Freddie clips were my education says Lambert

Adam Lambert watched as many Freddie Mercury video clips as he could find online before singing with Queen, he’s revealed.

The American Idol finalist has been performing alongside Brian May and Roger Taylor since 2011. They’re currently touring North America then play the UK and Europe in January.

Lambert tells Absolute Radio: “I did some studying. I felt I really needed to. I was pretty familiar with them, but when I first started working with them, that’s when I went onto the internet and scoured everything.”

He adds a Mercury performance in Montreal stood out. “He’s running around in shorts, with no shoes on. Watching him in that zone really made me understand him.

“He just didn’t give a shit. He was like, ‘I’m going to do whatever I want.’ I think he kind of defined what a rock star was to me. He doesn’t actually care – and he’s so fabulous doing it.”

Meanwhile, Queen have secured an Oscar-nominated writer to create the screenplay for the troubled Mercury biopic.

The project has struggled since actor Sacha Baron Cohen bowed out over creative differences, then director Dexter Fletcher was dismissed.

Now Deadline reports that Anthony McCarten, who wrote The Theory Of Everything, will be charged with writing the script. It’s thought the working title is Bohemian Rhapsody.

Brian May: Adam hits notes even Freddie couldn't

Not only is one-time online news editor Martin an established rock journalist and drummer, but he’s also penned several books on music history, including SAHB Story: The Tale of the Sensational Alex Harvey Band, a band he once managed, and the best-selling Apollo Memories about the history of the legendary and infamous Glasgow Apollo. Martin has written for Classic Rock and Prog and at one time had written more articles for Louder than anyone else (we think he's second now). He’s appeared on TV and when not delving intro all things music, can be found travelling along the UK’s vast canal network.