Freddie Mercury was a truly unique singer, widely known for his lavish lifestyle – people constantly talk about his energetic performances and the wild parties he hosted but not much is known about his personal life. It was something that was often hidden behind the singer’s extravagant facade – such as his love for Mary Austin, the only person Freddie described as the ‘love of his life’.
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They first met in the early 1970s, back when Mary was 19. She was working in a fashion shop in Kensington, West London – that’s where she first saw Freddie. “He was like no one I had met before. He was very confident – something I have never been. We grew together. I liked him and it went on from there,” said Mary in a 2013 interview with Daily Mail.
Image credits: vintag.es
Image credits: vintag.es
The pair instantly ‘clicked’ and started dating, creating a bond between each other that would stay strong throughout both of their lives. Although their relationship ended when Freddie came to terms with his sexuality, their friendship did not end. “Our love affair ended in tears, but a deep bond grew out of it, and that’s something nobody can take away from us,” said Freddie. “It’s unreachable. All my lovers ask why they can’t replace her, but it’s simply impossible.”
Image credits: vintag.es
Image credits: vintag.es
Eventually, Mary got married and had two children – but that did not stop her from always being there for Freddie, especially after he was diagnosed with HIV. After the singer’s passing, Mary had received a part of his fortune, with Freddie stating “If things had been different you would have been my wife, and this would have been yours anyway” in his will.
Image credits: vintag.es
Image credits: vintag.es
Image credits: vintag.es
Although her inheritance wasn’t viewed well by others – especially by other members of Queen. “I don’t think the remaining members of Queen have ever reconciled themselves to it,” said Mary. “I don’t understand it. Because to me, it’s bricks and mortar. I try never to be jealous or envy people.”
Image credits: vintag.es
Image credits: vintag.es
Image credits: vintag.es
“Freddie was very generous to them in the last years of his life and I don’t think they embraced that generosity. I don’t think they appreciated or recognized what Freddie had left them. He left the band a quarter share of the last four albums – which he didn’t need to do. And I never hear from them. After Freddie died, they just wandered off,” said Mary.
Image credits: vintag.es
Image credits: vintag.es
Some songs still remind Mary of the time Freddie and she used to spend together: “You hear a specific song and it makes you feel emotional. We lived those 20-odd years together. Under the same roof. Together emotionally.”
Image credits: vintag.es
Image credits: vintag.es
Freddie and she used to watch videos of his old performances when the singer was already succumbing to the effects of AIDS. “On one occasion he turned to me and said sadly, ‘To think I used to be so handsome.’ I got up and had to leave the room,” Mary recalled.
Image credits: vintag.es
Image credits: vintag.es
Image credits: vintag.es
Image credits: vintag.es
“It was too upsetting. We were never allowed to get emotional around him and that was hard. But I knew if I sat there I would have been in tears. When I returned I just sat down as if nothing had happened. But for that moment, he caught me off guard.”
Image credits: vintag.es
Image credits: vintag.es
Image credits: vintag.es
Image credits: vintag.es
The two might have had their ups and downs but their friendship always remained strong, proving the unique and undbreakable bond Freddie and Mary had.
Image credits: vintag.es
Image credits: vintag.es
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