Mary Austin, The constant feminine presence next to Queen lead singer Freddie Mercury. In 1969, Austin, a working-class deaf girl, met Mercury in the London clothing store where she was employed. Mary began dating Freddie despite her worries, and after a while, she moved into his apartment.
Queen wouldn’t take long to become well-known. In 1973, the year Queen’s debut album of the same name was released, Freddie proposed to Mary. Mary would never marry Freddie, but she stood by his side until his passing. Only Austin is aware of the location of Freddie Mercury’s ashes’ dispersal.
Where Is Mary Austin Now?
Mary continues to lead a hidden life in Freddie’s mansion at One Garden Lodge.
In the mansion that Freddie Mercury left Mary Austin, One Garden Lodge, she celebrated her 70th birthday in March 2021. When they found out that Freddie had bequeathed the mansion to Mary Austin, his friends found it hard to believe.
Mercury’s partner at the time of his passing, Jim Austin, believed that he would inherit the home. Mary urged Jim, Freddie’s ex Joe Fanelli, and Freddie’s personal assistant Peter Freestone to leave the property three months following Freddie’s passing.
Also Read: Kelly Price’s Partner, Spouse, Children, And Parents
They had somewhere to go because Freddie had left each of them a sizable 500,000 pounds. Mary admitted that evicting Peter, Joe, and Jim wasn’t fun:
“Some of the admirers even claimed to know me solely as the housekeeper. I was hurt. I am aware that many of Freddie’s gay friends were taken aback by the size of his bequest to me. Some people believed they ought to have fled the house. It appeared as though folks were resentful of me receiving his leftovers.
Mary received not only Freddie’s house but also his riches and half of his potential royalties. Freddie insisted that she keep the London mansion despite Mary’s efforts to convince him to turn it into a memorial that visitors may visit.
According to reports, Freddie allegedly said,
“If things had been different, you would have been my wife and this would have been yours anyhow.” Richard and James, Mary’s two children, were raised in Freddie’s mansion.
She hasn’t altered the majority of Freddie’s decorations, according to the few interviews she has given from the house. She got into a fight with Freddie’s supporters in 2017 when she had all the graffiti on the exterior wall of the home removed and a sign advising people not to deface the wall put in its place.
Some of Freddie’s supporters assert that Mary is only the property’s caretaker. But according to Freddie’s will, she is free to do with the land whatever she wants. She currently lives a calm life on the estate with her animals. Given that Freddie wanted the property to be a family home, it seems unlikely that Mary will convert it into a museum.
Before Mercury came out as bisexual, Mary and Mercury were engaged to be married. Mary began to believe Freddie was having an affair six years into their partnership. After she threatened to leave, Freddie changed, but Mary soon learned that he was bisexual.
At that particular moment, Austin told The Daily Mail,
“I’ll never forget,” “I do recall telling him, ‘No Freddie, I don’t think your bisexual,’ at the time. I believe you to be gay. The couple’s engagement and the sexual relationship came to an end after Freddie’s admission.
But it didn’t sever their relationship. She resumed the band’s and Mercury’s tour. And they stayed close friends for a very long time after that, according to biographer Mark Blake. She stayed since she was a member of his entourage and was traveling with the band. She was the most significant member of that group.
Mary later wed Piers Cameron, although she admitted that she felt like she had lost family when Freddie passed away. Aside from my sons, he was everything to me, Mary stated.
“He was unlike anyone I had ever met,“
Mercury once remarked that he thought of Mary as his wife:
“Every one of my lovers asks me why they can’t take Mary’s place, but it’s just not feasible. Mary is the only friend I have, and I don’t want any more. She was my common-law spouse to me. It was a marriage to me.”
Freddie fulfilled his pledge to love Mary till the day he passed away.
According to Mary, “We had done it for better or worse, for richer or poorer, in sickness and in health.”
Also Read: Personal Details, Career, And Wealth Of Gil Birmingham
