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Paul Bruce Dickinson (born 7 August 1958) is an English singer who has been the lead vocalist of the heavy metal band
Iron Maiden Iron Maiden are an English heavy metal band formed in Leyton, East London, in 1975 by bassist and primary songwriter Steve Harris. While fluid in the early years of the band, the lineup for most of the band's history has consisted of Harri ...
from 1981 to 1993 and 1999–present. He is known for his wide-ranging
operatic Opera is a form of theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically a collaboration between a composer and a libret ...
vocal style and energetic stage presence. Dickinson began his career in music fronting small pub bands in the 1970s while attending school in
Sheffield Sheffield is a city status in the United Kingdom, city in South Yorkshire, England, whose name derives from the River Sheaf which runs through it. The city serves as the administrative centre of the City of Sheffield. It is Historic counties o ...
and university in
London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...
. In 1979, he joined British new wave heavy metal band
Samson Samson (; , '' he, Šīmšōn, label= none'', "man of the sun") was the last of the judges of the ancient Israelites mentioned in the Book of Judges (chapters 13 to 16) and one of the last leaders who "judged" Israel before the institution o ...
, with whom he gained some popularity under the stage name "Bruce Bruce" and performed on two studio records. He left Samson in 1981 to join Iron Maiden, replacing
Paul Di'Anno Paul Andrews (born 17 May 1958), better known by his stage name Paul Di'Anno, is a British/Brazilian heavy metal singer who was the lead vocalist for Iron Maiden from 1978 to 1981. In his post-Maiden career, Di'Anno has issued numerous albu ...
, and debuted on their 1982 album '' The Number of the Beast''. During his first tenure in the band, they issued a series of US and UK platinum and gold albums in the 1980s and early 1990s. Dickinson quit Iron Maiden in 1993 (being replaced by
Blaze Bayley Blaze Bayley (born Bayley Alexander Cooke, 29 May 1963) is an English heavy metal singer. He was the lead singer of Wolfsbane from 1984 to 1994 (and currently since 2010, following reunions in 2007 and 2009). He was also the lead singer of Ir ...
) to pursue his solo career, which saw him experiment with a wide variety of heavy metal and rock styles. He re-joined the band in 1999, along with guitarist
Adrian Smith Adrian Frederick "H" Smith (born 27 February 1957) is an English guitarist best known as a member of heavy metal band Iron Maiden, for whom he also writes songs and performs backing vocals both live and in the studio. Smith grew up in London ...
, and has released six subsequent studio albums with the band. Since his return to Iron Maiden, he issued one further solo record in 2005, ''
Tyranny of Souls ''Tyranny of Souls'' is the sixth studio album released by Iron Maiden vocalist Bruce Dickinson on 23 May 2005. The cover art is one of the panels of Earthly Vanity and Divine Salvation, a work by renaissance artist Hans Memling. It is his fir ...
''. His younger cousin,
Rob Dickinson Robert Dickinson (born 23 July 1965) is a British musician, multi-instrumentalist, and singer-songwriter previously of the band Catherine Wheel.Strong, Martin C. (2003) ''The Great Indie Discography'', Canongate, , p. 664-5 Dickinson was raised ...
, is the former lead singer of British
alternative rock Alternative rock, or alt-rock, is a category of rock music that emerged from the independent music underground of the 1970s and became widely popular in the 1990s. "Alternative" refers to the genre's distinction from Popular culture, mainstre ...
band
Catherine Wheel Catherine wheel may refer to: * wheel or breaking wheel, an instrument of torturous execution originally associated with Saint Catherine of Alexandria * Catherine wheel (firework), a firework that rotates when lit Arts and entertainment * Cather ...
, while his son, Austin, fronted the metalcore band
Rise to Remain Rise to Remain was an English, London-based heavy metal band formed in 2006 and disbanded in 2015. The band made appearances at Download Festival, Sonisphere Festival and extensively toured the UK and Europe. The band released three EPs, the ...
. Outside his career in music, Dickinson has pursued a number of other activities. He undertook a career as a commercial pilot for
Astraeus Airlines Astraeus Limited, trading as Astraeus Airlines, was a British airline based at Astraeus House in Crawley, West Sussex, England. Founded in 2002, and named after the Greek God of the dusk, it entered administration on 21 November 2011, ceasin ...
, which led to a number of media-reported ventures such as captaining Iron Maiden's converted charter aeroplane,
Ed Force One Iron Maiden are an English heavy metal band formed in Leyton, East London, in 1975 by bassist and primary songwriter Steve Harris. While fluid in the early years of the band, the lineup for most of the band's history has consisted of Harris ...
, during their world tours. Following Astraeus' closure, he created his own aircraft maintenance and pilot training company, Cardiff Aviation, in 2012. Dickinson presented his own radio show on
BBC Radio 6 Music BBC Radio 6 Music is a British digital radio station owned and operated by the BBC, specialising primarily in alternative music. BBC 6 Music was the first national music radio station to be launched by the BBC in 32 years. It is available onl ...
from 2002 to 2010, and has also hosted television documentaries, authored novels and film scripts, created a beer with
Robinsons Brewery Robinsons Brewery is a family-run, regional brewery, founded in 1849 at the Unicorn Inn, Stockport, England. The company owns around 250 pubs, mostly in North West England. History William Robinson purchased the Unicorn Inn from Samuel Hole ...
and competed at fencing internationally.


Early life

Paul Bruce Dickinson was born on 7 August 1958 in
Worksop, Nottinghamshire Worksop ( ) is a market town in the Bassetlaw District in Nottinghamshire, England. It is located east-south-east of Sheffield, close to Nottinghamshire's borders with South Yorkshire and Derbyshire, on the River Ryton and not far from the no ...
. His mother, Sonia, worked part-time in a shoe shop, and his father, Bruce, was a mechanic in the
British Army The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gurk ...
. His birth hurried the young couple, who were then just teenagers, into marriage. Initially, he was brought up by his grandparents; his grandfather was a coal-face worker at the local
colliery Coal mining is the process of extracting coal from the ground. Coal is valued for its energy content and since the 1880s has been widely used to generate electricity. Steel and cement industries use coal as a fuel for extraction of iron from ...
, and his grandmother was a housewife. This is referred to in his song "Born In '58" from the album ''
Tattooed Millionaire ''Tattooed Millionaire'' is the first solo album by Iron Maiden vocalist Bruce Dickinson, released in 1990. The album project began when Dickinson was asked to record a song for '' A Nightmare on Elm Street 5: The Dream Child'', and so wrote " ...
''. Dickinson started school at Manton Primary in Worksop while his parents moved away to
Sheffield Sheffield is a city status in the United Kingdom, city in South Yorkshire, England, whose name derives from the River Sheaf which runs through it. The city serves as the administrative centre of the City of Sheffield. It is Historic counties o ...
. Soon afterwards, when he was six, he was also despatched to Sheffield, where he attended a primary school in
Manor Top Manor Castle ward—which includes the districts of Claywood, Manor, Manor Park, Park Hill, and Wybournhttp://www.sheffield.gov.uk/your-city-council/elections/ward-boundaries/manor-castle ,—is one of the 28 electoral wards in City of S ...
. After six months, his parents decided to move him to a small private school called Sharrow Vale Junior. Due to constant moving, Dickinson states that this period of his life taught him to be self-reliant as he was unable to make close friends. Dickinson has a younger sister, professional
showjumper Show jumping is a part of a group of English riding equestrian events that also includes dressage, eventing, hunters, and equitation. Jumping classes are commonly seen at horse shows throughout the world, including the Olympics. Sometimes sho ...
Helena Stormanns, who was born in 1963. He tried to isolate himself from her as much as he could when he was young, supposedly out of spite because she, unlike him, was a planned pregnancy and birth. Dickinson's first musical experience was dancing in his grandparents' front room to
Chubby Checker Chubby Checker (born Ernest Evans; October 3, 1941) is an American rock and roll singer and dancer. He is widely known for popularizing many dance styles, including The Twist dance style, with his 1960 hit cover of Hank Ballard & The Midnighte ...
's " The Twist", when he still lived with them in Worksop. The first record Dickinson recalls owning was
The Beatles The Beatles were an English Rock music, rock band, formed in Liverpool in 1960, that comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are regarded as the Cultural impact of the Beatles, most influential band of al ...
single "
She Loves You "She Loves You" is a song written by John Lennon and Paul McCartney and recorded by English rock band the Beatles for release as a single in 1963. The single set and surpassed several sales records in the United Kingdom charts, and set a record i ...
", which he managed to persuade his grandfather to buy him, which made him more interested in music. He tried to play an acoustic guitar belonging to his father, but it blistered his fingers. By the time he moved to Sheffield, Dickinson's parents were earning a good living from buying property, refurbishing it and then selling it for a profit. As a result, much of Dickinson's childhood was spent living on a building site, until his parents bought a boarding house and a bankrupt garage where his father began selling second-hand cars. The income from their business success gave them the opportunity to give Dickinson—then 13 years old—a boarding school education and they chose
Oundle Oundle () is a market town on the left bank of the River Nene in North Northamptonshire, England, which had a population of 5,735 at the time of the 2011 census. It is north of London and south-west of Peterborough. The town is home to Ound ...
, a
public school Public school may refer to: * State school (known as a public school in many countries), a no-fee school, publicly funded and operated by the government * Public school (United Kingdom), certain elite fee-charging independent schools in England an ...
in Northamptonshire. Dickinson was not opposed to moving away from home because he had not built "any real attachment" to his parents, having been raised by his grandparents in Worksop until he was six. At Oundle, Dickinson was picked on and routinely bullied by the older boys of Sidney House, the boarding house that he belonged to, which he described as "like systematic torture" and meant that he became an outsider. His interests at Oundle were often military; he co-founded the school wargames society with Mike Jordan, and he joined the school's cadet force. This gave him access to live ammunition, which he used to create explosions as booby-traps. Oundle was where Dickinson became attracted to progressive rock and early heavy metal after hearing
Deep Purple Deep Purple are an English rock band formed in London in 1968. They are considered to be among the pioneers of heavy metal music, heavy metal and modern hard rock music, but their musical style has changed over the course of its existence. Ori ...
's "
Child in Time "Child in Time" is a song by English rock band Deep Purple, taken from their fourth studio album, ''Deep Purple in Rock'', released in 1970. The track is loosely inspired by the Cold War and runs over ten minutes. History and characteristic ...
" being played in another student's room. As a result, the first album he ever bought was Deep Purple's ''In Rock'', which created his interest in rock and metal music. After ''In Rock'', he went on to buy
Black Sabbath Black Sabbath were an English rock music, rock band formed in Birmingham in 1968 by guitarist Tony Iommi, drummer Bill Ward (musician), Bill Ward, bassist Geezer Butler and vocalist Ozzy Osbourne. They are often cited as pioneers of heavy met ...
's
debut Debut or début (the first public appearance of a person or thing) may refer to: * Debut (society), the formal introduction of young upper-class women to society * Debut novel, an author's first published novel Film and television * ''The Debu ...
, Jethro Tull's '' Aqualung'' and ''
Tarkus ''Tarkus'' is the second studio album by English progressive rock band Emerson, Lake & Palmer, released in June 1971 on Island Records and on Cotillion Records (Atlantic) in August in the U.S. Following their 1970 European tour, the group ret ...
'' by
Emerson, Lake & Palmer Emerson, Lake & Palmer (informally known as ELP) were an English progressive rock supergroup formed in London in 1970. The band consisted of Keith Emerson (keyboards), Greg Lake (vocals, bass, guitar, producer) and Carl Palmer (drums, percus ...
. Every term, a band would play at the school, the first of these which Dickinson saw was called Wild Turkey, featuring former Jethro Tull bassist
Glenn Cornick Glenn Douglas Barnard Cornick (23 April 1947 – 28 August 2014) was an English bass guitarist, best known as the original bassist for the British rock band Jethro Tull from 1967 to 1970. ''Rolling Stone'' has called his playing with Tull as " ...
. After that, he saw
Van der Graaf Generator Van der Graaf Generator are an English progressive rock band, formed in 1967 in Manchester by singer-songwriters Peter Hammill and Judge Smith, Chris Judge Smith and the first act signed by Charisma Records. They did not experience much commerc ...
and
Arthur Brown Arthur Brown may refer to: Entertainment * Arthur William Brown (1881–1966), Canadian commercial artist * H. Arthur Brown (1906–1992), American orchestral conductor * Arthur Brown (musician) (born 1942), English rock singer * Arthur Brown, ak ...
. Dickinson initially wanted to play the drums, later obtaining a pair of bongo drums from the music room for practice. He remembers playing "
Let It Be Let It Be most commonly refers to: * ''Let It Be'' (Beatles album), the Beatles' final studio album, released in 1970 * "Let It Be" (Beatles song), the title song from the album It may also refer to: Film and television * ''Let It Be'' (1970 ...
" with his friend Mike Jordan, during which Dickinson discovered his singing voice while encouraging Jordan to sing the high-notes. Shortly afterwards Dickinson was expelled from Oundle for participating in a prank in which he allegedly urinated in the headmaster's dinner. Returning home to Sheffield in 1976, Dickinson enrolled at King Edward VII School, at which he joined his first band. He had overheard two other pupils talking about their band and that they needed a singer and so volunteered immediately. They rehearsed in the garage of the drummer's father, and the band were impressed by Dickinson's singing, encouraging him to buy his first microphone. Their first gig took place at the Broadfield Tavern in Sheffield. Originally called "Paradox", the band changed their name on Dickinson's suggestion to "Styx", unaware of the American act with the same name. They made local newspaper headlines when a steel worker was awoken by their performance and tried to smash the band's drum kit. Soon afterwards the band split up. After leaving school with
A-levels The A-Level (Advanced Level) is a subject-based qualification conferred as part of the General Certificate of Education, as well as a school leaving qualification offered by the educational bodies in the United Kingdom and the educational au ...
in English, History, and Economics, Dickinson confessed, "I didn't really know what I wanted to do." The first thing he did was join the Territorial Army for six months. Although he enjoyed his time in the TA, Dickinson realised that it was not a career choice, and so he applied for a place to read history at
Queen Mary College , mottoeng = With united powers , established = 1785 – The London Hospital Medical College1843 – St Bartholomew's Hospital Medical College1882 – Westfield College1887 – East London College/Queen Mary College , type = Public researc ...
, London. His parents wanted him in the army, but he told them that he wanted to get a degree first, which acted as his "cover story", and immediately began playing in bands. At university, Dickinson got involved in the Entertainments Committee: "one day you'd be a roadie for
The Jam The Jam were an English mod revival/ punk rock band formed in 1972 at Sheerwater Secondary School in Woking, Surrey. They released 18 consecutive Top 40 singles in the United Kingdom, from their debut in 1977 to their break-up in December 1 ...
, the next you'd be putting up the
Stonehenge Stonehenge is a prehistoric monument on Salisbury Plain in Wiltshire, England, west of Amesbury. It consists of an outer ring of vertical sarsen standing stones, each around high, wide, and weighing around 25 tons, topped by connectin ...
backdrop for
Hawkwind Hawkwind are an English rock band known as one of the earliest space rock groups. Since their formation in November 1969, Hawkwind have gone through many incarnations and have incorporated many different styles into their music, including hard ...
or whatever." In 1977, Dickinson met Paul "Noddy" White, a multi-instrumentalist who owned a PA and other equipment, with whom Dickinson, along with drummer Steve Jones, would form a band together called Speed. According to Dickinson, the band was called Speed because of the way in which they played, rather than a reference to drug-taking. In Speed, Dickinson began writing his own material after White taught him how to play three chords on the guitar. Although Speed would play several gigs at the Green Man pub in
Plumstead Plumstead is an area in southeast London, within the Royal Borough of Greenwich, England. It is located east of Woolwich. History Until 1965, Plumstead was in the historic counties of England, historic county of Kent and the detail of mu ...
, the band did not last long, but it encouraged Dickinson to continue to work towards being a musician. Dickinson spotted an advertisement in ''
Melody Maker ''Melody Maker'' was a British weekly music magazine, one of the world's earliest music weeklies; according to its publisher, IPC Media, the earliest. It was founded in 1926, largely as a magazine for dance band musicians, by Leicester-born ...
'' with the caption "Singer wanted for recording project" and replied immediately. He recorded a demo tape and sent it with a note which read: "By the way, if you think the singing's crap, there's some
John Cleese John Marwood Cleese ( ; born 27 October 1939) is an English actor, comedian, screenwriter, and producer. Emerging from the Cambridge Footlights in the 1960s, he first achieved success at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe and as a scriptwriter and ...
stuff recorded on the other side you might find amusing." They liked what they heard and invited Dickinson down to the studio to make "Dracula", the first song he would ever record, with a band called "Shots", formed by two brothers, Phil and Doug Siviter. The song would later appear on the second disc of ''
The Best of Bruce Dickinson __NOTOC__ ''The Best of Bruce Dickinson'' is a compilation album released in 2001 by Bruce Dickinson. Two versions were released; a single disc version and a bonus disc version. On the front cover, the album title is imposed upon the seal of ...
'' compilation. The brothers were impressed with Dickinson's vocal abilities and asked him to join their group. Dickinson played pubs with Shots on a regular basis to small audiences. One particular night, Dickinson suddenly stopped in the middle of a song and started interviewing a man in the audience, heckling for not paying enough attention. He got such a good response he started doing it every night until it became a regular routine used to catch the audience's attention. Dickinson states that this experience taught him how to be a frontman. The next step in Dickinson's career was taken in a pub called the Prince of Wales in Gravesend, Kent, where Shots were playing regularly, when Barry Graham ("Thunderstick") and Paul Samson paid a visit. Impressed with his stage-act, they talked with Dickinson afterwards and invited him to be their new singer. Dickinson agreed to join their band,
Samson Samson (; , '' he, Šīmšōn, label= none'', "man of the sun") was the last of the judges of the ancient Israelites mentioned in the Book of Judges (chapters 13 to 16) and one of the last leaders who "judged" Israel before the institution o ...
, but only once he'd finished taking his History finals two weeks later. Until that point, he had been neglecting his University education. As a result, the university had tried to kick him out for failing his Second Year exams and not paying his accommodation fees, but he was saved because of his role as Entertainments Officer. After writing 6 months' worth of essays in the space of two weeks and some last minute cramming for his exams, Dickinson achieved a 2:2.


