This is David Bowie talking about Freddie. He says, Freddie took it further than the rest. He took it over the edge. And of course, I always admired a man who wears tights. I only saw him in concert once. And as I say, he was definitely a man who could hold an audience in the palm of his hand. Wow, he only saw him one.

For some reason, I don't they perform together? Yeah. Yeah. They had a hit together. Huge hit. Yep Maybe or maybe maybe maybe Maybe he was like a real diva

And he would just stay backstage Also love the fact that David Bowie is saying That someone took it over the edge Yeah Zickey Star Duss The thin white duke These are characters he created Yeah

And he's like flop Freddy was wacky Whoa I took it too far Yeah back off Back it off I've got you at about an 11 I need you about a 7 please

Brian May Later wrote that Freddie could make It was a quasi. He says, the last person at the back of the furthest stand in a stadium feel that he was connected. Yeah, Brian, how many people in the back of the stand have you spoken to, Brian? You piece of work. Do you know how he knew that?

Because he's like, you there, what's your name? No, not you. Not you. Right at the back. Right at the back. The furthest possible stand. Back row. Back row.

Terrible haircut. Yeah, you. Yeah, I'm talking to you. Oh, it feels like he's talking to me. Okay. That's something we can do with our future. future live shows. Great.

We really connect with the back. Yeah, you think you're safe in the back. We all tease you. I'm going to get you. Don't have an ordinary hair cut down the back. Can we get headset mics so I can go roaming through the crowd? Like Madonna-style microphones. Yeah, like Madonna roams through the crowd.

Just crowdwork. Just picking on people. Yeah. Like a virgin. Yeah, you look like one. She high fives everyone around. All those persons are friends. They're like, oh.

Thanks a lot, Madge. Anyway, one of the greatest live performances in history was Queen's performance at Live Aid in 1985. You've ever seen footage of this? That one where he gets that. Yes. And he's wearing like that. It's that weird.

The out clap. No, they're pointing. And they're not even doing, it's not where you will rock you. Yeah, they do that later. Radio Gaga. Yeah. Let's bring that sweet gold jacket and he's got the mic on the stand. Yeah, with that.

It's like a half stand. That's 86. Really? So Live 885. Yes, he does have the broken mic stand because originally he was like singing live at a show one time and the mic stand broke off the heavy bass of the stand and he kept that for the rest of his shows.

I always wondered, I'm like, they did it differently back then. I hadn't quite figured out full mic stand yet. Or you could just grab the mic? Yeah. He did that on purpose because he could sort of play with it quite a bit. Not like Farnsey, though. Damn, that's a guy I can work a mic stand. Anyway, topic for another day.

Do you mean the videos when he tries to flip it and he fucks it? He loves to flip it. Sometimes it just crashes. I think of the Logies last year. What? He threw up the mic stand. He loves to flip it, loves to throw it in the air and then try and grab it. Yeah.

Missed it. Not the Logies. You only get one shot of that, Johnny. You only get one shot of the Logies. You will not be invited back. This must sound like absolutely gibberish to overseas listeners. Farnsey, Logies. I don't know who John Farnham is and the Loki's.

Oh, come on. So, Dave, please, put on the loudest jacket in the world. Sorry, it's just got chilly in here. It's very colourful. Ah, Dave's just getting dressed, everyone. It's a bit garish. He's getting into a, uh, in a sleeping bag. I take my jackets over the edge.

There are your guitars from you too. Yeah. If I'm picking between my... My jackets and the guitars from you two, I'd take my jackets. Yeah. Every time. Every time. So we're talking live aid in 1985.

A critic did a retrospective review of Live Aid in 2005 and wrote this. Those who compile lists of great rock frontmen and award the top spots to Mick Jagger, Robert Plan, etc. are all guilty of a terrible oversight. Freddie, as evidenced by his live aid performance, was easily the most godlike of them all. And I've watched, you watch it all on YouTube. It's 20 minutes of pure magic. It is so good. I watched it earlier today because I was like, all right, well, we'll see how good it is.

And, no, I was expecting to watch like a couple of minutes of it, and I watched the whole thing. He's so engaging. He's so much fun to watch. And his voice is incredible live. And this is back in the day before Ineers where they could, like, hear themselves better. He's just that good. Yeah, it's like an outdoor. Stadium.

And it's pretty tough. Fucking packed. There's like 72,000 people there or something like that. It was insane. Did it da da da-da-do. Is that the first one or the second one when he does the call-and-response thing? I think he did that at quite a few shows. The one you're thinking of is 1986, because I will mention that again later as well.

Oh. Yeah. I wonder if it's around 96. It isn't. Fuck. Twist. Love it. It isn't.

