Queen guitarist Brian May will make his acting debut in an upcoming episode of CBBC show Andy And The Band.

According to May, he was offered the chance to star in the children’s TV show as the Godfather of Rock, but initially turned them down.

However, he changed his mind after reading the script. “It was very moving because it’s a great story, it’s such a lovely look into what happens to kids and how they lose their confidence and what can be done,” May told the PA news agency.

In the episode, May will perform alongside The Odd Socks. “It is a good song, I didn’t write it, I did contribute. I’m a person who can’t help sticking my oar in so we did collaborate on it.”

We’ve had big news, and bigger news BUT here’s the BIGGEST news!

Rock legend @DrBrianMay makes his acting debut with us in our brand new series on @cbbc and @BBCiPlayer.
Brian plays the Godfather of Rock (naturally) in the episode ‘Planet Rock’

????@CBeebiesHQ pic.twitter.com/3PkJFwUdU1

— Andy & the Odd Socks (@andyoddsock) January 20, 2022

May went on to explain how The Odd Socks speak to children who “feel like they’re an outcast – it’s an antibullying campaign built into what they do, which I think is wonderful. It must give so many kids confidence who have lost their belief because they’re regarded as something different, a bit odd, and they get bullied,” he continued.

“These things are very serious, I have grandchildren now and I know, all over again, what happens in schools, and it’s so easy for a kid to be marginalised,” May said of the programme’s anti-bullying theme.

“You don’t realise how much damage that can do to kids. So it’s grown ups that need to be educated, not just the kids.”

“All the grown ups that I’ve shown it to have been very moved, some of them have cried, which is great,” he added.

The episode airs on CBBC on Thursday January 27 and is available on BBC iPlayer from Monday January 24. The single ‘Planet Rock’ by Andy And The Odd Socks featuring Brian May will be released on February 18.

Each episode of Andy And The Band features presenter Andy Day and his band completing odd jobs to help their fans and save the day.

“Andy And The Band is a show about celebrating differences, and taking on the world in your very own way,” Day said. “It features my real life band, Andy And The Odd Socks, and truly is a family show, packed full of musical references for parents to enjoy along with their kids.

“We famously played our very first gig at Glastonbury festival, so of course the next step was to invite Brian May, one of the world’s greatest guitarists, to join us for a special episode of the TV show. Working with Brian has been a musical dream come true, as I am huge Queen fan, but most importantly he completely understood the ethos and message of inclusivity we share in everything we do.”