Samson: 1979–1981

After meeting Paul Samson and Barry Purkis at the Prince of Wales, and while still undertaking his final university exams, Dickinson joined Samson onstage at
Bishop's Stortford Bishop's Stortford is a historic market town in Hertfordshire, England, just west of the M11 motorway on the county boundary with Essex, north-east of central London, and by rail from Liverpool Street station. Stortford had an estimated po ...
to perform one of their songs, "Rock Me Baby", cementing his role as their new lead vocalist. The band had already released their debut album, '' Survivors'', in 1979 on an independent label, two months before Dickinson joined. Immediately following the completion of his University work, he met up with the band at Greenwich's Wood Wharf studios to learn the ''Survivors'' album. Although the tracks did not suit his vocal style, the band soon wrote the majority of the following '' Head On'' album in their earliest rehearsal sessions, some of which were immediately incorporated into their live set. It was during these early rehearsals that the nickname "Bruce Bruce" came about, derived from
Monty Python Monty Python (also collectively known as the Pythons) were a British comedy troupe who created the sketch comedy television show '' Monty Python's Flying Circus'', which first aired on the BBC in 1969. Forty-five episodes were made over four ...
's "
Bruces sketch The Bruces sketch is a comedy sketch that originally appeared in a 1970 episode of the television show '' Monty Python's Flying Circus'', episode 22, "How to Recognise Different Parts of the Body", and was subsequently performed on audio recordin ...
". The name became very tiresome as the band's management continually wrote dud cheques, made payable to "Bruce Bruce", as a joke. Dickinson later commented that he did not like it but considered it "a sort of stage name" and accepted it. Dickinson was dismayed to learn that not all rock performers were "great artists"; he felt that some, such as Samson, were only interested in women, drugs and alcohol, which he was unable to relate to. Although he had smoked
joints A joint or articulation (or articular surface) is the connection made between bones, ossicles, or other hard structures in the body which link an animal's skeletal system into a functional whole.Saladin, Ken. Anatomy & Physiology. 7th ed. McGraw- ...
before, Dickinson discovered that it was impossible to communicate with other band members if he was sober, deciding that it was "the price that had to be paid". While fronting the band, Dickinson also came across
Iron Maiden Iron Maiden are an English heavy metal band formed in Leyton, East London, in 1975 by bassist and primary songwriter Steve Harris. While fluid in the early years of the band, the lineup for most of the band's history has consisted of Harri ...
for the first time, who were supporting Samson at the Music Machine in 1980. As Dickinson recalls; "I was watching them, and they were good, really fucking good, and at that moment, I remember thinking, 'I wanna fucking sing for that band. In fact, I'm ''going'' to sing for that band! I ''know'' I'm going to sing for that band!' ... I just thought, 'This is really me. Not Samson.'" Dickinson remained in the band for another year, recording two studio albums with them—''Head On'' and ''
Shock Tactics Shock tactics, shock tactic or shock attack is the name of an offensive maneuver which attempts to place the enemy under psychological pressure by a rapid and fully-committed advance with the aim of causing their combatants to retreat. The accep ...
''. However, Samson soon ran into difficulties with their record label, Gem, who went out of business and failed to finance their European tour in support of Iron Maiden. The band were turned over to RCA, which began neglecting the group, and so they promptly fired their management team and the resulting injunction meant that their equipment was reclaimed and they could not be paid for their concert performances. The band's last gig was at
Reading Festival The Reading and Leeds Festivals are a pair of annual music festivals that take place in Reading and Leeds in England. The events take place simultaneously on the Friday, Saturday and Sunday of the August bank holiday weekend. The Reading Festiv ...
, after which Dickinson was approached by Iron Maiden's manager,
Rod Smallwood Roderick Charles Smallwood (born 17 February 1950) is an English music manager, best known as the co-manager of the British heavy metal band Iron Maiden. With his business partner, Andy Taylor, whom he met while studying at Trinity College, C ...
, who asked him to audition to be their new lead vocalist.


Iron Maiden


Beginnings and success: 1981–1985

Dickinson went to audition for
Iron Maiden Iron Maiden are an English heavy metal band formed in Leyton, East London, in 1975 by bassist and primary songwriter Steve Harris. While fluid in the early years of the band, the lineup for most of the band's history has consisted of Harri ...
at a rehearsal room in Hackney in September 1981 and immediately discovered that this was a much more professional operation than he was used to with Samson. In the practice rooms, the band played through "Prowler", "
Sanctuary A sanctuary, in its original meaning, is a sacred place, such as a shrine. By the use of such places as a haven, by extension the term has come to be used for any place of safety. This secondary use can be categorized into human sanctuary, a sa ...
", "
Running Free Running is a method of terrestrial locomotion allowing humans and other animals to move rapidly on foot. Running is a type of gait characterized by an aerial phase in which all feet are above the ground (though there are exceptions). This is ...
" and "Remember Tomorrow", before asking Dickinson to sing the same songs again in a recording studio, and he was immediately inducted into the group. Iron Maiden had a strict and organised routine that suited the band's writing style, which Dickinson described as a "time table". After a few gigs, they began writing new material for their third album, '' The Number of the Beast'', released in 1982. In the wake of Samson's contractual problems, Dickinson could not legally be credited on any of the record's songs, having to make, what he called, a "moral contribution", later revealing that he had contributed to "The Prisoner", "Children of the Damned" and "
Run to the Hills "Run to the Hills" is a song by the English heavy metal band Iron Maiden. It was released as their sixth single and the first from the band's third studio album, '' The Number of the Beast'' (1982). It is their first single with Bruce Dickinson ...
". In the documentary '' 12 Wasted Years'', manager Rod Smallwood refers to "The Prisoner" as being co-written by Dickinson and Adrian Smith. The album was a major success, topping the British charts, and earning platinum status in the UK and the US. Following the release, the band embarked on a supporting tour around the globe. On the following albums, 1983's ''
Piece of Mind ''Piece of Mind'' is the fourth studio album by English heavy metal band Iron Maiden. It was released on 16 May 1983 in the United Kingdom by EMI Records and in the United States by Capitol Records. It was the first album to feature drummer Ni ...
'' and 1984's ''
Powerslave ''Powerslave'' is the fifth studio album by the English heavy metal band Iron Maiden, released on 3 September 1984 through EMI Records in Europe and its sister label Capitol Records in North America. It was re-released by Sanctuary and Colum ...
'', Steve Harris's song-writing monopoly was pushed aside in favour of other members' ideas, with Dickinson contributing to a number of tracks, including the singles "
Flight of Icarus "Flight of Icarus" is a song by the English heavy metal band Iron Maiden. It was their eighth single, the first from their fourth studio album, ''Piece of Mind'' (1983), and their first in the United States, where it was one of their few with sub ...
" and " 2 Minutes to Midnight". Throughout the
World Slavery Tour The World Slavery Tour was a concert tour by the heavy metal band Iron Maiden in support of their fifth album, ''Powerslave'', beginning in Warsaw, Poland on 9 August 1984 and ending in Irvine, California on 5 July 1985. Background The tour w ...
, as part of the new theatrical elements incorporated into the band's stage-show, Dickinson wore a feathered mask during "Powerslave". This was the band's longest tour to date, during which Dickinson considered going home mid-tour, due to the high number of shows. Iron Maiden's management were continually adding dates, until Dickinson demanded that they stop or he would leave the group.


