By Christopher Sharp

Copyright walesonline

Celebrated veterinary surgeon Noel Fitzpatrick has revealed how legendary musician Sir Brian May helped him navigate challenging periods in his life. Speaking on ‘White Wine Question Time’ with host Kate Thornton, the Channel 4 star, 57, discussed his experience with playing guitar, and how the Queen musician mentored him. He told Kate: “I do a live show, Brian comes to see the show, says, ‘Why don’t you play guitar?’ I said, ‘that’s not possible’. “He says, ‘Everybody has the right to be a child and to live life like a child’. He said, ‘Well why didn’t you tell me what you wanted to be when you were ten?'”. “I said, ‘I’m not a sycophantic kind of person, you know, you’re a human being the same as all of us, I love you, you’re amazing, and you’re one of my heroes, but I’m not that person’.” Regarding how Brian, 78, had provided support both previously and currently, Noel continued: “You see, he saved my life in many ways, because when I was a ten-year-old I was having a tough time, and listening to Queen and Zeppelin saved my life. “Let me tell you that Ozzy Osbourne story, because Sabbath and all of those bands saved my life, and they saved my life then because I was having all kinds of stress running a company, being a surgeon and having the stress of life and death. “So when Brian said play guitar and he came and taught me the chords of One Vision he said, ‘I’m going to check in on you on your tour’.” Noel, known by many as ‘ The Supervet ‘, has previously opened up about the financial challenges his business faces, despite his national fame. He stated: “Anybody looking at our accounts on Companies House will know that I’m making a financial loss. We’re open seven days a week, 24/7, and we are hurting. I’m just trying to survive as a veterinary practice.” Moreover, Noel refuted what he perceives as misconceptions – that due to some of his clients being celebrities , his business must be thriving. He clarified: “People forget that 98 percent of my clientele are not celebrities. One or two percent are. I don’t want people to get the impression that I only treat celebrity dogs, because it’s wrong.”