Ex-IRON MAIDEN Guitarist DENNIS STRATTON Says 'Burning Ambition' Documentary 'Rushed Through' The Band's Early Days: It's 'A Little Bit Sad'

In a new interview with the Paulieflix channel on YouTube, former IRON MAIDEN guitarist Dennis Stratton spoke about the band's recently released feature documentary, titled "Iron Maiden: Burning Ambition", which hit theaters for a limited time only beginning May 7, 2026. Directed by Malcolm Venville ("Churchill At War") and produced by Dominic Freeman ("Spirits In The Forest - A Depeche Mode Film"),"Iron Maiden: Burning Ambition" charts IRON MAIDEN's remarkable five‑decade journey.

Dennis, who got an opportunity to see "Iron Maiden: Burning Ambition" for the first time at the film's world premiere on May 5 at Cineworld Leicester Square in London, England, said about the documentary (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "When you're watching it for the first time, it's a lot to take in. But because I had the pleasure of watching it twice, on a Thursday [May 7] as well in Belgrade [Serbia], there was things that I missed on the Tuesday that I picked up on the Thursday.

"I'd never met Blaze [Bayley, former IRON MAIDEN singer] before until we got on the red carpet [at the London premiere], and Blaze was in front of me. And he turned around and we had a hug, and we had some photos done together. And we said, 'We finally meet after all these years.' And we had a long chat. It was great. But at the same time, watching the film, I felt really sorry for Blaze, because the way it was narrated, it was as if the minute Blaze joins the band, they go downhill. People start burning records. People start talking about this devil cult, and then they're playing clubs. And I thought, 'Hold on a minute. This is, this is angling towards... ' It sounds like that Blaze is getting the blame for the band going downhill, which it was nothing like that. Blaze did — I think it was three albums, really good albums. As Steve [Harris, IRON MAIDEN bassist and founder] said to me on the phone, he contributed towards them albums. So you gotta take your hat off to Blaze for walking into the boots of Bruce [Dickinson, longtime MAIDEN vocalist] and then trying to pick up where Bruce left off. It's a killer job. And the way that was portrayed was, like, 'Oh, now they're playing in clubs.' And then the punchline was when Bruce came back and Steve said, 'Why do you wanna come back?' He went, 'Because I'm fed up playing small shows. I wanna play big shows.' So it was as if the minute Bruce came back, the band was massive again. It didn't sort of like jell in a friendly kind of way, if you know what I mean.'

Dennis continued: "I don't want the MAIDEN family or the MAIDEN fans saying 'it's sour grapes' or 'he's got the hump because he's [not in the band].' I haven't. It's a film for the fans. I'm proud of what I did in MAIDEN first couple of years, and also what I took into it and working on them early songs. Because, yes, in 1979, it's said many times that the band was very punky and very aggressive, and that's how we liked it. But you still had to have a bit of class, and that's when separating them guitars and adding a couple of little vocal harmonies, that's when you start making the songs a bit more interesting, not so punky, not so raw. And that's what I'm pleased about. The fact is we'd worked on them first two albums, and I think they'd come out pretty well. So, as I say, the film's fantastic for the fans, but for me, [it's] just a little bit sad that they rushed through the early days, that's all."

Dennis, who played with the emerging NWOBHM act from December 1979 until October 1980, appeared on MAIDEN's No. 4-charting self-titled debut album, contributing significantly to such classics as "Phantom Of The Opera", "Running Free" and the band's eponymous anthem "Iron Maiden".

In a March 2023 interview with Brazil's Rock Mania, Stratton was asked about his memories of the making "Iron Maiden". He said: "It was recorded very quickly. There was not a lot of thought that went into pre-production, because all the songs were already written. All they needed doing was the guitars added and then work out what we were gonna do between me and Dave [Murray, MAIDEN guitarist] to make the songs bigger and work on the harmony guitars and who's doing solos. And that was easy. But the album was recorded very quickly. Whether people like it or not, the production [was handled by] Wil Malone. Me personally, it's amazing because I feel so honored that I was part of that epic album. But at the time, 'cause we were very young and it was done very quickly, you didn't expect it to do what it did. Forty-odd years later, it's still amazing. It's such an honor to be part of that, and it always will be, 'cause it's stood the test of time. I'm just very proud to be part of it."

Asked to name his "best memories" from his time with MAIDEN, Dennis said: "Well, just the touring — the fans. Wherever we went on the KISS tour, JUDAS PRIEST tour, we were just astounded by the amount of support for this band that's only been together six, nine months. We had a big fanbase no matter where we went. But being away with KISS for all them big shows, it reminded me of being away with STATUS QUO back in the '70s, but being on tour with KISS with all the fans and the crowds and the big stadiums, yeah, [it was] unbelievable. Just seeing all the IRON MAIDEN shirts as you're driving up to a football stadium and you look out the window of the car or the bus or the coach or whatever, and you see all these IRON MAIDEN t-shirts, you go… We were a support band, so that was lovely."