Growing tensions and departure: 1986–1993

After a six-month break, which Dickinson mostly spent practising fencing, Iron Maiden began writing their next album, '' Somewhere in Time''. Dickinson was disappointed with the effort as he felt that the band needed a more dramatic stylistic departure from past records to remain relevant, despite its introduction of synthesised bass and guitars. He has no writing credits on the release, as his material, based on his own suggestion that the album should be more acoustic-focused, was rejected by the rest of the band. Steve Harris, on the other hand, stated that his material was rejected because it was not good enough, and that Dickinson "was probably more burnt out than anyone at the end of the last tour". After a subsequent tour, Iron Maiden started working on their next studio effort, ''
Seventh Son of a Seventh Son ''Seventh Son of a Seventh Son'' is the seventh studio album by English heavy metal band Iron Maiden. It was released on 11 April 1988 in the United Kingdom by EMI Records and in the United States by Capitol Records. Like '' The Number of the ...
'', which featured more
progressive rock Progressive rock (shortened as prog rock or simply prog; sometimes conflated with art rock) is a broad genre of rock music that developed in the United Kingdom and United States through the mid- to late 1960s, peaking in the early 1970s. Init ...
elements than the band's previous records. Although it became their second release to top the British charts, it was also Dickinson's first album with the band that did not achieve platinum status in the US. Unlike ''Somewhere in Time'', Dickinson was much more enthusiastic about this album due to its concept and has several song-writing credits. After the following tour in 1988, the band decided to take a year off. During the next album's writing stage,
Adrian Smith Adrian Frederick "H" Smith (born 27 February 1957) is an English guitarist best known as a member of heavy metal band Iron Maiden, for whom he also writes songs and performs backing vocals both live and in the studio. Smith grew up in London ...
left Iron Maiden, and was replaced by
Janick Gers Janick Robert Gers (; born 27 January 1957) is an English musician who is best known as one of the three guitarists in heavy metal band Iron Maiden. He initially joined to replace Adrian Smith, but remained in the band after Smith rejoined. G ...
. Iron Maiden's eighth studio release, 1990's ''
No Prayer for the Dying ''No Prayer for the Dying'' is the eighth studio album by English heavy metal band Iron Maiden. It is their first album to feature Janick Gers on guitar, who replaced Adrian Smith. Smith left the band during the pre-production phase, unhappy ...
'', had a raw sound that, according to a retrospective assessment by
AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...
, did not "hold up well" compared to past efforts, as it was recorded in a barn which Steve Harris owned, with a mobile studio owned by the
Rolling Stones The Rolling Stones are an English Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1962. Active for six decades, they are one of the most popular and enduring bands of the album era, rock era. In the early 1960s, the Rolling Stones pioneered the g ...
. The record featured Dickinson's " Bring Your Daughter... to the Slaughter", originally composed for a film soundtrack, which despite receiving a
Golden Raspberry Award The Golden Raspberry Awards (also known as the Razzies and Razzie Awards) is a parody award show honoring the worst of cinematic under-achievements. Co-founded by UCLA film graduates and film industry veterans John J. B. Wilson and Mo Murphy, ...
for worst original song in 1989, became the band's first and only single to top the
UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...
. By 1992, Harris had converted his barn into a proper studio, and the new album, ''
Fear of the Dark Fear of the dark is a common fear or phobia among children and, to a varying degree, adults. A fear of the dark does not always concern darkness itself; it can also be a fear of possible or imagined dangers concealed by darkness. Some degree ...
'', was recorded there, resulting in a better overall sound than ''No Prayer for the Dying'', although Dickinson still claims it had limitations due to its size. After the
Fear of the Dark Tour The Fear of the Dark Tour was a concert tour by the heavy metal band Iron Maiden from 3 June 1992 to 4 November 1992. The tour saw the band make a return headline appearance at the Monsters of Rock festival at Donington Park, which they head ...
, Dickinson decided to leave Iron Maiden to concentrate on his solo career. At that point the band had already booked a following tour in 1993, which Dickinson did not enjoy. Throughout the tour, Dickinson drew a lot of criticism from his bandmates, with Steve Harris in particular saying, "I really wanted to kill him." According to Harris, Dickinson would only perform when the press was there, whereas at other concerts he would only mumble his way through songs. Dickinson has since denied the accusations that he was deliberately under-performing, arguing that it was impossible to give a decent performance some nights because of the atmosphere. His last performance with the band on 28 August 1993 was filmed by the
BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
...
at
Pinewood Studios Pinewood Studios is a British film and television studio located in the village of Iver Heath, England. It is approximately west of central London. The studio has been the base for many productions over the years from large-scale films to te ...
and released as a live video the following year, entitled '' Raising Hell''.


Return: 1999–present

Along with Adrian Smith, Dickinson rejoined Iron Maiden in 1999 with Janick Gers remaining in the band, after he was approached by manager Rod Smallwood. Smallwood also spoke to Steve Harris about Dickinson's return, who initially had reservations about the prospect, but soon came round to the idea, deliberating that they knew of his abilities and that it was a case of "better the devil you know". Harris and Dickinson agreed to meet at Smallwood's home in Brighton in January 1999 for the first conversation they would have with each other since 1993. Although both men were nervous about the encounter, upon seeing each other the tension immediately dissipated and both agreed that Dickinson should return to the group. After embarking on a small tour, the band set about recording ''
Brave New World ''Brave New World'' is a dystopian novel by English author Aldous Huxley, written in 1931 and published in 1932. Largely set in a futuristic World State, whose citizens are environmentally engineered into an intelligence-based social hiera ...
'', their first studio album with Dickinson since 1992. Dickinson insisted that they find a replacement for the now retired
Martin Birch Martin Birch (27 December 19489 August 2020) was a British music producer and sound engineer. He became renowned for engineering and producing albums recorded predominantly by British rock bands, including Deep Purple, Rainbow, Fleetwood Mac, W ...
, the band's regular producer, and record in a different studio than the one in which they made ''No Prayer for the Dying'' and ''Fear of the Dark'', to which Harris agreed. The album was recorded at Guillaume Tell Studios, Paris with producer
Kevin Shirley Kevin Shirley (born 29 June 1960), also known as The Caveman, is a South African music producer, engineer and mixer for many artists,Spencer et al, (2007Shirley, Kevinentry. Retrieved 4 February 2010. such as the bands Journey, Iron Maiden, ...
, after which Iron Maiden undertook a supporting tour culminating with a performance at the
Rock in Rio ''Rock in Rio'' is a recurring music festival originating in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. It later branched into other locations such as Lisbon, Madrid and Las Vegas. Nine incarnations of the festival have been held in Rio de Janeiro, in 1985, 1991, ...
festival before a crowd of 250,000. In 2003, they recorded and released '' Dance of Death'' at London's
SARM Studios Sarm Studios is an independent recording studio in London. Originally founded in east London in 1973, the studio's original location was renamed Sarm East Studios in 1982 when Jill Sinclair and Trevor Horn purchased Basing Street Studios from Isla ...
with Kevin Shirley, now the band's new regular producer. After two further stints on the road (
Dance of Death World Tour The Dance of Death World Tour was a concert tour by heavy metal band Iron Maiden in support of their thirteenth studio album, ''Dance of Death''. The group's eighth live record, '' Death on the Road'', was recorded in Dortmund. The tour was s ...
and
Eddie Rips Up the World Tour Eddie Rips Up the World Tour was a concert tour by Iron Maiden in 2005 based on bringing back rarities from the first four Iron Maiden albums for the younger audience (''Iron Maiden'', '' Killers'', '' The Number of the Beast'' and ''Piece of M ...
) Iron Maiden returned to SARM in 2006 to record their next studio album, '' A Matter of Life and Death'', and embarked on a supporting tour. In 2008 and 2009, the band set out on the
Somewhere Back in Time World Tour Somewhere Back in Time World Tour was a concert tour by the heavy metal band Iron Maiden in 2008 and 2009, focused on the band's 1980s material, in particular songs from ''Powerslave'', '' Somewhere in Time'' and ''Seventh Son of a Seventh Son ...
, which has since been described as "groundbreaking" for its use of ''
Ed Force One Iron Maiden are an English heavy metal band formed in Leyton, East London, in 1975 by bassist and primary songwriter Steve Harris. While fluid in the early years of the band, the lineup for most of the band's history has consisted of Harris ...
'', the band's customised
Boeing 757 The Boeing 757 is an American narrow-body airliner designed and built by Boeing Commercial Airplanes. The then-named 7N7, a twinjet successor for the 727 (a trijet), received its first orders in August 1978. The prototype completed its mai ...
, flown by Dickinson himself, and led to the documentary film '' Iron Maiden: Flight 666'', which had a limited cinema release in April 2009. Iron Maiden held another world tour in 2010 and 2011 in support of ''
The Final Frontier ''The Final Frontier'' is the fifteenth studio album by English heavy metal band Iron Maiden. It was released on 13 August 2010 in Germany, Austria and Finland, 17 August in North America, 18 August in Japan, and 16 August worldwide. At 76&nbs ...
'', their first album recorded at
Compass Point Studios Compass Point Studios was a music recording studio in the Bahamas, founded in 1977 by Chris Blackwell, the owner of Island Records. The concept of the studio was of a recording facility supported by in-house sets of artists, musicians, producer ...
,
Nassau Nassau may refer to: Places Bahamas *Nassau, Bahamas, capital city of the Bahamas, on the island of New Providence Canada *Nassau District, renamed Home District, regional division in Upper Canada from 1788 to 1792 *Nassau Street (Winnipeg), ...
, Bahamas since 1986's ''Somewhere in Time'', and which peaked at No. 1 in 28 countries. In September 2014, Iron Maiden began recording their sixteenth studio album, ''
The Book of Souls ''The Book of Souls'' is the sixteenth studio album by English heavy metal band Iron Maiden, released in 4 September 2015. It is the band's first studio double album, and also their longest to date, with a total length of 92 minutes and 11 s ...
'', at Guillaume Tell Studios, Paris. The release features two songs written solely by Dickinson for the first time since ''Powerslave'', "If Eternity Should Fail" and "Empire of the Clouds", the former originally penned for a possible solo record. "Empire of the Clouds" is the band's longest ever song, at over 18 minutes in length, and features Dickinson on piano for the first time, which is how the song was written. The band toured the album in 2016, during which Dickinson once again piloted the band's private plane, Ed Force One (now a Boeing 747-400 jumbo jet).


