The Evening Times @theeveningtimes
Meet the young Scots piper who rocked .@thessehydro stage w .@queenwillrock & .@adamlambert -
bit.ly/1IB2bPUScots VIP piper Craig Weir had a dream come true on Wednesday night when he performed on stage with rock legends Queen.
Craig (21) was selected by Brian May to start their encore rendition of We Will Rock You on the bagpipes as a surprise for the audience on the Scottish leg of their world tour at the SSE Hydro.
Craig said: "The opportunity to stand on stage and play with Brian May, Roger Taylor and Adam Lambert was absolutely incredible, one of the best moments of my life. I got such an adrenaline buzz from it.
"I have to thank Brian May for such an incredible opportunity. He seemed really pleased with me and the first thing he did when he got off-stage was give me a big hug."
Craig was chosen after Brian came up with the idea of have a piper support them on We Will Rock You at the Glasgow gig and heard how Craig and his band Gleadhraich promote the bagpipes to young people by using them on arrangements of classic rock songs as well as their own rock-based tunes.
Craig won a Young Scot award last year for his work and Gleadhraich were Cultural Ambassadors for their home county of Angus last year because of their role in promoting the pipes.
"When I got an email from Brian May asking me to play with them I thought it was a wind-up," admitted Craig. "But it soon became clear it really was him and he really was asking me to play with them at their Scots show. When I was confirmed for the gig I instantly got the shakes. I couldn't believe it. To say I've stood on stage and played with Queen is more than a little ridiculous!"
Craig is no stranger to playing for VIPs as he composed a tune for and played it to the Dalai Lama when he visited Dundee in June 2012. He also played Happy Birthday to Gandhi's grandson Arun over Skype last year and has played for The Queen, Alex Salmond and the VIPs at the 2013 MOBOs in Glasgow.
At just 21, Craig is already an internationally-recognised piper in his own right with performances in Switzerland, Belgium, China, and Germany to date. At the age of eight his uncle Jack handed him a set of pipes and urged him to have a go. Since then he's never looked back.
His reputation has grown so much that last year he was asked to play the pipes at Lorraine Kelly's Scottish BAFTAs special award presentation, Andy Murray's honorary graduation at Stirling University (at the request of Judy Murray) and join Babyshambles on stage.
At home in Carnoustie Craig is Pipe Sergeant of the Arbroath Royal British Legion Pipe Band and is frontman for four-piece Celtic rock band Gleadhraich .Their list of celebrity fans include Scots music legend Dougie Maclean and Gordon Strachan and they've played support for Jai McDowall, ex-AC/DC drummer Chris Slade and Skerryvore with a support show with Donnie Munro next month. The band were Angus Cultural Ambassadors for 2014 and were commissioned by Angus Council to write their tune Skirling Ska as part of the county's legacy from the Commonwealth Games.
, SMILING 
, GIGGLING 
, LAUGHING 
and maybe SINGING 
! I might have to make a CD of this episode so I can go back and watch it again and again. 
