---
name: "Brian May"
canonical: "https://film.one/person/brian-may"
fi1m_id: "brian-may"
imdb_id: "nm0006189"
tmdb_id: 58438
wikidata_id: "Q612067"
roles: ["Composer"]
born: "28 July 1934"
died: "25 April 1997"
reviewed_on_fi1m: 3
average_fi1m_score: 83
average_over: 3
updated: "2026-09-17T16:06:05.073823+00:00"
licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL."
---

# Brian May

## Identity

Brian May

- **Canonical:** https://film.one/person/brian-may
- **Type:** Person
- **Fi1m ID:** brian-may
- **IMDb ID:** nm0006189
- **TMDB ID:** 58438
- **Wikidata ID:** Q612067
- **Same entity:** https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brian_May_(Australian_composer), https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q612067, https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0006189/, https://www.themoviedb.org/person/58438

Composer. Born 28 July 1934 in Adelaide, South Australia, Australia. Died 25 April 1997.

## Details

- **Work:** Composer
- **Born:** 28 July 1934, Adelaide, South Australia, Australia
- **Died:** 25 April 1997
- **Active:** 1979–1981
- **Frequently works with:** [Mel Gibson](https://film.one/person/mel-gibson.md), [Byron Kennedy](https://film.one/person/byron-kennedy.md), [George Miller](https://film.one/person/george-miller.md)
- **Fi1m score by decade:** 1970s 78 (1), 1980s 85 (2)
- **Fi1m against the critics:** 83 to 79 across 3 titles
- **Score spread:** 2 at 80+, 1 at 60–79, 0 under 60
- **Genres:** Action 2, Science Fiction 2, Thriller 2, Drama 1, History 1, War 1
- **Screen time:** 5 hours of reviewed films
- **Box office:** $142m across 3 films with figures
- **Elsewhere:** https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brian_May_(Australian_composer), https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q612067, https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0006189/, https://www.themoviedb.org/person/58438

## Streaming the US now

- **Tubi:** [*Mad Max*](https://film.one/film/mad-max.md) (78)

For United States; add `?region=XX` for another country.

## Biography

Brian May (1934–1997) was an Australian film composer and conductor. He trained at the Adelaide Elder Conservatorium as a pianist, violinist and conductor. He joined the Australian Broadcasting Corporation in Adelaide in 1957, later moving to Melbourne where he conducted the ABC's Melbourne Show Band and composed themes for television programmes including *Bellbird* and *Rush*.

May composed scores for more than thirty feature films. He is known for his work on *Mad Max* (1979), which won the Australian Film Institute Award for Best Original Music Score, *Mad Max 2* (1981), *Gallipoli* (1981, additional music), *Roadgames* (1981) and *Cloak & Dagger* (1984). He preferred to orchestrate his scores himself and received further AFI nominations and an APRA Golden Award.

*Sources: en.wikipedia.org, imdb.com, adb.anu.edu.au.*

## On Fi1m (3)

- *Gallipoli* (1981), Fi1m 82, Original Music Composer, Music — [page](https://film.one/film/gallipoli.md)
- *Mad Max 2* (1981), Fi1m 88, Music, Orchestrator, Conductor, Original Music Composer — [page](https://film.one/film/mad-max-2.md)
- *Mad Max* (1979), Fi1m 78, Music, Original Music Composer — [page](https://film.one/film/mad-max.md)

## Complete filmography (38)

Every credit, newest first. Titles without a page can be requested for review on the HTML page.

- *Blind Side* (1993), Original Music Composer
- *Dr. Giggles* (1992), Original Music Composer
- *Hurricane Smith* (1992), Original Music Composer
- *Freddy's Dead: The Final Nightmare* (1991), Original Music Composer
- *Bloodmoon* (1990), Original Music Composer
- *Dead Sleep* (1990), Music
- *Tales from the Crypt* (1989), series, Music
- *Steel Dawn* (1987), Original Music Composer
- *Death Before Dishonor* (1987), Original Music Composer
- *The Last Frontier* (1986), series, Original Music Composer
- *Frog Dreaming* (1986), Music
- *Sky Pirates* (1986), Music
- *Missing in Action 2: The Beginning* (1985), Original Music Composer
- *Friday People* (1985), series, Actor
- *Innocent Prey* (1984), Original Music Composer
- *Cloak & Dagger* (1984), Original Music Composer
- *Return to Eden* (1983), series, Original Music Composer
- *A Slice of Life* (1983), Music
- *Kitty and the Bagman* (1983), Music
- *Turkey Shoot* (1982), Original Music Composer
- *Breakfast in Paris* (1982), Music
- *Deadline* (1982), Conductor, Music
- *Mad Max 2* (1981), Original Music Composer, Conductor, Orchestrator — Fi1m 88, [page](https://film.one/film/mad-max-2.md)
- *Race for the Yankee Zephyr* (1981), Original Music Composer, Conductor
- *The Killing of Angel Street* (1981), Music
- *Gallipoli* (1981), Original Music Composer — Fi1m 82, [page](https://film.one/film/gallipoli.md)
- *The Survivor* (1981), Original Music Composer, Conductor
- *Roadgames* (1981), Original Music Composer, Conductor
- *Nightmares* (1980), Original Music Composer
- *The Last Outlaw* (1980), series, Music
- *Harlequin* (1980), Conductor, Original Music Composer
- *That Dangerous Summer* (1980), Music
- *Thirst* (1979), Original Music Composer
- *Snapshot* (1979), Original Music Composer
- *Mad Max* (1979), Original Music Composer — Fi1m 78, [page](https://film.one/film/mad-max.md)
- *Patrick* (1978), Original Music Composer
- *Barnaby and Me* (1977), Original Music Composer
- *No Room to Run* (1977), Music

---
© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Canonical: https://film.one/person/brian-may