Ozzfest incident

In 2005, Iron Maiden co-headlined the US festival tour,
Ozzfest Ozzfest is an annual music festival tour of the United States and sometimes Europe and later Japan, featuring performances by many heavy metal and hard rock musical groups. It was founded by Sharon Osbourne and her husband Ozzy Osbourne, both ...
, with
Black Sabbath Black Sabbath were an English rock music, rock band formed in Birmingham in 1968 by guitarist Tony Iommi, drummer Bill Ward (musician), Bill Ward, bassist Geezer Butler and vocalist Ozzy Osbourne. They are often cited as pioneers of heavy met ...
. Lead singer
Ozzy Osbourne John Michael "Ozzy" Osbourne (born 3 December 1948) is an English singer, songwriter, and television personality. He rose to prominence during the 1970s as the lead vocalist of the heavy metal band Black Sabbath, during which period he adop ...
's wife,
Sharon Sharon ( he, שָׁרוֹן ''Šārôn'' "plain") is a given name as well as an Israeli surname. In English-speaking areas, Sharon is now predominantly a feminine given name. However, historically it was also used as a masculine given name. In I ...
, encouraged family friends and members of other bands to sabotage Iron Maiden's last performance at
Hyundai Pavilion The Glen Helen Amphitheater (originally Blockbuster Pavilion and formerly Hyundai Pavilion and San Manuel Amphitheater) is a 65,000-capacity amphitheater located in the hills of Glen Helen Regional Park in San Bernardino, California. It is the l ...
in
San Bernardino, California San Bernardino (; Spanish for "Saint Bernardino") is a city and county seat of San Bernardino County, California, United States. Located in the Inland Empire region of Southern California, the city had a population of 222,101 in the 2020 cen ...
, on 20 August, in an attack which Rod Smallwood criticised as "vile, dangerous, criminal and cowardly", as well as disrespectful to fans who had paid to see the band perform "a full unhindered performance". Osbourne ordered interference with the band's PA, delayed the entrance of
Eddie Eddie or Eddy may refer to: Science and technology *Eddy (fluid dynamics), the swirling of a fluid and the reverse current created when the fluid flows past an obstacle * Eddie (text editor), a text editor originally for BeOS and now ported to Lin ...
, the band's mascot, and encouraged members of the Osbourne camp to throw eggs, lighters and bottle tops from the front of the audience. According to Dickinson, the attack was in response to his "disparaging remarks about
reality TV Reality television is a genre of television programming that documents purportedly unscripted real-life situations, often starring unfamiliar people rather than professional actors. Reality television emerged as a distinct genre in the early 19 ...
shows that she took personally", although ''
The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...
'' reported that he slated the Osbournes' reality series and accused Ozzy Osbourne of using a teleprompter. Dickinson has since denied making comments against Ozzy Osbourne and Black Sabbath, but admitted that he criticised Ozzfest throughout the tour, attacking their "corporate" seating layout and saying, "Most of the bands are there because they paid to be there." Following the concert at San Bernardino, Osbourne released a further statement which accused Dickinson of making several anti-American comments, for which ''Classic Rock'' stated that "nobody can present any cast-iron evidence". In addition, Osbourne claimed that the flag-waving during "
The Trooper "The Trooper" is a song by the English heavy metal band Iron Maiden. It was released as the second single on 20 June 1983 from the band's fourth studio album, ''Piece of Mind'' (1983). It was one of only a few songs to get much radio airplay i ...
" was disrespectful to American troops, at the time fighting alongside the British in
Iraq Iraq,; ku, عێراق, translit=Êraq officially the Republic of Iraq, '; ku, کۆماری عێراق, translit=Komarî Êraq is a country in Western Asia. It is bordered by Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq ...
, even though Dickinson had always held a
Union Flag The Union Jack, or Union Flag, is the ''de facto'' national flag of the United Kingdom. Although no law has been passed making the Union Flag the official national flag of the United Kingdom, it has effectively become such through precedent. ...
during the song, being based on the Battle of Balaclava during the
Crimean War The Crimean War, , was fought from October 1853 to February 1856 between Russia and an ultimately victorious alliance of the Ottoman Empire, France, the United Kingdom and Piedmont-Sardinia. Geopolitical causes of the war included the de ...
. It was also reported that Steve Harris had spoken to Ozzy Osbourne in San Bernardino, apologising for Dickinson's comments, which Harris denies, stating that his words had been "twisted".


Solo career

In early 1989, Zomba asked Dickinson to produce a track for the movie '' A Nightmare on Elm Street 5: The Dream Child'', providing a budget, a studio, and a producer,
Chris Tsangarides Christopher Andrew Tsangarides (17 August 1956 – 6 January 2018) was a British Grammy-nominated record producer, sound engineer, and mixer of Greek Cypriot origin. He was best known for his work with many heavy metal artists, including G ...
. Dickinson took up the opportunity and called an old friend of his, former Gillan guitarist,
Janick Gers Janick Robert Gers (; born 27 January 1957) is an English musician who is best known as one of the three guitarists in heavy metal band Iron Maiden. He initially joined to replace Adrian Smith, but remained in the band after Smith rejoined. G ...
, and, shortly after meeting up, they had " Bring Your Daughter to the Slaughter" ready for the studio, then recorded with the assistance of bassist Andy Carr, and drummer Fabio del Rio. "I wrote it in about three minutes", states Dickinson, "I don't know where the title 'Bring Your Daughter to the Slaughter' came from, but it just popped into my head. I thought, 'Bloody hell, straight out of
AC/DC AC/DC (stylised as ACϟDC) are an Australian Rock music, rock band formed in Sydney in 1973 by Scottish-born brothers Malcolm Young, Malcolm and Angus Young. Their music has been variously described as hard rock, blues rock, and Heavy metal ...
!' And I thought, Nightmare on Elm Street''. Yeah, that'll do.' Impressed with the results, Zomba asked Dickinson if he was willing to record a whole album as well. With the same line-up and producer, Dickinson's solo debut, ''
Tattooed Millionaire ''Tattooed Millionaire'' is the first solo album by Iron Maiden vocalist Bruce Dickinson, released in 1990. The album project began when Dickinson was asked to record a song for '' A Nightmare on Elm Street 5: The Dream Child'', and so wrote " ...
'', was written and recorded within two weeks, and released in May 1990, followed by a supporting tour. Later that year, Dickinson participated on a re-recording of
Deep Purple Deep Purple are an English rock band formed in London in 1968. They are considered to be among the pioneers of heavy metal music, heavy metal and modern hard rock music, but their musical style has changed over the course of its existence. Ori ...
's "
Smoke on the Water "Smoke on the Water" is a song by English rock band Deep Purple, first released from the band's sixth studio album ''Machine Head'' (1972), which chronicles the 1971 fire at Montreux Casino. In a 2004 publication by ''Rolling Stone'' magaz ...
", as part of the humanitarian effort ''
Rock Aid Armenia Rock Aid Armenia, also known in earlier stages as Live Aid Armenia, was a humanitarian effort by the British music industry to raise money to help those affected by the 1988 Armenian earthquake. Initiated by the international charity campaigner ...
''. Backed by the band
Skin Skin is the layer of usually soft, flexible outer tissue covering the body of a vertebrate animal, with three main functions: protection, regulation, and sensation. Other cuticle, animal coverings, such as the arthropod exoskeleton, have diffe ...
, he produced a cover version of
Alice Cooper Alice Cooper (born Vincent Damon Furnier, February 4, 1948) is an American rock singer whose career spans over five decades. With a raspy voice and a stage show that features numerous props and stage illusions, including pyrotechnics, guillot ...
's "
Elected Elected may refer to: * "Elected" (song), by Alice Cooper, 1973 * ''Elected'' (EP), by Ayreon, 2008 *The Elected, an American indie rock band See also *Election An election is a formal group decision-making process by which a population ...
", along with
Rowan Atkinson Rowan Sebastian Atkinson (born 6 January 1955) is an English actor, comedian and writer. He played the title roles on the sitcoms '' Blackadder'' (1983–1989) and ''Mr. Bean'' (1990–1995), and the film series ''Johnny English'' (2003–201 ...
(in character as
Mr. Bean ''Mr. Bean'' is a British sitcom created by Rowan Atkinson and Richard Curtis, produced by Tiger Aspect and starring Atkinson as the title character. The sitcom consists of 15 episodes that were co-written by Atkinson alongside Curtis and R ...
), which was used in 1992 for
Comic Relief Comic relief is the inclusion of a humorous character, scene, or witty dialogue in an otherwise serious work, often to relieve tension. Definition Comic relief usually means a releasing of emotional or other tension resulting from a comic episo ...
, and five years later, on '' Bean Soundtrack''. For his second solo effort, Dickinson received the collaboration of American producer,
Keith Olsen Keith Alan Olsen (May 12, 1945 – March 9, 2020) was an American record producer and sound engineer, who worked with Magnum, Rick Springfield, Fleetwood Mac, Ozzy Osbourne, the Grateful Dead, Whitesnake, Pat Benatar, Heart, Santana, Saga, ...
, and, while working on the record in LA, decided to leave
Iron Maiden Iron Maiden are an English heavy metal band formed in Leyton, East London, in 1975 by bassist and primary songwriter Steve Harris. While fluid in the early years of the band, the lineup for most of the band's history has consisted of Harri ...
. Unhappy with the direction he was taking with Olsen, Dickinson began working with
Tribe of Gypsies Tribe of Gypsies are a San Fernando Valley, California-based Latin rock group, best known for band leader/guitarist Roy Z who has produced, written for, and played with such well-known artists as Judas Priest, Rob Halford, Sepultura and Bruc ...
guitarist
Roy Z Roy Z (born February 1968) is an American guitarist, songwriter and record producer, best known for his work with Bruce Dickinson (from Iron Maiden), Halford, and Judas Priest. He also is the founder of Tribe of Gypsies, a Latin-influenced har ...
and started the album again from scratch. '' Balls to Picasso'' was recorded with Tribe of Gypsies as the backing band, and was released in 1994. That same year, Dickinson recorded a cover version of "
Sabbath Bloody Sabbath ''Sabbath Bloody Sabbath'' is the fifth studio album by English heavy metal band Black Sabbath, released in November 1973. It was produced by the band and recorded at Morgan Studios in London in April to October 1973. The writing process for t ...
" with the band Godspeed for
Black Sabbath Black Sabbath were an English rock music, rock band formed in Birmingham in 1968 by guitarist Tony Iommi, drummer Bill Ward (musician), Bill Ward, bassist Geezer Butler and vocalist Ozzy Osbourne. They are often cited as pioneers of heavy met ...
's tribute album ''
Nativity in Black ''Nativity in Black: A Tribute to Black Sabbath'' are two Black Sabbath tribute albums, released in 1994 and 2000 respectively. The albums feature various heavy metal groups performing cover versions of Black Sabbath songs in tribute to the band. ...
''. Tribe of Gypsies departed to work on their own material and Dickinson tracked down another band, including his new writing partner and guitarist, Alex Dickson. While touring with this new outfit in 1994, Dickinson performed in Sarajevo, then under siege during the
Bosnian War The Bosnian War ( sh, Rat u Bosni i Hercegovini / Рат у Босни и Херцеговини) was an international armed conflict that took place in Bosnia and Herzegovina between 1992 and 1995. The war is commonly seen as having started ...
; a documentary film based on the concert, entitled ''Scream For Me Sarajevo'', completed filming in December 2015. After the ''Balls to Picasso'' supporting tour finished, he started working on a new studio record, ''
Skunkworks Skunk Works is an official trademark for the Lockheed Martin Advanced Development Programs (formerly Lockheed Advanced Development Projects). Skunkworks or Skunk works may also refer to: * ''Skunkworks'' (album), alternative rock album by Bruce ...
''. Dickinson decided that ''Skunkworks'' would be the title of the band as well, but the record company refused to release the album without his name on the cover. Dickinson hired producer
Jack Endino Jack Endino (born Michael M. Giacondino; 1964) is an American producer and musician based in Seattle, Washington. Long associated with Seattle label Sub Pop and the grunge movement, Endino worked on seminal albums from bands including Mudhoney, ...
, most noted for producing the first
Nirvana ( , , ; sa, निर्वाण} ''nirvāṇa'' ; Pali: ''nibbāna''; Prakrit: ''ṇivvāṇa''; literally, "blown out", as in an oil lampRichard Gombrich, ''Theravada Buddhism: A Social History from Ancient Benāres to Modern Colombo.' ...
album. The "Skunkworks" entity ceased to be when the tour ended. "I was devastated by the ''Skunkworks'' thing", stated Dickinson, "''Skunkworks'' was a record which I tore myself apart to make and nobody seemed to give a shit." After a short period of inactivity, Dickinson once again teamed up with
Roy Z Roy Z (born February 1968) is an American guitarist, songwriter and record producer, best known for his work with Bruce Dickinson (from Iron Maiden), Halford, and Judas Priest. He also is the founder of Tribe of Gypsies, a Latin-influenced har ...
and
Tribe of Gypsies Tribe of Gypsies are a San Fernando Valley, California-based Latin rock group, best known for band leader/guitarist Roy Z who has produced, written for, and played with such well-known artists as Judas Priest, Rob Halford, Sepultura and Bruc ...
to record his next album, ''
Accident of Birth ''Accident of Birth'' is the fourth studio album by Bruce Dickinson, released on 3 June 1997 through Castle Communications sub-label Raw Power in the UK and through CMC International in the US. Dickinson's second collaboration with guitarist/pr ...
''; "It was actually Roy that dragged me back into some assemblance, because he called up and he said, 'Listen, I've got some stuff and it's like a metal record.' And I wasn't thrilled, I wasn't really sure that I had anything to offer ... Then he played me some backing-tracks he'd done for what was to become ''Accident of Birth'' down the phone and I thought 'There is something there.'" Former Iron Maiden guitarist, Adrian Smith, was asked to guest on the record, but remained as a full-time member of Dickinson's solo outfit. The album marked a return to heavy metal for Dickinson, with
Sputnikmusic Sputnikmusic is an American music community website offering music criticism and music news alongside features commonly associated with wiki-style websites. The format of the website is unusual in that it includes both professional and amateur c ...
remarking, "The album's heavy feel is very satisfying, and definitely fills that void left by Maiden during the 90's." The follow-up, '' The Chemical Wedding'', was a semi-
concept album A concept album is an album whose tracks hold a larger purpose or meaning collectively than they do individually. This is typically achieved through a single central narrative or theme, which can be instrumental, compositional, or lyrical. Som ...
on
alchemy Alchemy (from Arabic: ''al-kīmiyā''; from Ancient Greek: χυμεία, ''khumeía'') is an ancient branch of natural philosophy, a philosophical and protoscientific tradition that was historically practiced in China, India, the Muslim world, ...
, which drew inspiration from
William Blake William Blake (28 November 1757 – 12 August 1827) was an English poet, painter, and printmaker. Largely unrecognised during his life, Blake is now considered a seminal figure in the history of the poetry and visual art of the Romantic Age. ...
's writings; with some songs, such as "Book of Thel", having the same title as some of his poems, and the cover artwork featuring one of his paintings. The record was even more successful than its predecessor, with
Sputnikmusic Sputnikmusic is an American music community website offering music criticism and music news alongside features commonly associated with wiki-style websites. The format of the website is unusual in that it includes both professional and amateur c ...
commenting, "Bruce had shattered all expectations to create an album that might even be better than the previous one." During ''The Chemical Weddings supporting tour, the live album, ''
Scream for Me Brazil ''Scream for Me Brazil'' is a live album by Bruce Dickinson, recorded in São Paulo, Brazil and released in 1999. The actual concert set list consisted of eighteen songs, but six of them were cut out from this release. The songs in question w ...
'' was recorded in
São Paulo São Paulo (, ; Portuguese for 'Saint Paul') is the most populous city in Brazil, and is the capital of the state of São Paulo, the most populous and wealthiest Brazilian state, located in the country's Southeast Region. Listed by the GaWC a ...
, after which Dickinson and Smith returned to Iron Maiden in February 1999. In 2000, Dickinson performed vocals on the song, "
Into the Black Hole ''Universal Migrator Part 2: Flight of the Migrator'' is the fifth album from Ayreon, a progressive metal/rock opera project by Dutch musician Arjen Anthony Lucassen, released in 2000. The musical styles found on ''Flight of the Migrator'' contra ...
", for
Ayreon Ayreon is a musical project by Dutch songwriter, singer, musician and record producer Arjen Anthony Lucassen. Ayreon's music is described as progressive rock, progressive metal and power metal sometimes combined with genres such as folk, elect ...
's '' Universal Migrator Part 2: Flight of the Migrator''. Later that year, he collaborated with Judas Priest's front-man, Rob Halford, recording, "The One You Love to Hate", for Halford's debut, ''
Resurrection Resurrection or anastasis is the concept of coming back to life after death. In a number of religions, a dying-and-rising god is a deity which dies and is resurrected. Reincarnation is a similar process hypothesized by other religions, which ...
''. A compilation, entitled ''
The Best of Bruce Dickinson __NOTOC__ ''The Best of Bruce Dickinson'' is a compilation album released in 2001 by Bruce Dickinson. Two versions were released; a single disc version and a bonus disc version. On the front cover, the album title is imposed upon the seal of ...
'', was released in late 2001, including two new songs and a bonus disc of rarities. His latest solo album, ''
Tyranny of Souls ''Tyranny of Souls'' is the sixth studio album released by Iron Maiden vocalist Bruce Dickinson on 23 May 2005. The cover art is one of the panels of Earthly Vanity and Divine Salvation, a work by renaissance artist Hans Memling. It is his fir ...
'' was released in May 2005. This time the song-writing was all split between Roy Z and Dickinson and many songs were composed by Z sending recordings of riffs to Dickinson while he was on tour with Iron Maiden. On 21 June 2005, Dickinson's complete solo discography was re-released, featuring bonus discs with rare and remastered tracks. That same year, Dickinson contributed to the song, "Beast in the Light", from
Tribuzy Tribuzy is a Brazilian heavy metal band fronted by Renato Tribuzy. They have toured with Iron Maiden frontman Bruce Dickinson and guitarist/producer Roy Z. A live album called ''Execution – Live Reunion'' was released in May 2007. Members *R ...
's album, ''
Execution Capital punishment, also known as the death penalty, is the state-sanctioned practice of deliberately killing a person as a punishment for an actual or supposed crime, usually following an authorized, rule-governed process to conclude that ...
'', and their subsequent live album. A three-DVD box set, entitled '' Anthology'', was released on 19 June 2006, containing concerts and promo videos from throughout his solo career, as well as an old
Samson Samson (; , '' he, Šīmšōn, label= none'', "man of the sun") was the last of the judges of the ancient Israelites mentioned in the Book of Judges (chapters 13 to 16) and one of the last leaders who "judged" Israel before the institution o ...
video, entitled "Biceps of Steel". A fan of the
Monty Python Monty Python (also collectively known as the Pythons) were a British comedy troupe who created the sketch comedy television show '' Monty Python's Flying Circus'', which first aired on the BBC in 1969. Forty-five episodes were made over four ...
comedy troupe, in 2009 Dickinson appeared in '' Monty Python: Almost the Truth (Lawyers Cut)''. He also recorded a new version of the
theme song Theme music is a musical composition that is often written specifically for radio programming, television shows, video games, or films and is usually played during the title sequence, opening credits, closing credits, and in some instances at ...
from ''
Monty Python's Life of Brian ''Monty Python's Life of Brian'' (also known as ''Life of Brian'') is a 1979 British comedy film starring and written by the comedy group Monty Python (Graham Chapman, John Cleese, Terry Gilliam, Eric Idle, Terry Jones and Michael Palin). It ...
'' for the sixth and final episode. In December 2017, Dickinson said that he has tentative plans for his next solo album to be "a whole concept album", with the title being ''If Eternity Should Fail'', the same song name from Iron Maiden's album ''The Book of Souls'', in which he confirmed that it was originally penned as a solo track, "So if I did do another solo album, which I think I will, I might just stick to my original plan and have that as the title track. I mean, I did write it – it was the first track that I wrote for it. So, yeah, I'd probably still include that song. But it would be… the feel would be slightly different – not very much, though – from the Maiden version."