Stay tuned. I'm on my toes And it hurts Well, stay up there That's pirouetting I don't care I'm in the second position Don't care

Which as we know is Doggy Doggy I'm on my chippy toes Doing doggy This is weird It feels right You always go into doggy

Anyway It's always skipping A dog Well, what other order do you do? Never mind. Oh, dear. All right. Let's start from the beginning.

Number one. Normal. Number two, reverse normal. Yeah, so what Matt was talking about before was the audience clapping along to Radio Gaga because it was based on the video, the music video for Radio Gaga had like this clap clap and then it sort of like all put their fists out in the air so everyone in the crowd is doing that and this is Brian May talking about seeing that in the crowd he's like I'd never seen anything like that in my life and it wasn't calculated either

we understood our audience and played to them but this is one of those weird accidents because of the music video I remember thinking oh great they've picked it up and then I thought hang on this isn't a queen audience this is a general audience who've bought tickets before they even we were on the bill and they did it. How did they know? Nobody told them to do it. So everybody in the crowd knew that's pretty cool. He does understand how mob mentality works, right?

Oh, you are just shitting all over. Anything joyful today. No, it is. Brian May is right. They all just magically figured it out individually. No, the real listen there is that it's not just queen fans. Everyone's a queen fan. Yeah.

Thank you, David. Matt, leaf out of Dave's book, please. Thank you. Okay. Remember to give that leaf back. Over the course of his career, Freddie performed an estimated 700 concerts in countries all around the world with Queen. I've touched on the success of Queen.

I think there's obviously a lot more detail that could go into that too. But I want to look at Freddie as a person as well. Let's have a look at him. It's about Freddie Mercury and Queen. Yeah. So in addition to his work with Queen, he also put out two solo albums, several singles as well. His two full albums outside the band were Mr. Bad Guy, Love it, which came out in 1985. That is so him.

Such a bad guy. Such a mister. And Barcelona, which came out three years later in 1988. Barcelona, Bad Boy. Barcelona. Was it successful? I don't think I've ever heard of Solona. a Freddie song. Well, both of them, like, was still pretty well received, obviously not as successful

as Queen's music. And he also did a lot of, like, collaborating with other people and different things. So he did a lot of work in music in general, but obviously Queen was like the main thing that he was recognised for. In the early 70s, he had a long-term relationship with Mary Austin, who I mentioned briefly earlier. They lived together for several years in West Kensington, in London. But by the mid-70s, Freddie was having an affair with a male American record executive. And at the end of 1976, he told Mary about the affair and his sexuality, which ended their romantic relationship. But the sweetest part is that it didn't end their friendship. Nice. Nice.

He moved out of their place that they shared. He moved into a flat by himself. And he bought Mary one nearby as well. Oh, nice. What a nice guy. Yeah, my ex-boyfriend did not buy me property. Mr. Nice guy should have been his album. Yeah. Not your ex-boyfriend.

God, no. He should have been Mr. Bad Boy. Yeah, Mr. Bad Boy, well, lied. Yeah. Yeah, because he travels. He's not just a bad boy in Melbourne. Oh, no. He's a bad boy all over the place.

He's got three different passports. Yeah. I don't even know anymore. Um, uh, So in 1985 in an interview, Freddie said, he's talking about Mary, he said, all my lovers asked me why they couldn't replace Mary, but it's simply impossible. The only friend I've got is Mary and I don't want anybody else. To me, she was my common law wife.

To me, it was a marriage. We believe in each other and that's enough for me. He also wrote several songs about Mary, the most notable of which is love of my life. Right. So there's a bit of not speculation around his sexual orientation, but some say he hid it from the public while others would argue that he was very openly gay. Keep in mind that homosexual acts between adult males over the age of 21 had only been decriminalized in the UK in 1967. So it wasn't exactly the safest or most inclusive time to be gay. Do you think it's a coincidence that the year before they brought home the World Cup?

Maybe. And then all of a sudden they said, you know, let's let people love. Yeah, because they were just like, they lined up. I actually think it might have been in relation to an event in Australia in 1966. Pray tell. Some sort of... Sporting? Sporting cup.

Some sort of football. Are I saying that right? That's another one of my favourite, Warnockie. Bits. My son that right? His eyes go really big and cute. Does great eye work. You're not talking about the St. Kilda Saints' 1996.

Yes, I am. Breaking Premiership. A great day. Change the world. In 1992, John Marshall of Gay Times, amazing. Didn't know that existed. I love it. You have seen it at airports in the UK, yeah.

Gay Times. He said the following. He said that Freddie was a scene. Queen, not afraid to publicly express his gayness, but unwilling to analyze or justify his lifestyle. It was as if Freddie Mercury was saying to the world, I am what I am, so what? And that in

itself for some was a statement. I kind of like that. It's like, he's not making a statement, which is kind of the statement. His statement is no comment. I want a statement from him. So I'll take anything I can from him to be the statement. Yeah, that's the statement.

