Sir Brian May sent an all-caps, late-night plea to his Instagram followers on Wednesday. He urged animal lovers to click a link in his bio and fill out a form right away.
The message was brief and unmistakably urgent. May opened with “VERY URGENT !!!” and asked followers to act immediately. He acknowledged the late hour himself: “Yes- this is a very late call (apologies !).” He then asked readers to “click NOW” and make their voice heard. He signed off with his usual warmth: “THANK YOU dear folks. — Bri X.”
He didn’t name the specific cause. He only pointed followers to a link in his Instagram bio. He did frame the stakes plainly: “Time for decent animal lovers to unite.”
This kind of call is vintage May. The Queen guitarist has spent decades as one of the UK’s most visible animal rights voices. He co-founded the Save Me Trust, an organization built to campaign against fox hunting and badger culling in Britain. He’s also testified before parliamentary committees on wildlife protection. Animal welfare isn’t a side project for him. It’s a commitment he’s maintained for decades.
May’s profile extends well beyond music. He holds a PhD in astrophysics from Imperial College London. He completed the degree in 2007, after setting it aside for more than thirty years to front Queen. That background draws a varied following. Music fans, science enthusiasts, and animal rights advocates all track him closely.
The urgency in his wording was hard to miss. Practically every other word was capitalized or followed by exclamation points. He used his regular shorthand “SLINK” to describe the link in his Instagram bio. It’s a small tell. The post was clearly aimed at people already plugged into his world, not casual visitors.
The specific cause wasn’t named in the post. The UK has several ongoing debates around fox hunting reform, badger cull policy, and livestock transport regulations. Any of those could have had a submission deadline on Wednesday night. The Save Me Trust has been active on several of those fronts in recent years.
At 78, May treats his platform differently than most legacy rock stars do. Some celebrities lend their name to a cause once a year at a charity event. May runs something more like an actual advocacy operation. He uses bio links, online forms, and late-night mobilization posts.
The appeal drew nearly 32,000 likes. For a plain text message with no image attached, that’s a strong response. His followers clearly show up for the activism just as much as they do for the music.
Advocacy organizations typically compile submissions first, then present them to regulators or lawmakers. That process takes time. Those who clicked already know the cause. Everyone else will find out soon enough.