10 Banned Hard Rock Music Videos

10. Queen - Body Language

The 1980s were a time of cutting edge and expressionism in all of the arts that we know today, perhaps none more so than music. The music video as a format was on the rise and people were experimenting with what they could do to sell their singles and pushing buttons is always an easy way to the top.

That’s not to say that Queen’s 1982 release Body Language is cheap or exploitative - in fact its scenes of sweaty skin in a dimly lit room are ideal for the sexy tone of the band’s funky dance track. Queen were never shy though and Body Language caused the band to get the honour of entering the Guinness Book of World Records for the “first music video banned by MTV”.

By today’s standards it’s really rather tame and the reason given as “nudity” is rather laughable now considering no erogenous bits nor bobs actually appear. But from the off, the whole affair has a torrid and steamy feel to it that occasionally crosses lines into homoerotic territory as the band strut around their sweating models in leather.

Body Language eventually found itself returning to the air later on the likes of VH1 Classic as sexuality in music videos rapidly became the norm and Body Language was no more daring than what had followed it.