He's the statement. He is the statement. statement. Yeah. Thank you, Freddie. Something that was surprising to a lot of people was that despite his on stage flamboyant and extravagant personality,

Freddie was actually quite shy and quiet, especially around people he didn't know all that well. You know, and that's something I can relate to as a delicate flower myself. Yeah. Yeah. Yep. I mean, you may just make it.

some noises. Bedup. Bedup. So I was just scatting. Freddie style. Scar. Scarding. Sharding.

It was just sharding. Freddie style. I was going to say this is... I was going to say this is... Oh, why car? None of that curry. Better follow through on that. Oh no.

Better be on that. I was going to say this is a fun fact It's not all that fun But it's, I suppose, interesting I suppose factual Well, so I was just talking about how Freddie was quite introverted And Kurt Cobain's suicide note

mentions how he admired and envied the way Mercury seemed to love relish Love relish in the love And adoration from the crowd Like he was, when he was on stage He was like, on and he was having the best time and he was really engaging. He was like

he's a delight to watch. It's so fun. Right, but Kurt didn't feel that way when he before. He himself, yeah. So he admired that in Freddie but probably didn't feel like he could replicate himself. So after fans noticed Freddy's increasingly

gaunt appearance in 1988, the media reported that Mercury was seriously ill with AIDS frequently being mentioned as a likely illness. He flatly denied this, insisting he was merely exhausted, too busy to provide interviews. Also, he didn't do a lot of interviews anyway because he was quite shy. But he was just like, no, I'm just tired. I'm just really burnt out. We tour a lot. He had in fact been diagnosed as HIV positive

in April of 1987, but he didn't make his illness public and denied that anything was wrong. But despite the denials, the British press pursued, and there were rampant rumors over the next few years, filled by his increasingly gone appearance. He just got really thin and quite grey. And also because of Queen's absence from touring and reports from former lovers to various tabloid journals. So yeah, by 1990s, over a couple of years, rumours about his health were rife. They were everywhere.

He kept his condition really private to protect those closest to him. But Brian May confirmed in an interview, several years later in 93 that Freddie had told the band much earlier that he was sick, probably quite soon after he found out he told the band. But they all kept it quiet, which I think's quite nice too.

Like Freddie didn't tell many people, but those that he did all protected him and all said, no, he's not, he's fine. They weren't like, I will neither confirm nor deny. I will not make a statement, and that is my statement. Ooh, what does that mean? Choosing not to make a statement was, For some, the statement they needed.

So the music video for These Are the Days of Our Lives Features a very thin and sick-looking Freddy in what are his final scenes in front of the camera. The rest of the band were basically almost on call. They were ready to record whenever Freddie felt able to come into the studio. It was like an hour or two at a time, whenever he felt like he could. And Brian May said he just kept saying, write me more, write me stuff. I want to just sing.

I want to sing this and do this. And when I'm gone, you can finish it. Like, he was, he was kind of fearless. And just, a guy called Justin Shirley Smith, who was the assistant engineer for those last recording sessions, said, this is hard to explain to people, but it wasn't sad. It was very happy. Freddie was one of the funniest people I've ever encountered. I was laughing most of the time with him.

Freddy was saying, I'm not going to think about it. I'm just going to do this. I just wanted to get on with the music, which I want to just put out to you guys now that I would have a very the opposite thought if I ever, I mean, I've got a cold right now

and I thought about just canceling the whole show not just the recording but just like throwing in the town. Right, it's over. We're done. If it was me, I'd come out. I was like, come on, let's just, I'll just say words. You can finish it later.

You can edit it together later. Hello, goodbye. Fred. I've got a great imagination. Jeremiah Jigsaw puzzles. 79. Hello again. Where have I been?

Hey, where's all the questions coming about? It's a very defensive final recording. Back off. No, I'm sorry. Hey, you're all right. I always go through all the stages of grieving. Got acceptance. I can't wait to hear that report

if anyone wants to chop that new report Somehow Yes Where are these questions coming about Anyway so They're continuing to work They're recording In June of 91

Freddie retired to his home in Kensington And Mary He's a former lover Visited him all the time She helped look after him as his health sort of deteriorated. His partner, a guy called Jim Hutton, who was also tested HIV positive in 1990,

lived with Mercury for the last six years of his life and nursed him during his illness. Near the end of his life, Mercury was starting to lose his sight. He deteriorated to the point where he couldn't get out of bed. And due to this condition, he kind of decided to hasten it along a little bit. He stopped to take his medication and just took painkillers. So that was in June of 91. By November of 91, he called their manager, Queens manager, Jim Beach.

