Freddie Mercury and the Love of His Life

Mary Austin: Freddie Mercury’s True Love

Mary Austin was a woman who was the love and inspiration of one of Great Britain's biggest celebrities, Queen lead singer, Freddie Mercury. But being the quiet and unassuming woman she was, she never publicized her relationship with Freddie and never used it for her own personal gain.

She met Brian May, Queen’s lead guitarist, in college and dated him. They had a fun relationship, but it never got serious and they separated on friendly terms. May had introduced Mary to his band. She wasn’t aware of it at the time, but she had caught the attention of the group’s lead singer and Brian May’s co-worker, Freddie Mercury.

Mercury began visiting the store where she worked and befriended her. Six months later he surprised her by asking her out on a date. While dating she began to see a side of Freddie which he did not show to others, the serious, quiet and mistrustful side. They grew close to each other and moved in together in 1973.

Once Queen began to get popular and it was clear that Freddie was meant for stardom, she became aware of how out of her element she felt. She felt ill-equipped to take on the unique world of celebrity and decided to end the relationship. Freddie refused to let her go telling her that they were meant for each other. Though reluctant, she agreed to stay. She thought he would soon lose interest in her.

As Queen rose to stardom, Freddie wrote some songs about her, most notably, Love of My Life. In the late 70s, he and Mary were beginning to grow apart. She felt like something was missing in their relationship. Finally, in 1980, Freddie revealed to her that he had been unfaithful to her with partners of his own sex. She was stunned to learn of this new twist to their relationship and decided to move out into her own place. Though she was hurt, she did not become angry or bitter and actually took an apartment near to his place and the two remained close. Freddie hired her to be the secretary to the band’s publishing business and she still often toured with them. She never used her knowledge of Freddie for advantage or gain, but remained a faithful friend and confidant.

Mary also began to have her own life outside the band, which Freddie encouraged. But life and the whole world seemed to come to a screeching halt for her in 1987 when Freddie revealed to her that he had tested positive for HIV. She was actually the very first person he ever told and she never repeated it to anyone through the remainder of his life.

Freddie made it one of his top priorities to make sure that Mary was financially secure. Mary made it one of her top priorities to make sure Freddie took care of his health. Finally in 1991, Freddie’s health deteriorated and he died at the age of 45. In the settling of Freddie’s estate, he left the vast majority of his wealth and fortune to Mary, including his palace-like mansion. After a period of mourning, Mary got on with her life and married. She also started a foundation in Freddie Mercury’s honor and memory and continues to support Queen’s musical efforts. She still lives quietly in the mansion given to her by the love of her life and occasionally grants interviews. In one such interview, Mary had this to say:

“I lost somebody who I thought was my eternal love. When he died I felt we'd had a marriage. We'd lived our vows. We'd done it for better for worse, for richer for poorer, in sickness and in health. You could never have let go of Freddie unless he died - and even then it was difficult.” [Mary Austin, OK! Magazine, March 17, 2000].

And so it is that though Freddie’s sexual escapades may have led him astray into infidelity, his heart was always with the true love of his life, the only one he had ever had a continuing and sustained relationship with, his dear friend and eternal confidant, the honorable, Mary Austin.