Dickinson addressed the fact that "Iron Maiden: Burning Ambition" doesn't properly cover some of the key moments in IRON MAIDEN's history during a recent interview with Australia's Heavy. Bruce said: "When we knew there was going to be a documentary, the first thing was that we really didn't want to be involved in it in terms of editorial or whatever. You have to have a hands-off approach, because you want somebody to look at it and tell the story. Obviously, there's so many… this documentary could be ten hours long, but then everybody would lose the will to live. [Laughs] So you've got to make the story concise. There are going to be fans who say, 'Oh, they missed out this and what about that' — yeah, sure, but for people who don't know the story of IRON MAIDEN, this is a great introduction to the band. Because of that, we wanted an external take on our career and you can't really be fiddling about with that and going in every five minutes saying 'change this' or 'I don't like that', 'Oh, my hair looks messy in that picture.' None of that crap. We're not a bunch of poodles. It is a bit warts and all, but I think that's great. There's nothing in there that I would want to change."

Alongside the band, "Iron Maiden: Burning Ambition" features on‑camera reflections from prominent admirers, including Javier Bardem, Lars Ulrich and Chuck D, each speaking to MAIDEN's influence on music, culture and generations of fans worldwide. The "electrifying film offers an intimate look at [MAIDEN's] uncompromising vision and unwavering connection with their global army of fans," according to a press release.

Spanish illustrator Alberto "Akirant" Quirantes contributes newly created key art, following his work on IRON MAIDEN's 50th-anniversary coin for the Royal Mint, which was released to celebrate the band's milestone in 2025.

During an April 13 appearance on SiriusXM's "Trunk Nation With Eddie Trunk", IRON MAIDEN bassist Steve Harris was asked why now was the right time to tell the MAIDEN story in film form. Harris said: "Well, in actual fact, it wasn't us. It's about us, but not by us. That's the difference. So it's a documentary, which they came to us with an idea that they wanted to do, and it changed a little bit from the original idea. They were gonna do it more about the fans, and it still is, to a certain degree. So, yeah, it's not by us. They wanted to use our artwork and everything, and it seems like as if it's our documentary. It's not. I think they really should have put out that it's a documentary about IRON MAIDEN, not by IRON MAIDEN, because it's not us. We didn't have that control that we would normally have if we were doing it ourselves, of course."

Harris added: "Yeah, we cooperated with it and we did interviews for it and all that stuff — we did what they wanted us to do — but if we'd have done it, I think we'd have done it in a slightly different way, and I'll say no more. But I still think the end result is… Well, I'll say no more because it preempts whatever. I think people should just go and see it and see what they think."

Asked by "Trunk Nation" host Eddie Trunk if "Iron Maiden: Burning Ambition" covers the overall history of the band, Harris said: "Yeah, it's historical stuff. There's a lot of historical stuff for the first hour, probably, I suppose. So, yeah, I think people have gotta watch it and make their own minds up, really."

In an interview with Kerrang! magazine, IRON MAIDEN's longtime drummer Nicko McBrain was asked what the biggest surprise was for him watching "Burning Ambition". He responded: "When you think about it, there's 50 years of history to IRON MAIDEN. How do you tell that story in 90 minutes or so? That's an awful lot to cram in, but I thought it was brilliant. I was overwhelmed by the whole thing, to be honest. There was a lot of information to absorb, so I was like a sponge. But the one thing I took away is how wonderful it was to see the fans tell their stories about what we mean, and what we've meant, to them. And of course, we have the wonderful Javier Bardem — who's a great mate of mine — and Lars Ulrich, Chuck D, Gene Simmons and so many other celebrities, too. But what impressed me the most was the interaction of the fans. There were a couple of moments when they were talking that I actually started to have a tear run down my cheek and my wife just looked at me and squeezed my hand."

Formed in East London in 1975, IRON MAIDEN have grown into one of the world's most influential and enduring rock bands. Across 50 years they have released 17 studio albums, sold over 100 million records, and performed almost 2,500 concerts across 64 countries.

The documentary arrives as the band continues its two-year "Run For Your Lives" world tour, which included a triumphant homecoming performance at London Stadium a short distance from where it all began five decades ago.

A recently announced, one-of-a-kind, celebration named EddFest in historic Knebworth Park, England, on July 11 forms part of over 50 shows worldwide in 2026.

IRON MAIDEN was founded in 1975 by Harris and has grown to become one of the world's most celebrated bands. With a steady recording output beginning with their self-titled 1980 debut, they have released 17 studio albums, 13 live albums and 47 singles which have sold in excess of 100 million copies worldwide. They have played almost 2,500 live shows across 64 countries and were carried to some of these aboard Ed Force One, a Boeing 757 and then later a 747 piloted by Dickinson. They have been the recipients of a Grammy Award and a Brit Award, among many other accolades, most recently joining THE ROLLING STONES and PINK FLOYD with their very own Royal Mail stamp set. Their beer, Trooper Beer, is now in its thirteenth year and has sold in excess of 40 million pints and is distributed in 68 countries, including six local variants in USA, Germany, Brazil, Spain, Sweden and Australia. 2025 marked the band's official 50th year and is being celebrated by a two-year world tour titled "Run For Your Lives" and a range of events and products including their first-ever official hardcover visual history book, "Infinite Dreams".