Personal life

Dickinson married Erica "Jane" Barnett in 1984, and they divorced in 1987. With his second wife, psychotherapist Patrice "Paddy" Bowden, he has three children: sons Austin (born 1990) and Griffin (born 1992), and daughter Kia (born 1994). All three were born in the
Chiswick Chiswick ( ) is a district of west London, England. It contains Hogarth's House, the former residence of the 18th-century English artist William Hogarth; Chiswick House, a neo-Palladian villa regarded as one of the finest in England; and Full ...
area of
London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...
, where Dickinson lived for a few decades beginning in 1981. In 2019, it was reported that he and Bowden had separated after almost 30 years of marriage; Bowden died in an accident at her home in May 2020. Dickinson currently lives with his girlfriend Leana Dolci in
Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...
. Dickinson's son Austin was the lead singer in metalcore band
Rise to Remain Rise to Remain was an English, London-based heavy metal band formed in 2006 and disbanded in 2015. The band made appearances at Download Festival, Sonisphere Festival and extensively toured the UK and Europe. The band released three EPs, the ...
until their break-up in 2015, at which point he formed the alternative metal group
As Lions As Lions are a British alternative metal supergroup originating from London, England. The band was formed in 2015 by Austin Dickinson (son of Iron Maiden frontman Bruce Dickinson), Will Homer and Conor O'Keefe – all formerly of Rise to Remai ...
. His other son Griffin, who previously worked as a stage carpenter for Iron Maiden during their tours, was the lead singer of
melodic hardcore Melodic hardcore is a broadly defined subgenre of hardcore punk with a strong emphasis on melody in its guitar work. It generally incorporates fast rhythms, melodic and often distorted guitar riffs, and vocal styles tending towards shouting and ...
band
SHVPES SHVPES ("Shapes") were an English metalcore band from Birmingham. Originally formed in 2009 under the name Cytota, they changed their name in 2015. They were signed to Spinefarm Records/Search and Destroy Records. In 2016 they released their d ...
. Dickinson's cousin,
Rob Dickinson Robert Dickinson (born 23 July 1965) is a British musician, multi-instrumentalist, and singer-songwriter previously of the band Catherine Wheel.Strong, Martin C. (2003) ''The Great Indie Discography'', Canongate, , p. 664-5 Dickinson was raised ...
, was the lead singer of British
alternative rock Alternative rock, or alt-rock, is a category of rock music that emerged from the independent music underground of the 1970s and became widely popular in the 1990s. "Alternative" refers to the genre's distinction from Popular culture, mainstre ...
band
Catherine Wheel Catherine wheel may refer to: * wheel or breaking wheel, an instrument of torturous execution originally associated with Saint Catherine of Alexandria * Catherine wheel (firework), a firework that rotates when lit Arts and entertainment * Cather ...
and founded Singer Vehicle Design. In an interview with
Sarah Montague Sarah Anne Louise Montague, Lady Brooke (born 8 February 1966),''Who's who'' is a British journalist and presenter of the BBC Radio 4 current affairs programme ''The World at One''. For 18 years, prior to April 2018, she was a regular presenter ...
for BBC's ''
HARDtalk ''HARDtalk'' is a BBC television and radio programme broadcast on the BBC News Channel, on BBC World News, and on the BBC World Service. Broadcast times and days vary, depending on broadcasting platform and geographic location. ''HARDtalk' ...
'' in 2012, Dickinson agreed that he is a
conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization i ...
and a eurosceptic. Dickinson stated in a 2018 interview with French magazine ''
L'Obs (), previously known as (1964–2014), is a weekly French news magazine. Based in the 2nd arrondissement of Paris, it is the most prominent French general information magazine in terms of audience and circulation. Its current editor is Cécil ...
'' that, despite residing mainly in France, he supports
Brexit Brexit (; a portmanteau of "British exit") was the withdrawal of the United Kingdom (UK) from the European Union (EU) at 23:00 GMT on 31 January 2020 (00:00 1 February 2020 CET).The UK also left the European Atomic Energy Community (EAEC or ...
and voted for the UK to leave the EU during the 2016 referendum. In 2021, after the Withdrawal Agreement entered into force, Dickinson said he was angry that British musicians and performers were restricted from free travel through Europe. In 2015, Dickinson underwent seven weeks of
chemotherapy Chemotherapy (often abbreviated to chemo and sometimes CTX or CTx) is a type of cancer treatment that uses one or more anti-cancer drugs (chemotherapeutic agents or alkylating agents) as part of a standardized chemotherapy regimen. Chemotherap ...
and
radiation therapy Radiation therapy or radiotherapy, often abbreviated RT, RTx, or XRT, is a therapy using ionizing radiation, generally provided as part of cancer treatment to control or kill malignant cells and normally delivered by a linear accelerator. Radi ...
for a cancerous tumour found at the back of his tongue. Dickinson's medical team expected him to make a full recovery as the tumour was discovered in the early stages. On 15 May, Dickinson was given the all-clear by his specialists.


