When did Freddie get the HIV virus

BiggyRat wrote:

The story we got fed here was that some aircraft steward had infected him on a flight (musta been the mile high club I guess) in early '87. So many stories, who knows the truth?

But don't forget Freddie's next-to-last-lover Winnie Kirchberger (sp?) who also died of AIDS, although he died later than Freddie, but it can be considered an angle. So maybe Freddie infected him, or Winnie got infected by somebody else and got Freddie infected...etc. Endless possibilities.

<font color="whitesmoke">bambam wrote:

BiggyRat wrote:

The story we got fed here was that some aircraft steward had infected him on a flight (musta been the mile high club I guess) in early '87. So many stories, who knows the truth?

But don't forget Freddie's next-to-last-lover Winnie Kirchberger (sp?) who also died of AIDS, although he died later than Freddie, but it can be considered an angle. So maybe Freddie infected him, or Winnie got infected by somebody else and got Freddie infected...etc. Endless possibilities.

Yeah good point bambam, I doubt we'll ever know the full story, or the real one for that matter

Sad to say but it's impossible to tell, considering how many persons he was in contact with during the early eighties. Here's some of them :

- Vince the barman
- Tony Bastin
- Bill Reid
- John Murphy
- Thor Arnold
- Nicolay Grishanovitch
- Winnie Kirchenberger

And countless more....

Of all he had connection with in the gay world 99 % of them are dead. The spreading of the disease is impossible to track down, he could have got it from absolute anyone.

It's sad that he just gave a damn about his life in those days. It was doomed to go wrong!!

I say the best reference is Jim Huttons book:

He (Freddie) was obvious aware of the possibility that he was infected during the late 1986.
And Freddie told Jim that he has the positive result sometime in April 1987, just after he did the test.

So, if this is fact, we only can say that just after his result, about May 1987 his HIV infection developped into AIDS (skin-cancer). And as the virus needs at least about 3 to 6 months to developp into AIDS, we only can say for sure, that Freddie was infected latest by the end of 1986.

And that are all the facts! The rest is speculation and will never be for sure!

You people should watch the "When freddie mercury met kenny everett" documentary.. it explains and describes it a lot.. how and when and with who it likely happened..
The program refers to Nicholai as the source of infection.

I think Freddie got HIV sometime before it killed him.

Good call, Dan.

I think he got the Hiv virus between the late 70's and early 80's. One good example is when he was a lot in the states, like the partys in New York and of course the Halloween Party in New Orleans in 78! It was around that time gaypeoples got infected by the "unknown" illness in San Francisco, Los Angeles, New York and New Orleans.
Like he said "I take everything, and everyone!" lol...
Or maybe, he got the virus around his time in Munich between 84-85. When you take a look at the famous and crazy birthday party he held in Munich in 1985, you can think of that too!

*bows* Thanks Manders. ;)

after he met the postman? i mean the one who posted this topic

I heard he lived HIV Positive for seven years so he might have been infected around 1983, but who really knows?

i believe that freddie was scard of becoming HIV postive before the Magic tour, but didn't get it 'til after (like a year after), but then again, what would i know! you all probably have hardcore facts, whereas im guessing

monte

It´s impossible to say. I´d guess he got infected between
80-82... He probably knew he had HIV in 84-85 and probably developed into an early stage of Aids in 85 and it got a lot verse from 87 and onwards....

I remember I read someplace that doctors tried prevent him doing the magic tour... If thats true it would mean he already knew something we didnt...

I believe the Mercury and me story, where it is told he prolly got it in munchen, but like everyone already said: no one knows for sure.

At least we all know Fred tried to keep it a secret for as long as possible...

another question:
Are you bothered by the fact Freddie never told his fans he had aids? Given the fact that they only told the world the day he died

I personally don't, it would have been a huge media hype, which is not something he could use, plus I think it's his private business

I wasnt bothered he didnt tell us til the day before, because I think it was blatently obvious what was going on! As soon as we saw him at the Brits we knew that it was most likely to be AIDS.