WHO wants to live forever?
So sang Freddie Mercury in 1986, as the lead vocalist of Queen.
Well, whether Freddie wanted to be immortal or not, his legacy of hit songs have kept his memory alive, even 26 years on from his death, on November 24, 1991.
Born Farrokh Bulsara, in Zanzibar, on September 5, 1946, he started going by the name of Freddie when he was at St Peter’s, a boarding school for boys near Mumbai.
He legally changed his name to Freddie Mercury around 1970, when Queen was formed.
Freddie’s talents as an entertainer were first recognised when he was still a pupil at St Peter’s.
The headteacher was aware of Freddie’s talents and wrote to the future star’s parents, suggesting that Freddie could benefit from a musical education if they were willing to pay the necessary extra fees.
From there, Freddie started to learn to play the piano, joined the school choir and had starring roles in various theatrical productions.
After his family moved to England, Freddie became friends with Tim Staffell who was in a band with none other than Brian May and Roger Taylor, paving the way to a future group for the new friends, although Freddie sang with the bands Ibex and Sour Milk Sea first.
Although it is now no secret Freddie was gay, he did have a long-term girlfriend, Mary Austin, whom he cared for very deeply.
The Queen ballad Love Of My Life was written for her, in fact, and they were close even after they broke up — Freddie was the godfather to Mary’s son, and when Freddie died, he left Mary most of his money, his house and recording royalties.
At his request, she was to be the only one given access to his ashes, whose whereabouts he only wanted Mary to know.
Those royalties that he left her will certainly have brought Mary a lot of money over the years, with his back catalogue including Bohemian Rhapsody, Don’t Stop Me Now and Another One Bites The Dust, among many others.
Queen enjoyed phenomenal success, with Bohemian Rhapsody the only song ever to reach the top spot in the charts at Christmas twice.
Freddie had earned himself a loyal army of fans, who’d become concerned for him after he had begun to look gaunt and generally unwell in the late 80s.
He announced on November 23, 1991, that he was suffering from AIDS and, just a day later, passed away.
A Freddie Mercury tribute concert five months after his death was attended by 72,000 people at Wembley Stadium.
Dozens of stars appeared at the event which was broadcast to 70 countries and raised about £20m for Aids charities.
His contribution to music and his early death quickly cemented his reputation as a rock legend.
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