He brought him over to his home and he made a public statement that was released the following day. And this is the statement that Freddie made. He said, following the enormous conjecture in the press over the last two weeks, I wish to confirm that I've been tested HIV positive and have AIDS. I felt it correct to keep this information private to date to date to protect the privacy of those around me. However, the time has come now for my friends and fans around the world to know the truth and I hope that everyone will join with me, my doctors and all those worldwide in the fight against this terrible disease. My privacy has always been very special to me and I'm famous for my lack of interviews.

Please understand this policy will continue. So we're like, I'm not going to be talking about it. Because other people have sort of argued that, or have argued since, that if he had come out about it much sooner, he could have been a really powerful voice in, like, raising awareness and, and,

you know, all that sort of thing. But I think in that statement, it kind of makes sense, because he was very private, that it makes sense why he didn't say anything, because it was just sort of, he wanted to protect the people around him and,

I don't know, kind of, yeah, that's a very, very personal choice. Of course. Yeah, he could have said something.

Selfish. Yeah. Seriously, it's up to the individual. He's the one dying. Yeah, he should be able to deal with that in any way that he wants to. He knows he's going to die. And he wants to do that privately and keep working. Yeah, if you want to say something, then amazing.

Then, yeah, great. But if you want to shut the door and, you know, die alone in your bedroom, that's also. That's fine too. I'm just like, because I was alive then. You guys were barely alive then. And I've got to, I don't know if I can remember him dying, but I do remember Bohemian Rhapsody being a hit. And I've just looked it up, and I reckon I was thinking, would it have been like,

like jump back into the charts because he died? Wayne's World. In Australia, it was top five in 1991, which I don't know if that's Wayne's World as well. Wayne's World's 92. Right. I've got that later. Yes, that's. There was a huge resurgence in the US because he was, the queen had kind of lost.

They always had a following in the US, but it dwinded. And they kind of stopped touring there too. And then once Freddie died, spoiler alert, there was like a big jump. And I talk about it literally in probably another couple of minutes. I remember hearing, and I don't know if this is sure or not, but you know the film they made for, is the song called I Want to Break Free or Break Free or something like that? And it's him in drag. Yep.

They're all in drag. Oh, they're all in drag. And on some rock documentary I saw a while back, apparently that hurt their popularity in America with the conservative sort of Bible Belt regions. I don't know if that's 100% true. I think that's true. I think it was, but like they weren't even,

they were just being silly. Like they didn't give a fuck really. They were just like, no, this is funny. Yeah. I mean, it's kind of an iconic look, right? Doesn't Bart dress like that? Yeah, and he's got the vacuum cleaner. Yeah.

Yeah. Like it's a real iconic. outfit. On the evening of the 24th of November, just over 24 hours after issuing that statement, Freddie Mercury died at the age of 45 at his home in Kensington. The official cause of death was bronchial pneumonia resulting from AIDS. Jim Hutton, he's a partner of quite a long time, was present at his bedside when he died, and Hutton said Mercury died wearing the wedding band that Hutton had given him.

There are lots of other people around as well. Right. So he gave that he must have known that it was... He must have felt that it was, yeah. He gave a statement like 24 hours beforehand, amazing. Yeah. His funeral service was three days later on the 27th of November and was attended by his family and 35 of his close friends,

including the remaining members of Queen and Elton John. His coffin was carried out of the chapel to take my hand, precious Lord, and you've got a friend by Aretha Franklin, who only just passed away very recently as well. but that was at Freddy's request. He wanted that. He wanted Aretha Franklin played. Also in accordance with his wishes,

Mary Austin took possession of his cremated remains and buried them in an undisclosed location. The whereabouts of his ashes are believed to be known only to Mary Austin, who was stated that she will never reveal where she's buried him. Wow. Which is pretty amazing. Their friendship seems really incredible. In his will, he left his,

London home to her, rather than his partner, Jim, saying to her, you would have been my wife, and it would have been yours anyway. He also left her the vast majority of his wealth and recording royalties. Wow, she's doing it doing very well. He's doing very well. He left £500,000 to his chef, $500,000 to his personal assistant, $100,000 to his driver, and $500,000 to Jim Hutton. His partner got the same amount as his chef and his PA. Mary gets the hat. And the partner had been there for the last six years. He'd been living with him for the last six. Looking after him.

I think they'd been together for a while before that as well. And also dying himself. Yes. Although he only died in 2010. Oh, really? Yeah. So he was HIV positive, but that doesn't mean AIDS. Right.

No, it develops into AIDS. So he was HIV positive. He died in 2010. So Mary's got the house. She still lives there. It's a garden lodging. With her family, the outer walls of Garden Lodge became a shrine to Freddie following his death, with mourners paying tribute by covering the walls in graffiti messages.

Three years after his death, Time Out magazine reported, since Freddy's death, the wall outside the house has become London's biggest rock and roll shrine, and fans still go there to pay their respects. So she, yeah, isn't that amazing? We should go there. We should definitely go there. Yeah. Yeah.

