Jim mentioned once that he would have liked to have married Mr Mercury and that Mr Mercury did tell him if this had been another lifetime they would have. I think that may have had more to do with Mr Mercury's family career and Ms Austin than any law but I'm only speculating. Jim said it didn't matter much anyway as Mr Mercury only ever addressed Jim as his husband and they lived like a married couple. Joe also agreed Mr Mercury seemed happy in his final days with Jim by his side. I think he was happy with all of the Garden Lodge men by his side. There's something to be said about loyalty and he certainly had that with them.
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SM , thank you! I appreciate that from someone I've come to respect! :-)
SM thank you very much for your insight, it is completely different to hear something like this from somebody who knows her personally.
I very much appreciate that you have shared your ecperience with us.
I very much appreciate that you have shared your ecperience with us.
Someday I'll figure out how to add a quote from a previous post, but regarding John Reid and whether or not Mary was sad at the funeral... John Reid was not at the funeral. He doesn't specify what year Mary said, "I won in the end" but it definitely wasn't at the funeral, and may very well have been some years afterward.
The quote is something he told authors of the 2000 book "Somebody to Love":
"Perhaps a comment given to the authors by John Reid might shed a bit more light on this sorry affair [speaking of the happenings at Garden Lodge after Freddie's death] : "I didn't go to the funeral," Reid said. "I saw Mary a couple of times. I bump into her now and again. She said the strangest thing to me; she said as I was trying to comfort her, because she'd been through a lot and seen a lot, and she said to me, "Well, I won in the end, didn't I? He was with me at the end." That was a bit scary"
The quote is something he told authors of the 2000 book "Somebody to Love":
"Perhaps a comment given to the authors by John Reid might shed a bit more light on this sorry affair [speaking of the happenings at Garden Lodge after Freddie's death] : "I didn't go to the funeral," Reid said. "I saw Mary a couple of times. I bump into her now and again. She said the strangest thing to me; she said as I was trying to comfort her, because she'd been through a lot and seen a lot, and she said to me, "Well, I won in the end, didn't I? He was with me at the end." That was a bit scary"
> John Murphy passed away LONG BEFORE Freddie had
> succumbed to this dreadful disease.
Yes, I know that. And that's what Paul Prenter said as well. He meant that John was at Garden Lodge in 1986 a few weeks before his own (John's) death, not Freddie's death. Prenter said John died on November 11, 1986. That means, according to Paul, John was visiting Freddie sometime during the autumn of 1986.
@Thor, I understand it is not pleasant for you to read Paul's interview (and as I understand, you haven't read it by the link I gave, but that's ok). On the other hand, I hope you understand that I treat such materials as historical documents worthy of studying. Regardless of Paul's morals, these are his words and it's useful to know what he said. I personally don't know why he would lie about John's visit to Garden Lodge in 1986, it's not some shameful information to print it in a newspaper just for the sake of shocking people. You mentioned you didn't see much of John during that time, so probably it's not that Paul is lying about this visit but just that John continued to see Freddie which you were not aware of... Again, I don't see anything shameful here, in this particular case.
> succumbed to this dreadful disease.
Yes, I know that. And that's what Paul Prenter said as well. He meant that John was at Garden Lodge in 1986 a few weeks before his own (John's) death, not Freddie's death. Prenter said John died on November 11, 1986. That means, according to Paul, John was visiting Freddie sometime during the autumn of 1986.
@Thor, I understand it is not pleasant for you to read Paul's interview (and as I understand, you haven't read it by the link I gave, but that's ok). On the other hand, I hope you understand that I treat such materials as historical documents worthy of studying. Regardless of Paul's morals, these are his words and it's useful to know what he said. I personally don't know why he would lie about John's visit to Garden Lodge in 1986, it's not some shameful information to print it in a newspaper just for the sake of shocking people. You mentioned you didn't see much of John during that time, so probably it's not that Paul is lying about this visit but just that John continued to see Freddie which you were not aware of... Again, I don't see anything shameful here, in this particular case.
Good morning everyone - at least it is morning here.
Going to get off a quick post before work since the conversation about Mary is one that fascinates me.
SM - after reading everything you have said - is it your belief that there were two different Marys - the Mary before Freddie's death and the Mary after? If so, do you feel everyone tolerated her because of Freddie?
In your opinion, was there anyone at Garden Lodge who could honestly say they liked or respected her?
Lastly, I do admire your reference to Freddie as Mr. Mercury - I feel guilty when I use his name. What deep respect that shows for this man from you.
Have a good day everyone!! Happy Friday.
Going to get off a quick post before work since the conversation about Mary is one that fascinates me.
SM - after reading everything you have said - is it your belief that there were two different Marys - the Mary before Freddie's death and the Mary after? If so, do you feel everyone tolerated her because of Freddie?
In your opinion, was there anyone at Garden Lodge who could honestly say they liked or respected her?
Lastly, I do admire your reference to Freddie as Mr. Mercury - I feel guilty when I use his name. What deep respect that shows for this man from you.
Have a good day everyone!! Happy Friday.
To further beat this dead horse, sorry one more point about Mary.
Just from that quote, and many other things people have said, Mary seemed to be very possessive of Freddie and wanted him to herself. Whether that's love or obsession, I'm not going to hazard a guess. But it's clear that two things can be true: 1) that she loved being around Freddie and 2) that she disliked many of the other people around Freddie (because she saw them as rivals).
That dichotomy might explain why we get very different impressions of Mary from different people. On the one side are those who say how wonderful she was and how devoted she was to Freddie. And on the other side are those who say how cold and bitchy she was. I think both claims could have some truth to them.
