“He didn’t miss a beat”: The fateful night in 2005 when Brian May was almost killed by a hydraulic piano
Credit: Far Out / Paul Williams
Tue 28 April 2026 17:30, UK
For many artists, touring is one of the best parts of the job. It is, as many have described, a literal presentation of fan and audience appreciation, and the ultimate proof that what you do is completely worth it. It’s also, however, a breeding ground for the ultimate mishaps, as Brian May once learned the hard way.
Across music history, some of the best and worst moments have occurred during live sets, while some are also downright revolutionary, sparking cultural moments that changed the landscape of live environments forever. After all, there’s a reason why Queen’s 1985 Live Aid set is considered one of the best live performances of all time, and it’s all down to a mixture of raw musical talent and impeccable cultural timing.
Other examples signify a bigger turning point in cultural or societal history, like how The Rolling Stones’ infamous set at the Altamont Free Festival marked the end of 1960s counterculture, or how Woodstock presented an idealised, free-spirited world during arguably the most chaotic period in human history, and still more are less explosive but still as impactful, or moments of pure happenstance that somehow accrue a legacy of their own.
Like Pete Townshend smashing his guitar on stage, or Ronnie James Dio coming up with the devil horns gesture, or Jimi Hendrix setting the bar for pure live spectacle at Monterey Pop by setting his guitar on fire. Some moments, especially when the acts are extreme and the stakes are high, seem to be the recipe for disaster, but in moments like these, they exist as lightning bolt moments of their own, proving just how palpable live energy can be when done well.
On the flipside are the disasters, such as the many times Axl Rose has suffered injuries onstage, or when a section of the middle bridge collapsed while Michael Jackson performed ‘Earth Song’ in Munich in 1999, plunging 50 feet, before emerging from the pit and finishing the song, despite being in immense pain.
It can be scary for musicians even when even the simplest of things go wrong during shows, but when there’s a real, genuine danger, that’s often cause to stop the show completely, yet some, like Jackson, manage to push through and deliver an excellent performance, despite the chaos ensuing around them. Brian May did the same in the mid-2000s, when he fell into an open hydraulic lift mid-performance and didn’t even pause to process what had happened.
The incident occurred during Paul Rodgers’ brief stint as the band’s frontman, when he’d often be raised on a piano on hydraulics. One night, May fell into the opening and had to be lifted out by the crew so he wouldn’t get crushed by the piano, but despite the chaos, he continued playing as if nothing had happened.
“He was a trooper, I have to say,” Rodgers later said, “He didn’t miss a beat or anything”.
You can never fully predict or control everything that’ll happen during a live performance, even with extensive rehearsal before hitting the road. And while those moments where things do go wrong can disrupt the experience and bring you out of the magic, it does prove just how raw and vulnerable it is in principle, and also, how skilled certain musicians are in the face of unpredictability.
After all, May could have stopped playing and focused solely on his safety, but he kept going for the sake of continuity, knowing that he was in good hands regardless of whether he stopped or not. This also proves that, sometimes, it’s easy to take live music for granted, but ultimately, there’s a lot of talent and precision at play, proving that Queen’s well-known mantra, “the show must go on”, was never just a surface-level philosophy after all.
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