So I think that's pretty amazing like there. I like that relationship and that it almost feels like, I mean, fame must be such a strange thing to go through. And if, obviously, we have an idea, but. Like you said we. But the people that are like there before. I can still walk down the street, okay, Bob. You're the one who asked to go out shielded by.

Big sunnies. Big sunnies. And my large, burly security guards. Rocco and Dave. This Dave. Yeah. I protect you. Yeah.

He's got a little drone. He shoots little, beo, peopo, peal. Somebody gets too close to me. Yeah, apparently, you know. Kids. Toddlers and dogs. Yeah, who are Jess's biggest fans. Yeah.

Big in the dog community. She's done a lot for them. Yeah. It's a dog named Bop. It's true. So in Twitter, the dog named Bop. It's a cat name Warnocky, a dog called Bop. And fuck you, Matt, apparently.

And Matt can go fuck himself. Sorry, Matt. No, fair enough. Just a little bit about his legacy. So as you kind of touched on before, Matt, in the US, Queen's popularity had lagged in the 80s. But sales of Queen, albums went up dramatically in 1992 the year following his death.

And the movie Wayne's World, which featured Bohemian Rhapsody, also came out in 92. So that's given in a bit of a boost as well. According to the Recording Industry Association of America, Queen has sold 34.5 million albums. Apples. Wow. Do you get one free with every album? 34.5 million albums in the US by 2004. which is about half of which have been sold since Freddie's death in 1991.

It's a huge boost at the end there. Estimates of Queen's total worldwide record sales to date have been set as high as 300 million. And how many apples? About 300 million. Wow. And one. Someone accidentally got sent two.

Yeah. And they didn't, they were like, I'm not sending this back. You can eat it. In the UK, Queen has now spent more collective weeks on the UK album charts than any other musical act, including the Beatles. And Queen's greatest hits is the best-selling album of all time in the UK. There are several statues and memorials of Freddie all over the world, including a 10-foot-tall statue in Switzerland, where people still gather every year on the first weekend of September to celebrate. Did you have a connection?

Yeah, I think he rented a place there for a while. That's where he wrote quite a bit of music. Oh, right, okay. So it's in a specific area that he spent quite a bit of time. At the closing ceremony of the 2012 Summer Olympics in London, Queen performed We Will Rock You with Jesse Jay performing the vocals. However, before they started, a giant screen on stage showed Freddy's call and response routine.

Matt, give us an example of Freddy's call and response. Yep, perfect. Bada-b-b-da-bub. Shibit-bub. So they showed Freddie doing that. That's setabob up, that's beautiful. That's beautiful. That's beautiful.

He said your name or what. So they had, yeah, this screen of Freddie doing that from a 1986 Wembley Stadium show. That's one where he's wearing the gold jacket. and the audience at the closing ceremony were responding to like this giant screen of Freddie doing it. It was really cool. That is. And you know how I feel about opening and closing ceremonies of Olympics.

Fondly. Fondly. We were all thinking of it. I was about to say that before you did, but. Just to finish off as well, Brian May announced in, an interview in September of 2010 that Sasha Baron Cohen was going to be playing Freddie Mercury. I feel like he would have been a great Freddie. In a film.

Totally. Just because of the resemblance. So Time magazine also commented on the resemblance, but also singing ability. Not that I don't know that I've heard Sasha Baron Cohen sing. Have you seen Madagascar? Oh my God, of course. I like to move it, move it. I think he's also in, um, what's that, Victor Hugo?

Le Mise, the film adaptation. Oh, shit. He is too, isn't he? Which I haven't seen, not being a musical go-up, but I believe he had a cameo, or at least a cameo. As well, it was Rusty and Huge. We're both in there as well, weren't they? Yeah, Rusty in there.

Yeah, Rusty's in there. Oh, he's in there. My mate. Your mate. I was a retreated Bob. He's retreated Bob. I've retreated. I'm going to retreat her to a nice meal.

I haven't really got my head around this, Twitter going, but, Yeah, I retreated, Bob. Just did my best tweet ever, 600 retreats. Yeah. I met 600 people run away from the screen. That's how disgusted they were with what I wrote. God bless. I'm edgy.

God save the Queen. God look after New Zealand. And God retreat Australia. Bloody hell. All right. I'm Russell Crow. What does he think, retreat means.

I don't understand the question. Okay. Sorry, love. Would Eric need say love? Yeah, I reckon he might. And I'd hate it. Yeah, all right, love. Oh, yuck, Rusty.

No thanks. No, thanks, Rusty. Anyway, so, Sasha Baron Cohen. Sasha Baron Cohen. Filming was planned to begin sometime in 2011. Weirdly, though, in 2013, Sasha Baron Cohen dropped out. I don't think they'd film.