Honours

On 19 July 2011, Dickinson was presented with an honorary music doctorate from his alma mater,
Queen Mary University of London , mottoeng = With united powers , established = 1785 – The London Hospital Medical College1843 – St Bartholomew's Hospital Medical College1882 – Westfield College1887 – East London College/Queen Mary College , type = Public researc ...
, in honour of his contribution to the music industry. In 2019, Dickinson was made an honorary citizen of
Sarajevo Sarajevo ( ; cyrl, Сарајево, ; ''see Names of European cities in different languages (Q–T)#S, names in other languages'') is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Bosnia and Herzegovina, with a population of 275,524 in its a ...
and received the city's prestigious Sixth April Award for his efforts in performing under siege in 1994. According to the city's mayor, it was his arrival in Sarajevo that "was one of those moments that made us realize that we will survive, that the city of Sarajevo will survive, that Bosnia and Herzegovina will survive". He is also credited as a producer on the critically acclaimed 2016 documentary ''Scream for Me Sarajevo'', which chronicles this performance and his return to Sarajevo. In 2019, Dickinson was also presented with an honorary doctorate from the Faculty of Philosophy by the
University of Helsinki The University of Helsinki ( fi, Helsingin yliopisto, sv, Helsingfors universitet, abbreviated UH) is a public research university located in Helsinki, Finland since 1829, but founded in the city of Turku (in Swedish ''Åbo'') in 1640 as the ...
. On 6 January 2020, Dickinson was made an Honorary
Group Captain Group captain is a senior commissioned rank in the Royal Air Force, where it originated, as well as the air forces of many countries that have historical British influence. It is sometimes used as the English translation of an equivalent rank i ...
of 601 (County of London) Squadron RAF.


Other work

Dickinson's interests and non-musical activities include writing, broadcasting, fencing (at which he has competed internationally, placing 7th in Great Britain, and has founded a fencing equipment company under the brand name "Duellist"), beer brewing and aviation. Due to the wide variety of Dickinson's pursuits, '' Intelligent Life'' named him as a living example of a
polymath A polymath ( el, πολυμαθής, , "having learned much"; la, homo universalis, "universal human") is an individual whose knowledge spans a substantial number of subjects, known to draw on complex bodies of knowledge to solve specific pro ...
in 2009.


Aviation and entrepreneurship

Dickinson learned to fly recreationally in Florida in the 1990s and now holds an airline transport pilot's licence. He regularly flew
Boeing 757 The Boeing 757 is an American narrow-body airliner designed and built by Boeing Commercial Airplanes. The then-named 7N7, a twinjet successor for the 727 (a trijet), received its first orders in August 1978. The prototype completed its mai ...
s in his role as captain for the now-defunct British charter airline
Astraeus In Greek mythology, Astraeus () or Astraios (Ancient Greek: Ἀστραῖος means "starry"') was an astrological deity. Some also associate him with the winds, as he is the father of the four Anemoi (wind deities), by his wife, Eos. Etymolo ...
, which, from 16 September 2010, employed him as marketing director. One of his key roles in that position was to promote Astraeus' services by increasing their number of videos, leading to the Civil Aviation Authority releasing a video featuring Dickinson on aircraft loading safety in June 2011. Following Astraeus' closure on 21 November 2011, Dickinson branched into entrepreneurship when he launched Cardiff Aviation Ltd on 1 May 2012, an aircraft maintenance business based at the Twin Peaks Hangar in
St Athan St Athan ( cy, Sain Tathan) is a village and community (Wales), community in the Vale of Glamorgan in South Wales. The village and its parish church are dedicated to Saint Tathan. The church dates to the 13th–14th century, though an earlier ch ...
,
Vale of Glamorgan The Vale of Glamorgan ( cy, Bro Morgannwg ), often referred to as The Vale, is a county borough in the south-east of Wales. It borders Bridgend County Borough to the west, Cardiff to the east, Rhondda Cynon Taf to the north, and the Bristol C ...
, Wales. According to ''
The Wall Street Journal ''The Wall Street Journal'' is an American business-focused, international daily newspaper based in New York City, with international editions also available in Chinese and Japanese. The ''Journal'', along with its Asian editions, is published ...
'', in January 2013 Cardiff Aviation had created 40 jobs and hoped to have over a hundred personnel by the summer of 2013. In June 2013, ''
The Daily Telegraph ''The Daily Telegraph'', known online and elsewhere as ''The Telegraph'', is a national British daily broadsheet newspaper published in London by Telegraph Media Group and distributed across the United Kingdom and internationally. It was fo ...
'' reported that the business had expanded to between 60 and 70 employees and were in discussions to set up their own airline. In August 2015, Cardiff Aviation signed a deal to provide airline support to Air Djibouti, for whom Dickinson piloted their maiden flight the following year, a
Boeing 737 The Boeing 737 is a narrow-body aircraft produced by Boeing at its Boeing Renton Factory, Renton Factory in Washington (state), Washington. Developed to supplement the Boeing 727 on short and thin routes, the twinjet retains the Boeing 707, 7 ...
from Cardiff to Djibouti. As a result of his business ventures, Dickinson delivered keynote speeches at events around the globe, including
Queen Mary University of London , mottoeng = With united powers , established = 1785 – The London Hospital Medical College1843 – St Bartholomew's Hospital Medical College1882 – Westfield College1887 – East London College/Queen Mary College , type = Public researc ...
's Innovation Showcase in November 2012, Connect2Business, Stockholm in March 2013,
Aviation Week ''Aviation Week & Space Technology'', often abbreviated ''Aviation Week'' or ''AW&ST'', is the flagship magazine of the Aviation Week Network. The weekly magazine is available in print and online, reporting on the aerospace, defense and aviatio ...
's MRO Europe Conference, London in October 2015 and "Blog Now, Live Forever", Mumbai in October 2015. Dickinson's role as a pilot has led to some high-profile flights, which include returning a group of British
RAF The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the United Kingdom's air and space force. It was formed towards the end of the First World War on 1 April 1918, becoming the first independent air force in the world, by regrouping the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) and ...
pilots from
Afghanistan Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan,; prs, امارت اسلامی افغانستان is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. Referred to as the Heart of Asia, it is bordere ...
in 2008, 200 British citizens from
Lebanon Lebanon ( , ar, لُبْنَان, translit=lubnān, ), officially the Republic of Lebanon () or the Lebanese Republic, is a country in Western Asia. It is located between Syria to the north and east and Israel to the south, while Cyprus li ...
during the Israel/Hezbollah conflict in 2006, and 180 stranded holiday makers from
Egypt Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a transcontinental country spanning the northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia via a land bridge formed by the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediter ...
following the collapse of
XL Airways UK XL Airways was a British low-cost charter and scheduled airline, which ceased operations when it went into administration on 12 September 2008. Its headquarters were in Crawley, West Sussex, near London Gatwick Airport. It was part of the XL ...
in September 2008. In addition, he flew
Rangers F.C. Rangers Football Club is a Scottish professional football club based in the Govan district of Glasgow which plays in the Scottish Premiership. Although not its official name, it is often referred to as Glasgow Rangers outside Scotland. The fou ...
and
Liverpool F.C. Liverpool Football Club is a professional football club based in Liverpool, England. The club competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football. Founded in 1892, the club joined the Football League the following year and has p ...
to away matches in Israel and Italy in 2007 and 2010, respectively. For the 2008–09 "
Somewhere Back in Time World Tour Somewhere Back in Time World Tour was a concert tour by the heavy metal band Iron Maiden in 2008 and 2009, focused on the band's 1980s material, in particular songs from ''Powerslave'', '' Somewhere in Time'' and ''Seventh Son of a Seventh Son ...
", he piloted Iron Maiden's chartered
Boeing 757 The Boeing 757 is an American narrow-body airliner designed and built by Boeing Commercial Airplanes. The then-named 7N7, a twinjet successor for the 727 (a trijet), received its first orders in August 1978. The prototype completed its mai ...
, dubbed "
Ed Force One Iron Maiden are an English heavy metal band formed in Leyton, East London, in 1975 by bassist and primary songwriter Steve Harris. While fluid in the early years of the band, the lineup for most of the band's history has consisted of Harris ...
", specially converted to carry the band's equipment between continents, which subsequently led to a documentary film, '' Iron Maiden: Flight 666''. Dickinson flew "Ed Force One" again for "
The Final Frontier World Tour The Final Frontier World Tour was a concert tour by Iron Maiden in support of the band's 15th album, ''The Final Frontier'', which began on 9 June 2010 in Dallas and ended in London, England on 6 August 2011. The tour was announced on the band' ...
" in 2011. For the 2016
The Book of Souls World Tour The Book of Souls World Tour was a concert tour by Iron Maiden, held in support of their sixteenth studio album, ''The Book of Souls''. During the first leg of the tour the band played shows in 36 countries across six continents, which included ...
, the band upgraded to a Boeing 747-400 jumbo jet, which meant that Dickinson had to undertake
type conversion In computer science, type conversion, type casting, type coercion, and type juggling are different ways of changing an expression from one data type to another. An example would be the conversion of an integer value into a floating point valu ...
to fly the aircraft. In 2014, Dickinson purchased a
Fokker Dr.I The Fokker Dr.I (''Dreidecker'', "triplane" in German), often known simply as the Fokker Triplane, was a World War I fighter aircraft built by Fokker-Flugzeugwerke. The Dr.I saw widespread service in the spring of 1918. It became famous as the ...
triplane replica G-CDXR and joined the Great War Display Team, which re-enacts
First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
air battles at air shows across the UK.


Radio and TV

left, upDickinson in 2014 Dickinson presented ''Bruce Dickinson's Friday Rock Show'' on
BBC radio BBC Radio is an operational business division and service of the British Broadcasting Corporation (which has operated in the United Kingdom under the terms of a royal charter since 1927). The service provides national radio stations covering th ...
station
6 Music BBC Radio 6 Music is a British digital radio station owned and operated by the BBC, specialising primarily in alternative music. BBC 6 Music was the first national music radio station to be launched by the BBC in 32 years. It is available onl ...
from 2002 to 2010. In March 2010, the BBC announced that, after over eight years, Dickinson's show was to be axed. His final broadcast was on 28 May 2010, with the regular format abandoned in favour of a personal and musical tribute to the recently deceased
Ronnie James Dio Ronald James Padavona (July 10, 1942 – May 16, 2010), known professionally as Ronnie James Dio, was an American heavy metal singer. He fronted and founded numerous bands throughout his career, including Elf, Rainbow, Black Sabbath, Dio and H ...
. Dickinson scorned BBC executives for the cancellation, playing the
Johnny Paycheck Johnny Paycheck (born Donald Eugene Lytle; May 31, 1938 – February 19, 2003) was an American country music singer and Grand Ole Opry member notable for recording the David Allan Coe song " Take This Job and Shove It". He achieved his greate ...
version of "
Take This Job and Shove It "Take This Job and Shove It" is a 1977 country music song written by David Allan Coe and popularized by Johnny Paycheck, about the bitterness of a man who has worked long and hard with no apparent reward. The song was first recorded by Paycheck o ...
". In addition to his show on 6 Music, Dickinson also hosted a series entitled ''Masters of Rock'' on
BBC Radio 2 BBC Radio 2 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It is the most popular station in the United Kingdom with over 15 million weekly listeners. Since launching in 1967, the station broadcasts a wide range of content. ...
from 2003 to 2007. Dickinson's catalogue of 6 Music programmes were acquired in 2014 by TeamRock radio, who began re-broadcasting episodes in December. In 2005, Dickinson hosted a five-part historical TV series about aviation, ''
Flying Heavy Metal ''Flying Heavy Metal'' is a five-part British television series produced by Ricochet (TV Production Company), Ricochet and originally broadcast in the United Kingdom, UK and Europe on the Discovery Channel, premiered on 19 January 2005, and subs ...
'', shown on the
Discovery Channel Discovery Channel (known as The Discovery Channel from 1985 to 1995, and often referred to as simply Discovery) is an American cable channel owned by Warner Bros. Discovery, a publicly traded company run by CEO David Zaslav. , Discovery Channe ...
and later on
Discovery Turbo Discovery Turbo (previously known as Discovery Turbo MAX in Australia) is a pay television channel devoted to programming about transport. It is similar to Discovery Velocity and Motor Trend. It was also briefly available as an on-demand service ...
in the UK. He was a guest on an episode of the Military Channel's ''The Greatest Ever'', where he drove a Russian
T-34 The T-34 is a Soviet medium tank introduced in 1940. When introduced its 76.2 mm (3 in) tank gun was less powerful than its contemporaries while its 60-degree sloped armour provided good protection against anti-tank weapons. The C ...
tank. In 2006, Dickinson presented a documentary for Sky One called ''Inside Spontaneous Human Combustion with Bruce Dickinson'', in which he investigated the
phenomenon A phenomenon ( : phenomena) is an observable event. The term came into its modern philosophical usage through Immanuel Kant, who contrasted it with the noumenon, which ''cannot'' be directly observed. Kant was heavily influenced by Gottfried W ...
by enlisting the help of several experts and performing various experiments to determine its possible cause. Other television appearances include guesting on quiz shows such as ''
Never Mind the Buzzcocks ''Never Mind the Buzzcocks'' is a British comedy panel game show with a pop music theme. It has aired on Sky Max since September 2021, having originally aired between November 1996 and January 2015 on BBC Two. The original series was first hos ...
'' and the short-lived '' Space Cadets'', as well as the chat show ''Clarkson'', hosted by
Jeremy Clarkson Jeremy Charles Robert Clarkson (born 11 April 1960) is an English broadcaster, journalist, game show host and writer who specialises in motoring. He is best known for the motoring programmes '' Top Gear'' and '' The Grand Tour'' alongside R ...
. Dickinson has also appeared in a BBC series called ''
The Paradise Club ''The Paradise Club'' is a BBC television crime drama series, broadcast between 19 September 1989 and 27 November 1990. The series starred Don Henderson and Leslie Grantham as Frank and Danny Kane, siblings who inherit a nightclub from their m ...
'', undertaking the role of a musician named Jake Skinner. On 27 July 2012, Dickinson spent a day being filmed as a guest star for a season four episode of ''
Ice Pilots NWT ''Ice Pilots NWT'' (known in the UK and the US as ''Ice Pilots''''Ice Pilots''
at Quest TV
) is ...
'', in which he flew a Douglas DC-3 and took part in "touch-and-go drills" in a
Douglas DC-4 The Douglas DC-4 is an American four-engined (piston), propeller-driven airliner developed by the Douglas Aircraft Company. Military versions of the plane, the C-54 and R5D, served during World War II, in the Berlin Airlift and into the 1 ...
with Buffalo Airways.


