Brian May, an outspoken critic of the UK’s practice of culling badgers to combat the spread of bovine TB, firmly believes that these animals are unfairly blamed and needlessly killed.
Brian is unwavering in his belief that badgers are not responsible for the disease’s spread. His wildlife trust has dedicated the past few years to sponsoring a research program aimed at identifying the true causes of the disease. He now claims to possess compelling evidence to support his theory, advocating for an end to the culling of badgers and seeking a solution to cure cattle.
Athena Films is producing a documentary that will follow Brian, a rock star, as he presents his case to a sceptical farming community in an attempt to garner their support for his unconventional proposals.
Brian says: “I come from a position where I think it’s immoral to be killing badgers, I’ll be upfront about that. But if you’re a farmer and you believe that the badgers are infecting your cattle, you can understand why they would want to kill them. It’s very understandable.
“And what happened historically is that you get total polarisation. You get the farmers over here who are perhaps understandably resentful against the badger because they believe it’s the source of all their problems. And you get animal campaigners over here very resentful of the farmers. But you realise in the end that shouting doesn’t do anyone any good because everybody’s trying to solve the problem. So I thought, well, let’s try and come together to to solve this problem.”
Julian Carey, BBC Wales commissioning editor, says: “This is a programme produced over four years telling the complex story behind the headlines – where farmers have been left ruined by bovine TB and yet there is still so much debate over how to combat it effectively.
“Brian has been a standard bearer for the animal rights movement and this film sees him trying to bring both sides of the debate together to find the best solution for the animals and the farmers.”
