Queen guitarist and founding member Sir Brian May recently celebrated his 78th birthday, much to the delight of fans.
Armed with his legendary “Red Special” guitar he built alongside his father, Brian helped shape Queen’s unmistakable sound, from the soaring solos of Bohemian Rhapsodyto the stomp-clap anthem that is We Will Rock You.
Beyond his music career, May is also an accomplished author, animal rights advocate, and astrophysicist – having earned a PhD from Imperial College London.
Despite his seemingly busy life, May found the time to celebrate his recent birthday surrounded by his friends and family on Saturday (July 19).
Taking to TikTok, Brian’s friend and mentee – fellow singer and song writer Talia Dean, whom he met while she was on X Factor in 2017 – in shared a sweet video of her giving her ‘Uncle B’ his birthday gift.
The clip showed Talia standing next to Brian as he unwrapped the present she’d given him. Wearing a suit with the top shirt buttons open, the legendary rockstar carefully lifted up a small sculputure of a ballon dog in a colourful tie dye pattern.
Clearly impressed, he slowly turns it around in his hands, taking it in. He then turns around to Talia to give her a hug.
In the caption, Talia wrote: “HAPPY BIRTHDAY uncle B.. you are the most special, kindest caring man I have ever met. @SirBrianMay We adore you, happy birthday. Thank you for everything x.”
The video quickly gained hundreds of thousands of views as Queen fans enjoyed getting a snippet into Brian’s normally private life. But some people also took to the comment to wish the star a happy birthday.
“Wow amazing, can you imagine Sir Brian May being your Uncle, the stories!” one person commented, while another said: “I like his wife. She was fantastic in Eastenders.”
Some were also quick to point out the significance of the gift he’d opened, as one person shared: “If that’s an original Jeff Koons it cost $42,000. No joke. Serious as a heart attack.”
Talia quickly ‘liked’ this comment, seemingly hinting that what the viewer said was true.
However, one person criticised: “Nah they sell them in tk maxx in the UK got my daughter one for her bday, cost £10.” Another person added: “I’ve got one of those balloon dog figures, you get them from Amazon.”
To this, another person replied: “I assume because it going to this megastar that it could be real.”
Meanwhile, another viewer wrote: “beautiful present i hope you all had a wonderful day.”