Or maybe they'd done a little bit, I don't know. He dropped out due to creative differences with the members of Queen. Oh. Didn't get along with Queen. So then in December of 2013, it was announced that Ben Wishaw, best known for playing Q in the James Bond films, had been chosen to replace Sasha Baron Cohen as Freddie Mercury. Not bad.

But then he also dropped out. Right, because he's quite nerdy. But I suppose that's the look in, James Bond, maybe he's less nerdy looking. Yeah. If he's not dressed as queue. Yeah, true. Fair enough.

With floppy hair and big glasses. So then on the 4th of November 2016, it was announced that the film was now backed by 20th century Fox and shooting was set to begin in early 2017. And Freddie will now be played by Rami Malik. And at this stage, it's set to come out in the next couple of months. It's been quite a process. You can't watch the trailer for it. Yeah.

He's Mr. Robato, right? or something like that. What's that show? Mr. Robot. That's the guy who plays him. Is that right? Am I saying that wrong? You guys are looking to me.

Look, like I've lost my mind. Don't I regard to Mr. Robot? Is that wrong? I don't know. I think that's right. Anyway, I think the guy from Mr. Robot plays Freddy. And I'm pretty sure Mike Myers

plays a British or a Scottish exec or something. Oh, that's always good. Oh, he's back. It's always good when he does that. So that gentleman is my report on Freddie Mercury. Great stuff. Thank you so much. Rami Malick is Mr. Robo.

Or in Mr. Robot, the man actor. Mr. Roboto. I don't know what Mr. Robot is. Is that bad? It's quite an acclaimed series. Right. It's about this guy who's like a sort of like a Mr. Robot type. Okay. I get it.

I mean, you've pretty much don't need to watch it now. Yeah, done. Sordered. You. It's like about Mr. Robot. So, yeah. Sorry to for the spoilers there. Oh, but just that was a great report.

Thank you. What an amazing life. Yeah, really cool, dude. And then, like, while I was, while I was listening, while I was researching, sorry, I was listening to a lot of Queen music, and that was pretty cool. I enjoyed doing that. Queen is good.

I'm definitely going to listen to some now. Maybe I'll go dive back into their back catalogue. Please. Yeah, I'd love to hear if listeners, obviously some are into him and them. Yeah. But it'll be interesting. And another thing I heard, where did I hear this, about talking about Mike Myers and Wayne's World, he really had to fight against the studio, the film studio to get Bohemian Rhapsody.

and they wanted something more modern, maybe like Guns and Roses or something. And they were saying, Queen, it's old. But it's interesting, knowing now the time that it was soon after his death, that maybe they would have, but they saw it as being like an old, why this song, it's like an old song? And he's like, no, it's got to be this song. And supposedly he fought hard for it. And obviously that's the most iconic scene in the film.

In the greatest film, let's ever be. It's a very good film. It's one of my all-time favorites. It's legit. I love it. No. Disagreements from me. Shoutouts to our friends at Mike Check

and the Mike Check Republic. The podcast about Mike Miles movies. Oh, sure. I think people know that. I mean, if you need to, yeah, if you need to spell it out because people don't know. Does I think that might mean

it's time for the segment of the show called Fact Quote or Question. That's beautiful. I brought to you. by our Patreon supporters. If you want to chip into our Patreon if you listen every week, we put a lot of effort into the show with the reports,

all the stuff that we put out there. If you reckon it's worth a buck or two when you listen every week, you can go to Patreon.com slash do go on pod and in exchange for you supporting the show will give you some even more content. Yes. Some even more content.

Dave talks even more gooder on the bonus episodes. We, yeah, This month's bonus episodes have been very fun to do. I'm looking forward to. So this week's fact, quote, or question giver is Mr. Zach Steinbucker. Zach? Been a supporter for a long time, Zach?

Yes, legend. And the other thing that the fact quote or question segment gives you the chance to offer either a fact quote or question for me to read out to Jess and Dave, but also you get to give yourself your own title. And Zach has given him. himself the title of official fourth do-go-on member, Nick Mason's inaugural Patreon shout-out. It's a complex title.

Really catchy there, Zach. I love it, yeah. I mean, if we had to put it into an acronym. I'd make a little plaque. Just to remind yourself. And he has offered a fact as a question. And here it is. A fact as a question.

Yes. Okay. Yep. Sorry. The player who holds the record for reaching a thousand points in the NHL, the quickest, also has the record for being the second quickest. What? It's an amazing fact.

NHL being the National Hockey League in North America? North America, yes. And he said here, see if Dave or Jess know who it is. Wayne Gretzky. Yes. Yay! Only hockey player I know. He'd asked me to name a follow-up player, I would have really struggled.

