Thank you for watching “Queen The Greatest”,
a look back at some of the extraordinary
songs, performances and achievements
that Queen have given us over the last 50 years.
By the end of 1974 Queen
had enjoyed success in the
single charts, released three albums and
were established as a headlining act in the UK.
Yet the band’s ambitions did not stop there.
Their sights were firmly set on performing abroad
and remarkably, interest in other countries
was already starting to grow,
helped by Killer Queen charting well in Belgium,
Germany, Austria, The Netherlands,
Ireland and the US.
However, as early as 1973,
Queen had already performed
in Germany and Luxembourg,
and so when the Sheer Heart Attack tour
came around in late ’74,
there were naturally some overseas dates,
and this time Scandinavia would become
Queen’s new destination.
Although the touring schedule
didn’t allow much time for sightseeing,
each trip was an exciting new experience
for these young musicians,
and often full of surprises.
One such surprise occurred
at the Press Conference
ahead of the band’s performance in Helsinki,
Finland, on November 25th.
Amongst the usual journalists, TV and
Radio presenters, clutching a small tape recorder,
was Juha Kakkuri, a 12 year old boy…
(Juha) What do you like about Finland?
(Freddie) Straight away.
Oh, what do I like about Finland?
Well I’ve only been here one day
and I like the shops and everything.
It’s so cold.
(Juha) Yes I know.
(Juha) What do you play in Queen?
(Roger) I play drums
and do a lot of singing as well.
(Juha) Then you have to be very strong.
(Roger) Yes, you have to be very fit.
(Juha i/v) The day before I met them,
I heard a song called Brighton Rock,
which is the opening track on “Sheer Heart Attack”,
and it was so good that I immediately decided
that I want to get the autographs of these guys.
(Juha) And that your album is very good.
(John) Ah, you like it do you?
(Juha) Yes. And yesterday in Radio your single,
I like it, very good.
(John) Which one?
(Juha) Brighton Rock
(John) Brighton Rock?
Yeah, that’s a very sort of stage number that is,
that’s more like what we want on stage
with a guitar solo in the middle.
(Juha i/v) So I called EMI Finland,
thinking of course that
they know all the rock stars in person,
I just asked them to connect me
with the person who’s taking care of the business
of a rock group called Queen.
And my phone call was connected
and a man named Uffe Ahrenberg answered
and I explained that it was such a good song
that I want to get their autographs.
And he told me that later today
there is a press conference
and you can come there and get the autographs.
(Juha i/v) I don’t know where I got the idea
that if it’s a press conference
you also have to interview them.
So I took my little C Cassette Recorder with me
and, as I told you,
the day before, I hadn’t even heard of the band.
(Freddie) Have you heard our albums and things?
What do you think of that?
(Juha) Those?
(Freddie) No, no, no. Records?
You haven’t heard that either?
(Juha) No I haven’t.
(Freddie) Ha ha! Well how come you…
Don’t worry. Not to worry.
(Juha i/v) They acted very professionally
and, as I said, they were very polite.
And of course they didn’t know why I was there.
They maybe, they thought I’m doing it
for a kids programme or something like that.
(Juha) Do you like just any candy?
(Brian) Well. Yeah, I like most of it really. Yeah.
What do I like best.
I like Black Magic Chocolates…
and chocolate fingers”.
(Juha i/v) I remember each band member,
how they looked, and many details.
John Deacon had bought new shoes
from Helsinki, and I still remember
how the shoes looked like.
(Juha) May I make to you some questions?
(John) Yes.
(Juha) What do you like about Finland?
(John) Er, Finland?
Shoes. I’ve bought a new pair of shoes here.
Mainly for when I get back to England
when it’s very cold in the winter,
these will keep me warm.
Because they wear these don’t they,
a lot of the kids?”
(Juha i/v) I remember when
A Night At the Opera was released
and I listened to it with my mother.
And then she was listening to the tracks
and then she said,
“I think you were very lucky
when you did that interview.”
(Juha) I think your band is the best band.
What do you like?
(Freddie) Well, that’s nice of you to say that.
Are you going to come and see us tonight?
(Juha) I’m really sorry, but you know
I have to go to Guitar School.
(Freddie) Not to worry, not to worry.
(Juha i/v) The interesting thing is that the first
band member I interviewed was Freddie.
I mean I didn’t know he was the lead singer,
he could have been the bass player
or the drummer.
But I happened to interview Freddie first
and during my career in Radio
I’ve met a lot of big stars.
Robbie Williams. Rolling Stones. People like that.
But still I think that nothing can top
the eperience that the first person
you have interviewed, at the age of 12,
is Freddie Mercury.
Juha wasn’t the only person in Finland
that Queen left a big impression on,
and even though the band
never performed there again with Freddie,
the fan base remained solid
and continued to grow,
evidenced by the enthusiastic response
Brian and Roger enjoyed
when they did return to Helsinki
with Adam Lambert in 2016.
(Brian) This is a momentous occasion,
coming back to Finland after all this time.
Thank you for an incredible reception.
Thank you. Thank you, thank you.
As we will witness with so many
other countries throughout
our Queen The Greatest series,
from the very beginning the band
had an extraordinary ability to
form a deep and special bond
with fans all over the world
that endures to this very day.