Restored Queen Concert Film ‘Queen Budapest’ Set for Cinemas and IMAX This October
A fully restored 4K film of Queen’s concert at Budapest’s Népstadion on July 27, 1986 is set to open in cinemas and IMAX theaters around the world on October 7, 2026. Titled “Queen Budapest,” the film captures the band’s final filmed live performance with Freddie Mercury, recorded near the close of their Magic Tour.
The Budapest show has long been described as the first Western stadium rock concert held behind the Iron Curtain. It took place roughly a month before Queen’s actual last live performance with Mercury, at Knebworth Park in England on August 9, 1986, making the Budapest footage the group’s final professionally filmed concert with its original frontman.
- World premiere: Budapest Classics Film Marathon, September 15, 2026
- Global theatrical release: October 7, 2026, in more than 2,000 cinemas including IMAX screens
- Ticket sales for the theatrical run began August 26, 2026
- Home entertainment and soundtrack release: October 30, 2026
- Distributed by Trafalgar Releasing internationally and Pannonia Entertainment in Hungary
When and Where Is ‘Queen Budapest’ Being Released?
Following its September 15 premiere at the Budapest Classics Film Marathon, “Queen Budapest” begins its broader theatrical run on October 7 in more than 2,000 venues worldwide, with select locations offering IMAX presentations. Trafalgar Releasing is handling the film’s international rollout, while Pannonia Entertainment will bring it to screens in Hungary.
Queen Budapest Roundhouse Screenings in London
Ahead of the wider release, two one-off screenings are scheduled for London’s Roundhouse on October 3, at 2pm and 7pm. Organized by Playback Live alongside Sony Music Vision, the events will project the restored film onto a large LED screen with surround sound and synchronized lighting designed to evoke a live concert atmosphere. The venue will also feature displays of original Queen memorabilia and offer a VIP package that includes exclusive merchandise.
Guitarist Brian May described the Roundhouse presentation in personal terms, saying: “It’s going to be definitively the most real experience ever of us, Queen, in our glory days.” He added that he expects audiences to become so absorbed that they forget they are watching a film rather than experiencing the concert firsthand.
How Was the 1986 Budapest Concert Footage Restored?
The original concert was captured on 35mm film by Hungarian cinematographers under director János Zsombolyai, using 17 cameras and around 25 miles of film stock. The production went ahead with government approval during Hungary’s Communist era, an unusual arrangement for a Western rock act at that time.
For the new restoration, footage preserved for decades by Hungary’s National Film Institute was digitized through the institute’s NFI FilmLab before undergoing 4K restoration work at Sir Peter Jackson’s Park Road Post Production facility in New Zealand. Queen’s own studio team separately remixed the concert soundtrack using the original multitrack recordings.
“Queen Budapest” marks Sony Music Vision’s first official Queen release and the start of Sony Music’s formal partnership with the band’s catalogue. The project is being issued to coincide with the 40th anniversary of the concert.
Queen Budapest Home Release Details
Home entertainment and audio editions arrive October 30 through Legacy Recordings, Sony Music’s catalogue division, handling international distribution, with Hollywood Records covering the release in the United States and Canada. The package includes Blu-ray, DVD, CD and digital formats, along with a 3LP vinyl edition of the newly remixed soundtrack, marking the first time the concert audio has been issued on vinyl.
Queen Budapest 1986 Setlist
The concert film documents a 25-song set. Among the tracks confirmed by promotional materials are:
- We Will Rock You
- Bohemian Rhapsody
- We Are the Champions
- Under Pressure
- Another One Bites the Dust
- I Want to Break Free
- Crazy Little Thing Called Love
- Radio Ga Ga
- A Kind of Magic
- Hammer to Fall
- Who Wants to Live Forever
- Tavaszi Szél Vizet Áraszt (acoustic, sung in Hungarian)
More Info
- Queens Last Filmed Concert With Freddie Mercury Is Headed to IMAX | Rolling Stone
- Queen to show Budapest concert film as "one-day-only, live-gig-style experience. "It’s going to be definitively the most real experience ever of us,Queen, in our glory days" | Louder / Classic Rock
- From Budapest’s Film Archive to IMAX: Queen’s Final Filmed Performance With Freddie Mercury Returns in 4K | budapestreporter.com
- Final Filmed QUEEN Live Performance To Be Screened At Londons Roundhouse Ahead Of Its Release In Cinemas And IMAX | Blabbermouth
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