LONDON
(AP)—Guitarist and songwriter Brian May has completed his doctorate in
astrophysics—three decades after he put academia on hold to form the rock group
Queen.
The rocker
was awarded his qualification Thursday by London's Imperial College and said submitting his thesis, "Radial Velocities in the Zodiacal Dust
Cloud," to supervisors was as nerve-racking as any stadium gig.
"I'm
feeling rather joyful. I cannot tell you how much of a weight off the mind it
is," May said late Thursday.
May was an
astrophysics student at Imperial College when he joined Freddie Mercury and
Roger Taylor to form Queen in 1970, but dropped his doctorate as the glam rock
band became successful. Queen became one of Britain's biggest music groups in
the 1970s, with hits including "Bohemian Rhapsody" and "We Will
Rock You."
Following
Mercury's 1991 death, May produced two solo albums, the latest of which,
"Another World" appeared in 1998.
But the
guitarist continued to pursue his out-of-this-world interests—and last year
co-authored a book titled "Bang! The Complete History of the
Universe."
He told
reporters Thursday that handing over his completed thesis—a 48,000 word study
which seeks to prove planets and dust clouds in our solar system orbit in the
same direction—and facing examiners for a review of his work was a tough
challenge.
"It
was a bit nerve-racking walking into the room, but once we got going it was
fascinating," May said. "There's always that feeling they could ask
that big question that could sink you, but luckily they didn't."
May will be
formally presented with his doctorate next May at a ceremony at London's Royal Albert Hall.
advertisement
