Brian May during a Wounded Badger Patrol in Gloucestershire.
Queen musician Brian May has apologised for any offence caused by a remark he apparently made about the badger cull being like “genocide”.
The guitarist, who is a leading opponent of the cull, said even though he did not recall making the remark during a visit to Gloucestershire last week, he apologised for any offence he may have caused.
The reported comment caused a backlash among members of the Jewish community who condemned May for describing the badger cull “as genocide in the countryside”.
Writing on his website, May said: “Firstly, my sincere apologies, of course, to anyone who felt upset by this.
“It would never be my intention in any way to slight the Jewish community.
“So many of my most loved and respected friends are Jews, and in any case, for people like us who have seen all corners of the world, racial slurs are just out of the question.
“I actually don’t remember using the word ‘genocide’ last Friday, but it’s possible, since I did probably did 20 interviews that day, all off the cuff, and in the end you tend to lose track.
“The word I prefer to use about the badger cull is ‘massacre’ … because really the word ‘cull’ is enormously euphemistic.”