But the interesting thing is he is still the only man to reach 2,000 points. So he's the fastest and only to get to the second thousand. Oh, that's very impressive. Oh, that is really cool. The only other player I know is Ovechkin, the Russian guy that just won with... Bless you. So fucking stupid. You hate it.

So much. He hates it. dumb fuck sorry I was just going through a bad cliche joke book here uh bless you

anything foreign it's very old school such a dad joke that was for you Zach that's for Zach that's so good thank you Zach thank you so much Zach

the other thing we like to do at the end of the episodes is go through some other of our Patreon and giving them a bloody shout-out. Shout out. Oh, bless you. Okay, I love it. You just got to get in the...

Also, can I tap out just for one week? Coming up with the thing. Yeah. Yeah, sure. All right, Matt, come on. I'm tired. You and I. It's you and me, baby.

Come on. All right, so the episode was about Queen. Yes. So what about, like, I mean, it could be band names. We've probably done that before. But what about... We've done stage names before. well haven't we. What about a call and response? What? Yeah, great. Well, it could be, so I mean,

you know, pretty wide brief that, but so what, if they were on stage, what would be their call and response? Okay, and then we'll act it out. Yeah. All right. Love it. Let's give this a crack. I'd love to thank from Parker in what I believe to be Colorado, Co. Oh yeah, baby. the United States of America. Alexandra Cosmiski. Bless you. Bless you.

Bless you. Is that the call and response? Is that what you're going to be for Alexander? Bless you. That's really nice. That's offering. A blessing. It's a religious ceremony.

I mean, that's what they say. Quain's concerts were like religious ceremonies. That's what I call church. Thank you, Alexandra Great name Alexander Cosmischi I like that quite a lot Bless you

And I'd also love to thank from British Columbia in Canada Dustin Bullchild Oh Just a couple of cracking names Straight off the bat Mour

Child That's the call Yeah where's the response What's the response? You just want it back at you? Or do you moo and we say child? Oh, that's good. I say moo, you say child.

Moo. Child. Moo. Child. Love it. Or I say, Murr, you say. Baby!

Yeah. Moo. Weh. Maw. I'm so sorry. This is, this is this, this is this is proved why Jess should always do this. What could you, I mean, it's not too late. Nah, let's keep going with this.

This is great. Thank you, Dustin, from British Columbia. Do we say it's from Canada? Yeah. That's so cool, these listening. BC. That's great. Thank you.

Can I thank some people? Please, Jess. I would like to thank from... What's that? I'd like to say, having to look there, Biduri? Yeah, it's going to be... Being a Queensland town, that'd be Badoorie. Or Clooney Station.

I've lost it. Is that too much information now? Have I just given his full address now? That's the place he lives at. Let's just say Paduri. In Queensland. Let's also say he's postcode. I'd like to that.

And a description. Five foot seven, black hair, big mustache. I'm not short, but he's got a big mustache. Patrick Tully. Patrick Tully. From Outback, Queensland. Looking at these. Oh, this is a.

amazing place. Look at that. That's Ozzy as. So I reckon he's called a response to me, yeah. And then you go, oh my God, civilization. That's a pretty sad concept, though,

if his response is an echo. Patrick Charlie Charlie, that's so great that you're listening out there on that beautiful rural block. Yeah, thank you. Thank you for, sorry. Sorry, I'm an idiot.

I'm not sorry. I would also like to thank a bit closer to home from Mount Martha here in Victoria. I would like to thank David Brown. David Brown, great name. Sounds like a man you could trust to read the weather. Is there a, maybe that's because there's a David Brown. Darren Brown can I trust that guy. Isn't David Brown the one who wrote the Da Vinci Code?

Dan Brown. Fuck. That's his dad. Yeah. David Brown's my dad's name. You can call me Dan Brown because that's my name. Mount Martha, I've played golf at Mount Martha a few times. Lovely.

Okay. So his call the response is four. I was about to yell four. Five. That's the response. They just keep counting. Four, five, six, seven. Stopps at seven.

Obviously. Start again. No, that's annoying. Don't stop it at seven. Lovey seven. David Brown, keep doing what you're doing. because it's good stuff. That's great.

Thank you, David. Now, I would like to thank from Smithfield, Pennsylvania, the United States of America, Curtis Bloom. Cousin of Orlando. Oh, definite relation, definite relation. Does sound like... Kurt Bloom. Bloom, obviously, flowers.

And the noise of a flower is, of course, Matt. Paddle! Kuddle! Puddle? Petal. Petal, okay. So he says petal, we say puddle. Petal.

Paddle! Puddle! Puddle! Fuck, that is cute as shit. Dude, sorry. I could not get those words back into my mouth. Petal, puddle power. Petal, puddle power to Curtis.

