30+ Little-Known Facts About Freddie Mercury’s Life That Reveal The Idol’s Personality From A New Perspective

September is a memorable month for fans of the band Queen and lovers of good music in general. After all, it was on the 5th of this month, exactly 73 years ago, that Freddie Mercury was born. His songs, his extraordinary stage appearances and his eccentric behavior during concerts are known even by people who have nothing to do with rock.

The song Bohemian Rhapsody, created by him, is in Guinness Book, the record book🇧🇷 as the best song of the millennium. But only those closest to the rock star know what the cult musician looked like in real life.

O awesome.club studied the archives and memories of friends of this celebrity, who had thousands of fans, and is eager to share little-known facts about the Queen frontman.

Little Freddie (Farrokh) in the arms of his mother Jer

Freddie was born in the British colony of Zanzibar (now part of Tanzania), in 1946, to a family of Parsis (ethnic religious group) who moved from India to Zanzibar — so that his father could work in a banking institution. When the boy was just 7 years old, he was sent to a boarding school in India. There is an opinion that separation from the family at such a young age became a psychological trauma for Freddie and created in him an insatiable thirst for attention. The singer’s real name is Farrokh Bulsara. “Farrokh” in the local language translation, means “beautiful” and “happy”. In 1970, the year of the creation of Queen, the singer officially changed his name to Frederick Mercury. He was furious when they called him Farrokh. Interestingly, Freddie’s first (and only) language was English, not Gujarati—a language spoken in western India and Pakistan. That’s what Peter “Phoebe” Freestone says, who for many years was the singer’s personal assistant and friend. According to Peter, Freddie communicated with his family and wrote letters exclusively in English.

Freddie with the cup he won as the best cricket player among the youngest students at San Pedro School, India

Freddie has a younger sister named Kashmira Cooke. She remembers that her brother was talented in all aspects from childhood and believes that it was her aunt who instilled in him a love of music, as Freddie started playing the piano at home.

Freddie and Kashmira, in childhood

Mercury created his first rock band, The Hectics, together with 4 friends from school in 1958. The band performed at school events and birthdays.

The members of The Hectics: Bruce Murray (soloist), Farrokh Bulsara (later Freddie Mercury, keyboardist), Derrick Branche, Farang Irani, Victory Rana.

He appeared energetic and outgoing on stage, but in everyday life he was quite shy and reserved. He gave few interviews and preferred not to talk about his personal and family life.

Sometimes Freddie would walk around the garden alone or with some of his cats. But he could also be the lifeblood of parties. The singer had a quirky sense of humor and the numerous parties he used to throw at his house were full of laughs and lasted until 4 or 5 in the morning.

Samantha Fox and Freddie Mercury

The singer never spent much time sleeping and hated the idea of ​​”spending all day in bed”. That doesn’t mean he got up early, but he followed a routine. He didn’t care what time he went to sleep: every day, at home or on tour, he woke up at 9 am and had his tea.

He hardly talked about his childhood and origins. But it’s not because he felt ashamed of anything, just because he was a man of the present and didn’t want to waste his precious time thinking about the past.

Before Freddie arrived, Queen was called Smile. The name change, in 1970, would have been on the singer’s initiative.

In 1987, the star released his version of the ’60s hit The Great Pretender (in free translation: the great faker), by the American band The Platters. Thanks to his interpretation, the song was successful again and the nickname “glued” on the artist.

Freddie went to great lengths to keep his personal life away from the press. But their relationships were even more talked about than Queen’s hits. Once, in response to a journalist’s question “I heard you sleep with men”, Freddie replied: “I sleep with men, I sleep with women and I sleep with my cats… what does that have to do with my music? ?”

Freddie Mercury had a relationship with Mary Austin that lasted 7 years. In 1976, the artist confessed his bisexuality to her and they broke up. However, they remained close friends until the end. Austin acted as Freddie’s secretary and inherited part of the musician’s estate and his mansion. The film Bohemian Rhapsody details the relationship between Freddie and Mary, not to mention another brilliant woman in the singer’s life: Austrian actress Barbara Valentin. Later, Barbara admitted that she liked him more than all the men she had dated. “Beside her, I felt like myself again” — that was how Mercury referred to the novel.

