Queen's Brian May urges fans to get vaccinated after 'horrendous' COVID-19 battle

Queen guitarist Brian May urged fans to get vaccinated against COVID-19 after having a "horrendous" struggle with the disease himself.

In a series of Instagram posts, May has detailed the struggle he has had with COVID-19 despite being triple vaccinated with the Pfizer vaccine, saying he was feeling "horrendous" and it was like having "the worst flu you could imagine."

However, in a video filmed on Saturday and posted on the platform, he said he was beginning to feel better and credited his apparent improvement to the three vaccine doses he had received. "I'm here to tell you, if I may, it's not too scary," he said. "You can get it and, if you're jabbed, you can survive."

"There are so many people in hospitals right now who weren't jabbed who are right on the line between life and death," he said. "I beg you, I implore you, to go get jabbed if you're not already."

"I'm feeling that my immune system, with the enormous help of three Pfizer jabs, is now winning the battle against the invader," he wrote in a post on Sunday. "So do NOT be afraid - there IS life after Covid! But DO be careful ... you do not want this, and neither do your family."

He said in a post late Monday night that he and his wife, Anita Dobson, had contracted the coronavirus after attending a friend's birthday lunch ten days earlier.

"It seemed to be set up very safely. But of course ... you kind of know you're taking a risk," he said. He added that in retrospect, perhaps they had made the wrong decision.

"We could've seen him another time, but that's history now," May added.

The 74-year-old said Saturday that he was "feeling a bit crap and frustrated at not being able to be out and about at this time of year. But I think we're all feeling a bit of that - right ? And it's so clear that the new Omicron variant is completely out of control in the UK."

On Monday, May shared that he had yet to find out which variant of the virus he has caught. He said that he was still testing positive a week after contracting the virus.

Sharing his symptoms, May said he was still suffering from "congestion, snuffles, slightly dizzy head." He added "it's not too late for the thing to kick back at me. But otherwise OK today. I wonder how long it will take me to get a negative result."

In previous posts he said he assumed it was the omicron variant and added that "time will tell" if this variant has "less deadly teeth than its grandaddy" while referring to the previous strains of the virus.

May said he assumed that the mild symptoms associated with the omicron variant might imply that the world is "well on the road to [COVID-19] be coming just another cold or flu germ to be dealt with as we have always done."

May told followers to keep the "caution going" and to continue using "masks, social distance, common sense."

He added that people should "only go to a gathering in an enclosed space if you are really sure the risk is worth it."

As of Monday night, May was still testing positive for COVID-19.