People at home going, please don't be me this week. Please don't be me this week. Yeah, please don't know. This is so stupid. That's great. And finally, I would like to thank all the way from Hamilton in New Zealand.

Ah. Another beautiful spot. New Zealand. I paused for Jess to say that. She does it every time. I'm getting predictable. From Hamilton, it is Riley Stokes. Oh, that's a good name.

That is a bloody good name. Which, by the way, I said I was at work the other day at my day job, and I was signing someone up to our loyalty program. And I got a first name and last name. And I went, oh, those are good names. And she was quite taken aback. She didn't laugh. She was like, thank you. Like she was quite flattered.

Well, so she should be. So absolutely. But I was just like, oh, it's a weird thing to say to someone. I'd love to have a complimentable name. Yeah. I got a pretty plain Jane name. Do you ever say that when you sign people up to the loyalty program? Poor shit name.

Poor. What a shock. Sometimes I say, God, your parents were cruel, weren't they? Matt Stewart. Riley Stokes. She's a great name. Yeah. One of the classic calling responses is,

we don't need no water let the motherfucker burn. Burn, motherfucker. Burn. Stoke the fire. Yeah. Is that? Riley stokes the fire. Love it.

I was going with Riley didn't start the fire. Riley didn't stoke the fire, yeah. Perfect. A little less swearing in it. Ooh, it's a bit crass. When I think of Riley, I think burn, motherfucker. Burn. Sorry, Riley.

Riley doesn't give me that vibe. Kiwis are very nice people. Yeah, all right, what about this? Have fun out there. That's the call. Take it easy. And the response is, Put on sunscreen.

Thanks a million. Let's go for it. All right, here we go. Have fun out there. Thanks a million. Oh, that's a gig. That's a gig. I want to be out.

Crowdsurf out to friendship. Oh, fuck yeah. Whoever says Robert Plants, the greatest frontman ever is obviously overstooks Raleigh Stokes. With his colon Stook Overstook

Riley Stokes Robert Plant Obviously his famous Call and response is Puddle Power Paddle Power

And it was puddle It's pedal paddle No it's pedal power now Yeah It's a big biker Love writing Keep on peddling

Peddle pedal Pedal Thanks for everyone In summary That supports the Patreon You are You're fantastic I feel like

You're a fantastic I feel like You're the call We're the response together we make a great show. Thank you. It's beautiful, Dave. That is beautiful, Dave.

Let's just sum it up. And to sum up the whole episode, if you want to get in contact at any time or buy tickets to any of our upcoming shows or just say, hey, you can always head on over to our website do go onpod.com. And then there's at do go on pod for Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. We're always online.

And if you're coming to our Melbourne show, remember to contribute generously to Jess's. snack bucket. I thought it was a magnet bucket. Well, magnets and snacks. This feels like a real raw. Do not give her money. Snack bucket sounds like a KFC meal.

Okay, it's just, I'm taking donations if you want to contribute to my magnet collection while we're on tour. And also, I said that I wanted to be, look after snacks for you guys. So really, it's for your benefit too. Thank you so much. Thank you. And if they have any, like, pound that they're like, like, you know. Like, oh, I can't go. I can't bother taking this in exchange it.

It would be ten bucks worth. What's the point? I'll just leave it there. Just chuck it my way. I'll look after it for you. All right. All right. Just hold on to it and just one day get back over there to sunny old Britain.

Nah, just give it to me for snacks and magnet. Snacks and magnets. What, do you, just quickly, would you guys have a favourite Queen's song? Oh, tough. Oh, I love. You're my best friend. Oh, that's a really, that's a nice. Beautiful song.

Yeah. Really nice. We were playing that in the car yesterday. It's very sweet. So love. That is a really, yeah, that is a really nice song. Somebody to love is pretty amazing. I think mine's don't stop me now.

Oh, good one. I heard that a lot when I first traveled overseas. It sort of became the anthem of the trip. It's great to hear the song. You think of the trip. Very good. Nostalgia it's called Dave. Look it up.

Fuck head. You've taken a beautiful moment of her dress and made me feel like a fuck wind. Good. That's my job. Thanks for telling the life of this, Jess. Jess? You're making me live. Thank you.

You're my best friend. Bye-da-da-up. Thanks, guys. We'll be back another episode next week. The big 150th episode. Cannot wait. We'll be here. You'll be there.

It's going to be great. Who knows what else will happen? Who knows? All right. Thanks again, guys. See you then. Bye-bye. La-la-da-da-da-dos.

Incredible. This podcast is part of the Planet Broadcasting Network. Visit planetbroadcasting.com for more podcasts from our great mates. I mean, if you want, it's up to you. Don't forget to sign up to our tour mailing list so we know where in the world you are and we can come and tell you when we're coming there. Wherever we go, we always hear six months later, oh, you should come to Manchester.

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