The DVD cover of the concert film
A Queen tour that would prove to be the final one with Freddie Mercury took place in 1986. The Magic Tour, in support of the classic rock band’s 12th studio album, A Kind of Magic, released that year, ran from June 7 through August 9. It would be another 19 years before they would tour again, billed as Queen + Paul Rodgers.
A concert film of the Budapest performance of that tour, Hungarian Rhapsody: Queen Live in Budapest, was released in 2012. AXS TV will present its television premiere, on Sunday, June 4, at 8 p.m. Eastern/5 p.m. Pacific.
The concert was filmed live on July 27, 1986, at the Népstadion, as Queen made history as the first Western rock band to perform in a stadium behind the Iron Curtain. Playing in front of a roaring crowd of 80,000, the band delivered a hit-packed set featuring favorites such as “Now I’m Here,” “Bohemian Rhapsody” and “Tie Your Mother Down.”
Watch a master showman…
The evening also held a great deal of cultural significance for the Hungarian people, driving government officials to enlist the nation’s top cameramen and technicians to document the notable occasion. The footage would ultimately prove invaluable, as it captured Mercury in what would sadly be his last tour with the band before passing away five years later.
Watch the band perform their masterpiece at that concert…
On Wednesday, June 7, at 9 p.m. Eastern /6 p.m. Pacific, AXS TV will present an in-depth look at the creative process behind one of Queen’s biggest records in the premiere of the 2005 documentary Classic Albums: Queen: A Night at the Opera, featuring rare archival footage of Mercury, as well as exclusive interviews with Brian May and Roger Taylor, and fellow rockers Joe Perry, Nuno Bettencourt and Ian Hunter, among others. An encore performance of Hungarian Rhapsody follows.
Related: Queen + Adam Lambert are touring North America this summer
1 Comment so far
Jump into a conversationQueen was the 1st concert I ever saw when I was 13 years old at MSG for The Game tour. Watching those clips brings back great memories and sadness that Freddie died so young. To this day I don’t think there’s ever been a greater Rock singer/performer than Freddie. Queen is completely at fault for me becoming so addicted to live music..and I couldn’t be more thankful!! Jeez I wish he was still around rockin stadiums and arenas world wide!