Queen guitarist Brian May has campaigned against the culling of badgers for bovine TB control purposes for many years. However, his activism is set to ramp up a gear this week, as the BBC will air a documentary this Friday, Brian May: the Badgers, the Farmers, and Me. It’s based on research that May helped conduct on TB in cattle.

It is reported that May is to maintain in the show that badgers are not a significant factor in the spread of TB and that cattle are passing the disease between themselves via their faeces.

Ever before the documentary has aired, it has attracted controversy, with rural organisations questioning the BBC’s impartiality in commissioning the documentary and vets warning against viewing these findings in isolation.