Because the sale hadn't officially closed, the band wasn't allowed inside the house. They were forced to film outside in sub-zero temperatures on frozen, muddy ground.
The cold was so extreme that Brian May and John Deacon struggled to move their fingers to play. Brian May famously refused to use his legendary "Red Special" guitar in the damp conditions, opting for a birch replica instead.
The official music video for "We Will Rock You" is an accidental masterpiece born from freezing temperatures, a missing house key, and a looming deadline. Despite its status as one of rock's most iconic visuals, it was filmed in less than an hour in drummer Roger Taylor's snowy backyard. The Snowy "Backyard" Shoot Queen - We Will Rock You (Official Video)
In January 1978, Queen gathered to film two videos—"We Will Rock You" and "Spread Your Wings"—on a property in Surrey that Roger Taylor had recently purchased.
While the video features only the four band members, the song's massive "crowd" sound was actually created in a studio (Wessex Studios) using multiple delays and layering 50 takes of the band members themselves stomping on old floorboards. Because the sale hadn't officially closed, the band
The entire performance was captured in just three takes. The band lip-synced and mimicked the stomp-stomp-clap rhythm with gloves on to protect against the frost.
Because the record label hadn't originally planned to release the song as a single, the shoot was rushed and low-budget. Brian May famously refused to use his legendary
Freddie Mercury is seen wearing star-shaped sunglasses and a thick fur-lined jacket to battle the chill. According to crew accounts, he kept warm by drinking brandy between takes, eventually becoming quite intoxicated by the end of the session. Filming the Anthem