Just from that quote, and many other things people have said, Mary seemed to be very possessive of Freddie and wanted him to herself. Whether that's love or obsession, I'm not going to hazard a guess. But it's clear that two things can be true: 1) that she loved being around Freddie and 2) that she disliked many of the other people around Freddie (because she saw them as rivals).
That dichotomy might explain why we get very different impressions of Mary from different people. On the one side are those who say how wonderful she was and how devoted she was to Freddie. And on the other side are those who say how cold and bitchy she was. I think both claims could have some truth to them.
Reid wasn't at the funeral but that quote of his came long before that garbage book came out. It was in another book and in an article as early as 2000. It's one of the many reasons Beach wanted nothing to do with Reid after that. Anything that shows Mary in a truthful light hurts his agenda to cash in on the Freddie n' Mary money cow.
Ok but look at who all is claiming Mary was sweet and kind etc. Mick Rock who only saw them when they were still a couple and Freddie was closeted during photo shoots and public events he was hired to photograph. Don't be fooled by all his interviews. There are no photos of him hanging out with Freddie post 77ish. Brian May who benefits financially from the Freddie and Mary lie (and admits he has no idea what happened inside GL)and David Wigg who only saw what she told him. I've seen no intervews with Peter Freestone or anyone else who saw Mary's true colors from Wigg. Leads me to believe he just doesn't see the other side of it. So when you think about it....is there actually any trusted source who praises her for her live and devotion to Freddie?
Dustin, sorry, you're right. I meant the quote from Reid was reported in 2000 ( and the authors of the book say it was said to them). The book was published later. So the Mary quote was probably from anywhere between Freddie's death and the late 90s.
Dustin, I don't think one can completely discount what Freddie said about her and how he acted around her. He did seem to care about her. I don't see just "guilt" over not marrying her in 1975 as being a reason for all of that.
Emcee no from what I was told by Jim and Joe there was no difference between her before and after his death. If anything there was just less need for her to keep in contact with certain people. Someone on here a few pages back mentioned Mr Mercurys mother admitting Ms Austin stopped all contact with her. Why if you really cared about this person...would you then stop communicating with his family who apparently liked you a great deal? You really can't claim it was grief keeping her away when that interview with Mr Mercury's mum was taken some 20 plus years after his death. Seems to me she got what she wanted and no longer felt a need to keep up an act. But again I wasn't close to her. I'm just piecing together what I know and what I saw. As far as the men of the garden lodge tolerating her yes. Without saying too much nobody from the garden lodge was a fan of hers. That included the maids and cleaners who didn't live there. I don't wish to speak for anyone or cross a line but let's just say Ms Austin was a part of Mr Mercury's life that all of them understood was something they just had to live with. Joe was the most vocal about it. Jim was frustrated but kept it bottled up. Mr Freestome was stone faced up to a certain point and then it seemed to bubble over but no...none of them would have picked her to be a part of their lives.
Sm, well said I feel the same way you do.She is a manipulative woman.I said nothing about a sociapath.But anyone that holds on to a person for all of those years and doesnt want them to go on without her isn't a normal friendship behavior.She was always in his face it seems phoebe I believe said her attachment wasnt a healthy one.Noone that is well does that.noone holds on to a promise that they will leave you everything they have when they die when you are in your youth but she didnt let him forget.I totally get it and that's why I get alot of negative feedback from some followers.Everyone feels sorry for her.
Yeah I get what you mean but remember this: all the romantic and sweet things Freddie said about her were always said in interviews for the press. I can't recall one private conversation that was reported back from a trusted source that said Freddie felt this way toward Mary. Even Mary herself said in her own interview "I didn't know how he felt about me because he never told me. I found out how he felt about me through his interviews."
I'm sorry what? Lol. The man that supposedly loved her like no other also didn't mention that to her at all? He only brought this up in interviews meant for the public? Sorry but I don't but any weight at all into what Freddie said about her in interviews. He also said he would have a child once he "found the right girl" in the same interveiw where he gushed over Mary lol.
I've seen no letters no unedited audio, nothing that leads me to believe Freddie felt that way about her. Meanwhile you have Freddie gushing over Jim both on paper and on audio and he went out of his way to make sure Wigg didn't print that he was talking about a man when he said he found the niche he'd been looking for all his life (so you know it wasn't just his fake Mary banter again) but he was referring to Jim.
That relationship according to Freestone and others was based on guilt. I don't believe for a second that Freddie willingly kept her attached at the hip because he enjoyed her company and felt a deep bond with her. Hell he went years living in different countries from her and never lost a moment's sleep lol.
I'm sorry what? Lol. The man that supposedly loved her like no other also didn't mention that to her at all? He only brought this up in interviews meant for the public? Sorry but I don't but any weight at all into what Freddie said about her in interviews. He also said he would have a child once he "found the right girl" in the same interveiw where he gushed over Mary lol.
I've seen no letters no unedited audio, nothing that leads me to believe Freddie felt that way about her. Meanwhile you have Freddie gushing over Jim both on paper and on audio and he went out of his way to make sure Wigg didn't print that he was talking about a man when he said he found the niche he'd been looking for all his life (so you know it wasn't just his fake Mary banter again) but he was referring to Jim.
That relationship according to Freestone and others was based on guilt. I don't believe for a second that Freddie willingly kept her attached at the hip because he enjoyed her company and felt a deep bond with her. Hell he went years living in different countries from her and never lost a moment's sleep lol.
@SM thank you for reporting Jim's thought about marriage. As I said I think Freddie would have been a good husband had he lived longer, he just didn't have much time to enjoy his settled down status, but I believe Jim, Joe and Phoebe (plus human and feline additions) would have been his forever family long into his old age if fate hadn't hit them so hard.