A Tale of Two Brians

Let’s begin with some fascinating facts (well, they’re intriguing to me) about Brian Cox, the British theoretical physicist.

Many of you may have seen Brian on YouTube or on TV, in any of his series about the universe. He’s a natural, much like Carl Sagan. Easy to listen to. Easy to follow. You are drawn in by his knowledge and charisma. He makes science fun.

However, you may not know that Brian is an avid musician (a keyboardist) who played in two rock bands. It’s true. Just picture him with long hair. Well, you don’t have to imagine it, just look for yourself. Can you spot him in this photograph?

Yup, that’s really him. Does it remind you of anyone else? Think of the band Queen. Not ringing a bell yet? Okay, think of the guitarist, Brian May. Still nothing? If you’ve gotten this far without any light bulbs going off, then you may (pun intended) be surprised to learn that Brian May is also a physicist – an astrophysicist to be more precise. Yup, a full-fledged PhD, just like the other Brian. So yes, efficiently using both the right and left hemispheres of their brains, and successfully!

Appearing in their “other” roles, let’s explore their histories…

In Brian Cox’s own words,”… In 1986 I was on my way to study electrical and electronic engineering at The University of Leeds when I got distracted by music and joined a rock band called Dare, fronted by ex-Thin Lizzy keyboard player Darren Wharton.

Dare recorded two albums for A&M records, Out of the Silence and Blood From Stone, and toured as support act for Jimmy Page, Gary Moore and Europe. Towards the end of a support tour with Doro Pesch in the autumn of 1991, we had a disagreement in a bar in Berlin and I left the band to study physics with astrophysics at the University of Manchester.

Whilst waiting for my degree course to begin, I needed a job, and managed to find one as sound engineer and driver for a band called D:ream. In the spring of 1992, the band signed a record deal and secured an appearance on a London regional TV show. Because I had long hair and played keyboards, Peter Cunnah, the lead singer and songwriter, asked me to step in and mime the part. In this way, I accidentally joined D:ream, who subsequently had a number one hit single with “Things Can Only Get Better”. The song had a second life in 1997 as the anthem for the New Labour election campaign which saw Tony Blair enter Downing Street. Being a member of D:ream allowed me to fulfill one of my lifetime ambitions, which was to appear on the legendary UK music show Top of The Pops, a gift for which I will be forever grateful.”

He graduated with a 1st class honors degree in 1995 and a PhD in experimental particle physics in 1998, specializing in work with particle accelerators, and was awarded a Royal Society University Research Fellowship, which he held until 2013. In 2009, he was appointed Professor of Particle Physics at The University of Manchester. In 2016, he became a Fellow of the Royal Society. Thus, he became Professor Brian Cox CBE, FRS, Professor of Particle Physics at the University of Manchester and Royal Society Professor for Public Engagement in Science.

From there, he moved into television, starring in several series, including The Planets, Adventures in Space and Time, Forces of Nature, Wonders of the Universe, and Solar System.

Brian May

Brian May, CBE, PhD, FRAS is a founding member of Queen, a world-renowned guitarist, songwriter, producer and performer, also a Doctor of Astrophysics, 3-D stereoscopic photographic authority and a passionate advocate and campaigner for animal rights.

An accomplished astronomy student, Brian’s PhD studies were stalled when a musical career superseded, leaving his parents stumped by his choice. That band? Internationally famous Queen, with Brian as guitarist, extraordinaire.

He retained his keen passion for astronomy and, after a 30-year hiatus, returned to his first love, astrophysics. He updated his doctoral thesis on the Motions of Interplanetary Dust, earning his PhD from Imperial College London in 2007. See, it’s never too late!

Continuing in July 2015, Brian spent time at NASA Headquarters interpreting new data as it was transmitted from the Pluto New Horizons probe, while compiling the first high-quality stereo image of Pluto. Brian co-authored numerous publications, including two in the astronomy field with the late Sir Patrick Moore. He now heads his own publishing house, The London Stereoscopic Company, which specializes in Victorian 3-D Photography. All books come complete with Brian’s own design OWL stereoscopic viewer.

As a lifelong advocate of animal welfare, Brian established the Save Me campaign to champion all wildlife, predominantly British wildlife. Appointed Commander of the Order of the British Empire in 2005 for ‘services to the Music Industry’ and for his charity work, Brian is a patron to a number of charities and a vice president of the RSPCA.