It is possible that the relationship between Freddie and Valentin was just platonic. According to Peter Freestone, they had a lot in common and Freddie was impressed by the young woman’s sincerity. But when rumors about his adventure and the information that they were getting married appeared in the press, the singer concluded that Barbara herself was the source of these rumors, as she wanted to arouse interest in her. The star was so upset that he almost had no relationship with Valentin until the end of his life.

In 1985, Mercury began a relationship with hairdresser Jim Hutton. They spent the last 6 years of the singer’s life together. Hutton was with Freddie during his illness and at the moment when the musician took his last breath. And he wrote the book Mercury and Me, dedicated to his relationship with the musician.

Hutton gave Freddie an engagement ring that the Queen star wore until his death, even during his cremation.

Freddie knew how to find time to buy gifts for all his family and close friends. At Christmas, he always went to some Cartier, Tiffany or Harrods stores to buy about 15 presents. He liked these stores because he loved the way they wrapped treats. Freddie always carried a bag of cigars, throat lozenges, and a diary where he wrote down the birthdays of all his friends and relatives. Wherever he was, he never failed to congratulate people.

Freddie with his famous bag

Freddie never expressed any desire to have children. But no one can say he didn’t like children. However, seeing the example of his colleagues, he understood that the little ones demanded a lot of attention. He might spend time with his friends’ children, but he was always happy to “give them back” to their parents.

The singer followed traditions and usually, on Christmas Eve, invited his friends over for dinner, singing and playing the piano.

Freddie never got a driver’s license, but that didn’t stop him from owning 5 cars. He was convinced that “we are all here for a reason”. This meant that he had to devote himself completely to music, writing, recording and performing. And other people would drive the cars for him.

The 1974 Rolls-Royce Silver Shadow owned by the Queen singer. The car was sold at auction on January 12, 2013 for the equivalent of 377 thousand reais, a value 10 times higher than that established for the initial bid.

The singer was very afraid of flying. Once, while boarding from Tokyo to New York, Freddie discovered that the model plane had had several technical problems in the recent past. He immediately demanded that his bags be unloaded and flew on another aircraft.

Freddie loved his cats. Up to 10 felines could live in your house at the same time. His first solo album, Mr. bad guy, was dedicated to her cats and her favorite pet, called Delilah, received a special composition. Periodically, during tours, he would call London to talk to the kitties. Mary Austin, at the singer’s request, would put one of the cats on the phone.

Freddie and his cat Romeo, gift from Jim Hutton

The favorite country of the Queen star’s favorite was Japan. Freddie said he recharged his batteries in this country like nowhere else in the world. In 1993, the National Postal Museum of Great Britain acquired the stamp collection that Freddie collected throughout his life. The money from the sale was transferred to the account of the AIDS charity founded by Freddie.

On the eve of the new millennium, the UK postal service published a stamp with the portrait of the great singer, who, in addition to Freddie, paid tribute to fellow drummer Roger Taylor. In this way, the following rule was violated: only deceased personalities or living members of the royal family could appear on the seals. The public was outraged until the media published the statement by postal workers, who claimed that the seal design had been personally approved by Queen Elizabeth.

The stamp that caused a big scandal

Freddie had two idols in music: John Lennon and Elvis Presley. Therefore, one of the most valuable things in the singer’s wardrobe was the Elvis scarf, given to him by the singer’s daughter, Lisa Marie. At the age of 10, the future singer won the school’s ping-pong championship. As an adult, he preferred to play tennis.

The idol loved spicy food. Which was not surprising, as he was born in Zanzibar, where food is seasoned with a wide variety of spices—as in India. At home, he used to say that he wanted to eat “his mother’s food”, that is, made according to his recipes. Although Freddie usually didn’t follow diets and didn’t go to the gym, he never had any problems with his body. The idol was extremely moderate in food, enjoyed delicious recipes, but never ate too much. A curious fact: the singer had gyms in two of his apartments, but only for the comfort of his friends. He himself never used them.

Freddie’s bad habits included smoking, but he believed it had no significant negative effect on his voice. On the contrary, he even enjoyed the hoarseness acquired by this addiction. Also, Freddie liked a good perfume, both male and female (he didn’t wear it, but gave it to women…