Writing

During a 1986–1987
Iron Maiden tour The Iron Maiden Tour was a 1980 concert tour by Iron Maiden in support of their eponymous debut album. The band's first solo headlining tour, it followed the co-headlined Metal for Muthas Tour from earlier in the same year. The tour commenced ...
, and in the wake of a divorce, Dickinson started writing his first book. Inspired by the novels of
Tom Sharpe Thomas Ridley Sharpe (30 March 1928 – 6 June 2013) was an English satirical novelist, best known for his '' Wilt'' series, as well as ''Porterhouse Blue'' and ''Blott on the Landscape,'' all three of which were adapted for television. Life ...
, in addition to
Biggles James Bigglesworth, nicknamed "Biggles", is a fictional pilot and adventurer, the title character and hero of the ''Biggles'' series of adventure books, written for young readers by W. E. Johns (1893–1968). Biggles made his first appearance ...
and ''
Penthouse Penthouse most often refers to: *Penthouse apartment, a special apartment on the top floor of a building *Penthouse (magazine), ''Penthouse'' (magazine), a British-founded men's magazine *Mechanical penthouse, a floor, typically located directly u ...
'', he created ''The Adventures of Lord Iffy Boatrace'', which ''
Kerrang! ''Kerrang!'' is a British weekly magazine devoted to rock, punk and heavy metal music, currently published by Wasted Talent (the same company that owns electronic music publication ''Mixmag''). It was first published on 6 June 1981 as a one- ...
'' describes as "a satirical swipe at fetishism among the upper classes", and whose title character is a "semi-
transvestite Transvestism is the practice of dressing in a manner traditionally associated with the opposite sex. In some cultures, transvestism is practiced for religious, traditional, or ceremonial reasons. The term is considered outdated in Western ...
" British land owner. Following its completion, Dickinson approached
Sidgwick & Jackson Sidgwick & Jackson is an imprint of book publishing company Pan Macmillan. Formerly it was an independent publisher; as such it was founded in Britain in 1908. Its notable early authors include poet Rupert Brooke and novelist E.M. Forster. In mo ...
, who, according to Dickinson, agreed to publish the book before reading it, solely based on Iron Maiden's album sales. Released in 1990 (), the novel sold more than 40,000 copies almost immediately. Due to the high demand, Sidgwick & Jackson asked Dickinson to produce a sequel, which became 1992's ''The Missionary Position'' (), a satire of
televangelism Televangelism ( tele- "distance" and "evangelism," meaning "ministry," sometimes called teleministry) is the use of media, specifically radio and television, to communicate Christianity. Televangelists are ministers, whether official or self-proc ...
. No further additions to the series have been published, although Dickinson did write the first 60 pages to a prequel, set during "Lord Iffy's schooldays", which he "just thought was rubbish and ripped it all up. I didn't think it was funny." Dickinson also turned his hand to scriptwriting, co-authoring '' Chemical Wedding'' with director Julian Doyle. The film, in which Dickinson played a few small
cameo roles A cameo role, also called a cameo appearance and often shortened to just cameo (), is a brief appearance of a well-known person in a work of the performing arts. These roles are generally small, many of them non-speaking ones, and are commonly eit ...
and composed the soundtrack, was released in 2008 and starred
Simon Callow Simon Phillip Hugh Callow (born 15 June 1949) is an English film, television and voice actor, director, narrator and writer. He was twice nominated for BAFTA Award for Best Actor in a Supporting Role for his roles in ''A Room with a View (1985 ...
. On 15 October 2015,
HarperCollins HarperCollins Publishers LLC is one of the Big Five English-language publishing companies, alongside Penguin Random House, Simon & Schuster, Hachette, and Macmillan. The company is headquartered in New York City and is a subsidiary of News Cor ...
and Dey Street announced that they would publish Dickinson's memoirs. ''What Does This Button Do?'' was released on 19 October 2017.


Beer

In 2013, Iron Maiden collaborated with
Robinsons Brewery Robinsons Brewery is a family-run, regional brewery, founded in 1849 at the Unicorn Inn, Stockport, England. The company owns around 250 pubs, mostly in North West England. History William Robinson purchased the Unicorn Inn from Samuel Hole ...
in
Stockport Stockport is a town and borough in Greater Manchester, England, south-east of Manchester, south-west of Ashton-under-Lyne and north of Macclesfield. The River Goyt and Tame merge to create the River Mersey here. Most of the town is within ...
to create Trooper, a 4.8% cask/4.7% bottled ale whose recipe Dickinson formulated with head brewer Martyn Weeks. As of May 2014, the beer has sold 2.5 million pints in 40 countries, making it Robinsons' most successful export. Following Trooper's success, Dickinson, a fan of traditional English cask beer, stated that he intends to develop more beers in the future, although new products will be "under the umbrella of Trooper and not Iron Maiden sTrooper has taken on a life of its own. People drink it because they like the beer, not because they are Maiden fans." Additional beers have included Trooper Red 'N' Black Porter (5.8 per cent ABV), Trooper Hallowed (6.0 per cent ABV), and a limited-edition "666" (at 6.66 per cent ABV).


Singing style and stage performance

upDickinson performing in Ottawa, Ontario, 2010 Although Dickinson never received formal training, he still possesses a wide vocal range which was trademarked by his quasi-operatic
tenor A tenor is a type of classical music, classical male singing human voice, voice whose vocal range lies between the countertenor and baritone voice types. It is the highest male chest voice type. The tenor's vocal range extends up to C5. The lo ...
. Along with
Ronnie James Dio Ronald James Padavona (July 10, 1942 – May 16, 2010), known professionally as Ronnie James Dio, was an American heavy metal singer. He fronted and founded numerous bands throughout his career, including Elf, Rainbow, Black Sabbath, Dio and H ...
and Rob Halford, Dickinson is one of the pioneers of the operatic vocal style later to be adopted by
power metal Power metal is a subgenre of heavy metal combining characteristics of traditional heavy metal with speed metal, often within symphonic context. Generally, power metal is characterized by a faster, lighter, and more uplifting sound, in contra ...
vocalists and regularly appears near the top in lists of the greatest rock vocalists/front-men of all time. Dickinson says that his style was influenced primarily by
Arthur Brown Arthur Brown may refer to: Entertainment * Arthur William Brown (1881–1966), Canadian commercial artist * H. Arthur Brown (1906–1992), American orchestral conductor * Arthur Brown (musician) (born 1942), English rock singer * Arthur Brown, ak ...
,
Peter Hammill Peter Joseph Andrew Hammill (born 5 November 1948) is an English musician and recording artist. He was a founder member of the progressive rock band Van der Graaf Generator. Best known as a singer/songwriter, he also plays guitar and piano and ...
(
Van der Graaf Generator Van der Graaf Generator are an English progressive rock band, formed in 1967 in Manchester by singer-songwriters Peter Hammill and Judge Smith, Chris Judge Smith and the first act signed by Charisma Records. They did not experience much commerc ...
), Ian Anderson ( Jethro Tull) and
Ian Gillan Ian Gillan (born 19 August 1945) is a British singer who is best known as the lead singer and lyricist for the rock band Deep Purple. He is known for his powerful and wide-ranging singing voice. Initially influenced by Elvis Presley, Gillan ...
(
Deep Purple Deep Purple are an English rock band formed in London in 1968. They are considered to be among the pioneers of heavy metal music, heavy metal and modern hard rock music, but their musical style has changed over the course of its existence. Ori ...
). Dickinson's singing varied in the 1990s in the recording of albums such as ''
No Prayer for the Dying ''No Prayer for the Dying'' is the eighth studio album by English heavy metal band Iron Maiden. It is their first album to feature Janick Gers on guitar, who replaced Adrian Smith. Smith left the band during the pre-production phase, unhappy ...
'', ''
Fear of the Dark Fear of the dark is a common fear or phobia among children and, to a varying degree, adults. A fear of the dark does not always concern darkness itself; it can also be a fear of possible or imagined dangers concealed by darkness. Some degree ...
'' and his first solo work ''
Tattooed Millionaire ''Tattooed Millionaire'' is the first solo album by Iron Maiden vocalist Bruce Dickinson, released in 1990. The album project began when Dickinson was asked to record a song for '' A Nightmare on Elm Street 5: The Dream Child'', and so wrote " ...
'', making use of a much more raspy and unpolished sound, befitting their stripped down style. Since returning to Iron Maiden in 1999, his singing style has returned to much like it was in the 1980s, though his voice has lowered with age. According to a report published in the ''
Daily Mirror The ''Daily Mirror'' is a British national daily tabloid. Founded in 1903, it is owned by parent company Reach plc. From 1985 to 1987, and from 1997 to 2002, the title on its masthead was simply ''The Mirror''. It had an average daily print ...
'', Dickinson has an estimated vocal range of 4.25
octave In music, an octave ( la, octavus: eighth) or perfect octave (sometimes called the diapason) is the interval between one musical pitch and another with double its frequency. The octave relationship is a natural phenomenon that has been refer ...
s. His voice led to the nickname "The Air Raid Siren", which '' Billboard'' states is "due to the ferocious power of his singing", although Dickinson claims it actually originated from a fan complaint. In addition to his vocal ability, Dickinson has been described as an energetic stage performer. He considers including the audience "the essence of the Maiden experience" and that his role is to "shrink the venue ... to turn that football stadium into the world's smallest club". To achieve this, Dickinson seeks eye contact with audience members and urges them to join in with the phrase "scream for me" (followed by the concert's location). He is critical of performers who do not connect with their fans, particularly those who " idebehind the amps" and use an
autocue Autocue is a UK-based manufacturer of teleprompter systems. The company was founded in 1955 and licensed its first on-camera teleprompter, based on a patent by Jess Oppenheimer, in 1962. Its products are used by journalists, presenters, politic ...
, remarking that "people pay good money and
hey Hey or Hey! may refer to: Music * Hey (band), a Polish rock band Albums * ''Hey'' (Andreas Bourani album) or the title song (see below), 2014 * ''Hey!'' (Julio Iglesias album) or the title song, 1980 * ''Hey!'' (Jullie album) or the title s ...
can't even remember the sodding words".


Discography

;Iron Maiden *'' The Number of the Beast'' (1982) *''
Piece of Mind ''Piece of Mind'' is the fourth studio album by English heavy metal band Iron Maiden. It was released on 16 May 1983 in the United Kingdom by EMI Records and in the United States by Capitol Records. It was the first album to feature drummer Ni ...
'' (1983) *''
Powerslave ''Powerslave'' is the fifth studio album by the English heavy metal band Iron Maiden, released on 3 September 1984 through EMI Records in Europe and its sister label Capitol Records in North America. It was re-released by Sanctuary and Colum ...
'' (1984) *'' Somewhere in Time'' (1986) *''
Seventh Son of a Seventh Son ''Seventh Son of a Seventh Son'' is the seventh studio album by English heavy metal band Iron Maiden. It was released on 11 April 1988 in the United Kingdom by EMI Records and in the United States by Capitol Records. Like '' The Number of the ...
'' (1988) *''
No Prayer for the Dying ''No Prayer for the Dying'' is the eighth studio album by English heavy metal band Iron Maiden. It is their first album to feature Janick Gers on guitar, who replaced Adrian Smith. Smith left the band during the pre-production phase, unhappy ...
'' (1990) *''
Fear of the Dark Fear of the dark is a common fear or phobia among children and, to a varying degree, adults. A fear of the dark does not always concern darkness itself; it can also be a fear of possible or imagined dangers concealed by darkness. Some degree ...
'' (1992) *''
Brave New World ''Brave New World'' is a dystopian novel by English author Aldous Huxley, written in 1931 and published in 1932. Largely set in a futuristic World State, whose citizens are environmentally engineered into an intelligence-based social hiera ...
'' (2000) *'' Dance of Death'' (2003) *'' A Matter of Life and Death'' (2006) *''
The Final Frontier ''The Final Frontier'' is the fifteenth studio album by English heavy metal band Iron Maiden. It was released on 13 August 2010 in Germany, Austria and Finland, 17 August in North America, 18 August in Japan, and 16 August worldwide. At 76&nbs ...
'' (2010) *''
The Book of Souls ''The Book of Souls'' is the sixteenth studio album by English heavy metal band Iron Maiden, released in 4 September 2015. It is the band's first studio double album, and also their longest to date, with a total length of 92 minutes and 11 s ...
'' (2015) *'' Senjutsu'' (2021) ;Bruce Dickinson *''
Tattooed Millionaire ''Tattooed Millionaire'' is the first solo album by Iron Maiden vocalist Bruce Dickinson, released in 1990. The album project began when Dickinson was asked to record a song for '' A Nightmare on Elm Street 5: The Dream Child'', and so wrote " ...
'' (1990) *'' Balls to Picasso'' (1994) *''
Skunkworks Skunk Works is an official trademark for the Lockheed Martin Advanced Development Programs (formerly Lockheed Advanced Development Projects). Skunkworks or Skunk works may also refer to: * ''Skunkworks'' (album), alternative rock album by Bruce ...
'' (1996) *''
Accident of Birth ''Accident of Birth'' is the fourth studio album by Bruce Dickinson, released on 3 June 1997 through Castle Communications sub-label Raw Power in the UK and through CMC International in the US. Dickinson's second collaboration with guitarist/pr ...
'' (1997) *'' The Chemical Wedding'' (1998) *''
Tyranny of Souls ''Tyranny of Souls'' is the sixth studio album released by Iron Maiden vocalist Bruce Dickinson on 23 May 2005. The cover art is one of the panels of Earthly Vanity and Divine Salvation, a work by renaissance artist Hans Memling. It is his fir ...
'' (2005) *''Scream for Me Sarajevo: A Story of Hope in a Time of War'' (2018) ;Samson *'' Survivors'' (1979) *'' Head On'' (1980) *''
Shock Tactics Shock tactics, shock tactic or shock attack is the name of an offensive maneuver which attempts to place the enemy under psychological pressure by a rapid and fully-committed advance with the aim of causing their combatants to retreat. The accep ...
'' (1981) *''
Live at Reading 1981 ''Live at Reading 1981'' was the second live album released by Samson. This was recorded in 1981 at the Reading Festival, with singer Bruce Dickinson, just before he left the band to join Iron Maiden. ''Live at Reading '81'' has been issued o ...
'' (1990) ;Special appearance * ''Xero - Oh baby (EP - ''Lone Wolf'' - Hidden song 1983)'' * ''Soundtrack - The Nightmare on Elmstreet Part 5 (''Bring Your Daughter... to the Slaughter'' 1989)'' *''Rock Aid Armenia / Various artists – The Earthquake Album'' (1990) With
Bryan Adams Bryan Guy Adams (born 5 November 1959) is a Canadian musician, singer, songwriter, composer, and photographer. He has been cited as one of the best-selling music artists of all time, and is estimated to have sold between 75 million and mor ...
,
Ian Gillan Ian Gillan (born 19 August 1945) is a British singer who is best known as the lead singer and lyricist for the rock band Deep Purple. He is known for his powerful and wide-ranging singing voice. Initially influenced by Elvis Presley, Gillan ...
,
Paul Rodgers Paul Rodgers (born 17 December 1949) is a British singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist. He was the lead vocalist of numerous bands, including Free, Bad Company, The Firm, and The Law. He has also performed as a solo artist, and co ...
, Geoff Beauchamp, Geoff Downes,
Brian May Brian Harold May (born 19 July 1947) is an English guitarist, singer, songwriter, and astrophysicist, who achieved worldwide fame as the lead guitarist of the rock band Queen. May was a co-founder of Queen with lead singer Freddie Mercury and ...
,
David Gilmour David Jon Gilmour ( ; born 6 March 1946) is an English guitarist, singer, songwriter, and member of the rock band Pink Floyd. He joined as guitarist and co-lead vocalist in 1967, shortly before the departure of founding member Syd Barrett. P ...
,
Ritchie Blackmore Richard Hugh Blackmore (born 14 April 1945) is an English guitarist and songwriter. He was a founding member of Deep Purple in 1968, playing jam-style hard rock music that mixed guitar riffs and organ sounds. He is prolific in creating guita ...
,
Alex Lifeson Aleksandar Živojinović, (born 27 August 1953), known professionally as Alex Lifeson (), is a Canadian musician, best known as the guitarist and backing vocalist of the progressive rock band Rush. In 1968, Lifeson co-founded the band that wo ...
,
Chris Squire Christopher Russell Edward Squire (4March 1948 – 27June 2015) was an English musician, singer and songwriter best known as the bassist and backing vocalist of the progressive rock band Yes. He was the longest-serving original member, having r ...
and
Roger Taylor Roger Taylor may refer to: *Roger Taylor (Queen drummer) (born 1949), drummer for Queen *Roger Taylor (Duran Duran drummer) (born 1960), drummer for Duran Duran *Roger Taylor (author), author of epic fantasy Hawklan series *Roger Taylor (college pr ...
. * ''Comic Relief - Smear campaign (''Elected'' 1992)'' * ''Nativity In Black - A tribute to Black Sabbath'' (''Sabbath Bloody Sabbath'' 1994) * ''Montserrat Caballé - Friends for life (''
Bohemian Rhapsody "Bohemian Rhapsody" is a song by the British rock band Queen, released as the lead single from their fourth album, '' A Night at the Opera'' (1975). Written by lead singer Freddie Mercury, the song is a six-minute suite, notable for its lack o ...
'' 1997)'' * ''Extreme Championchip Wrestling Compilation - Extreme Music (''
The Zoo ''The Zoo'' is a one-act comic opera, with music by Arthur Sullivan and a libretto by B. C. Stephenson, writing under the pen name of Bolton Rowe. It premiered on 5 June 1875 at the St. James's Theatre in London (as an afterpiece to W. S. Gilb ...
'' 1998)'' * ''Soundtrack - The Bride of Chucky (1998)'' * ''Humanary Stew- A tribute to Alice Cooper (''Black Widow'' 1998)'' * ''
Ayreon Ayreon is a musical project by Dutch songwriter, singer, musician and record producer Arjen Anthony Lucassen. Ayreon's music is described as progressive rock, progressive metal and power metal sometimes combined with genres such as folk, elect ...
- Universal Migrator part II:Flight of the Migrator (''Into the Black Hole'' 2000)'' * '' Halford - Resurrection (''The One You Love to Hate'' 2000)'' * ''Halford - Live Insurrection (''The One You Love to Hate'' 2001)'' * ''Tribuzy - Execution (2005)'' * ''Tribuzy - Execution: Live Reunion (2007)''


Iron Maiden Videos/DVD

* '' Video Pieces'' ( 1983) * '' Behind the Iron Curtain'' ( 1985) * ''
Live After Death ''Live After Death'' is a live album by English heavy metal band Iron Maiden, originally released in October 1985 on EMI in Europe and its sister label Capitol Records in the US (it was re-released by Sanctuary/Columbia Records in the US in 200 ...
'' ( 1985) * '' 12 Wasted Years'' ( 1987) * ''
Maiden England ''Maiden England'' (re-released in 2013 as ''Maiden England '88'') is a live video by the band Iron Maiden during their '' Seventh Son of a Seventh Son'' world tour, which was dubbed Seventh Tour of a Seventh Tour. It was recorded at the Nati ...
'' ( 1989) * '' Up the Irons - The First Ten Years'' (
1990 File:1990 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 1990 FIFA World Cup is played in Italy; The Human Genome Project is launched; Voyager I takes the famous Pale Blue Dot image- speaking on the fragility of Humankind, humanity on Earth, Astroph ...
) * ''
From There to Eternity ''The First Ten Years: The Videos'' (re-issued as ''From There to Eternity'') is a VHS and laserdisc music video compilation released by the heavy metal band Iron Maiden in 1990 File:1990 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 1990 ...
'' (
1992 File:1992 Events Collage V1.png, From left, clockwise: 1992 Los Angeles riots, Riots break out across Los Angeles, California after the Police brutality, police beating of Rodney King; El Al Flight 1862 crashes into a residential apartment buildi ...
) * '' Live at Donington 1992'' ( 1993) * '' Raising Hell'' (
1994 File:1994 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 1994 Winter Olympics are held in Lillehammer, Norway; The Kaiser Permanente building after the 1994 Northridge earthquake; A model of the MS Estonia, which Sinking of the MS Estonia, sank in ...
) * '' The Number of the Beast'' ( 2001) * ''
Rock in Rio ''Rock in Rio'' is a recurring music festival originating in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. It later branched into other locations such as Lisbon, Madrid and Las Vegas. Nine incarnations of the festival have been held in Rio de Janeiro, in 1985, 1991, ...
'' ( 2002) * '' Visions of the Beast'' ( 2003) * '' The Early Days'' ( 2004) * ''
Death on the Road ''Death on the Road'' is a live album and video released by British heavy metal band Iron Maiden on 29 August 2005 on CD and vinyl, and on 6 February 2006 on DVD. The album was recorded at Westfalenhallen in Dortmund, Germany on 24 November 200 ...
'' (
2006 File:2006 Events Collage V1.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2006 Winter Olympics open in Turin; Twitter is founded and launched by Jack Dorsey; The Nintendo Wii is released; Montenegro 2006 Montenegrin independence referendum, votes to declare ...
) * '' Iron Maiden: Flight 666'' ( 2009) * ''En Vivo!'' (
2012 File:2012 Events Collage V3.png, From left, clockwise: The passenger cruise ship Costa Concordia lies capsized after the Costa Concordia disaster; Damage to Casino Pier in Seaside Heights, New Jersey as a result of Hurricane Sandy; People gather ...
) * Dickinson appeared on the album's re-issue only, as the original version was completed before he joined the band.


Tours

* 1990: ''Tattooed Millionaire Tour'' * 1994–1995: ''Balls to Picasso Tour'' * 1996: ''Skunkworks Tour'' * 1997: ''Accident of Birth Tour'' * 1998–1999: ''The Chemical Wedding Tour'' * 2002: ''Airraid over Europe Tour''


Notes


References

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
This video on YouTube
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External links

*
Bruce Dickinson Wellbeing Network
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Dickinson, Bruce 1958 births People from Worksop Alumni of Queen Mary University of London People educated at Oundle School People educated at King Edward VII School, Sheffield English heavy metal singers English rock singers Iron Maiden members English tenors English radio DJs English aviators English male fencers Living people Singers with a four-octave vocal range Commercial aviators Samson (band) members EMI Records artists CMC International artists English autobiographers BBC Radio 6 Music presenters 20th-century English male singers 20th-century English singers 21st-century English male singers 21st-century English singers English television presenters