Ordinary people who have been lucky enough to meet Freddie Mercury in person share their impressions

A bold, enigmatic, bombastic, grandiose rock star! Yes, a flamboyant stage persona Freddie Mercury But Queen's loyal fans seem to agree that the iconic frontman's stage image is not the whole picture of his amazing personality. Unfortunately, most people really don't know who the legendary vocalist really was "Queens."... After Mercury's death, rumours and tall tales about him and his personal life began to be folded into legends, but ... only a select group of people knew how the extraordinary man called Freddie Mercury. And the stories of people who were lucky enough to meet him in person prove it: the frontman has a . Queen there was always a softer side... In fact, despite his cult status, Freddie remained a very humble, kind and simple person in the most beautiful sense of the word in real life....

"He went barefoot, but he was more concerned about the welfare of the fan."

In his book. "Classic Queen" photographer Mick Rock recalls:

"I met a young guy through Bowie once who was desperate to meet Freddie. I don't know if this guy loved Queen music or was just in love with Mercury... Nevertheless, I took him backstage to introduce him to Freddie. He was very drunk and he ended up throwing up right on Freddie's shoes... What amazed me was that Freddie just took off his shoes and told this guy not to worry. He took care of him: Freddie filled a glass of water, looked for some bicarbonate or baking soda... He - the legendary entertainer of all time - went barefoot, but he was more concerned about the fan's well-being! He was concerned about the welfare of the young man, not the shoes..."

"He smelled pretty damn good."

From one fan's recollection:

"I met Freddie at a bar in Charlotte, North Carolina after a concert. He was very nice and smelled so damn good! That said, he was hiding his real identity... I was shocked - people didn't realise who was there! Nevertheless, we had a nice chat and he was able to have some fun and enjoy some peace without people hanging around him..."

The admirer continues:

"Three days later a friend and I saw him in Philadelphia again! He walked over to where I was standing and said: "Oh, we have family here, hi!" and he waved. A special moment, a special time, a special person..."

"If people respected Freddie, he would respect them in return."

Despite his colourful stage persona, Freddie's long-time personal assistant - Peter "Phoebe" Freestone - claims that the singer almost never turned down an autograph:

"Freddie knew that he owed everything he had to his fans because they were the ones who were constantly buying his records... Thus, he very rarely refused to sign things or take pictures with fans..."

But it happened sometimes. And for good reason...

"I remember one day our band went to a restaurant and there were a couple of fans who noticed Freddie's appearance. We sat down and ordered our food, and soon they came over... One of the fans had finished eating and walked over to the table, at the moment Freddie brought a fork full of food to his mouth and pushed a piece of paper in front of his face, asking for an autograph! Freddie asked him to leave after saying a couple of rude words... But even after this unpleasant incident, as we were leaving, Freddie still walked up to the fans and signed an autograph. He told that guy that what he did was actually pretty rude. If people respected Freddie, he would respect them back..."

"He always strived to make his fans happy."

According to the journalist. Leslie-Anne Jones, Mercury. "always striving to make his fans happy"! Jones' most vivid memory was Budapest showin honour of whom Freddie was determined to perform a special song in their own language for the audience:

"We were in Budapest when he was trying to learn the words to a traditional folk song... He spent a really long time and effort on it, but he still couldn't understand them. Then he wrote them on his left palm! As he performed, he made vivid hand gestures, which allowed him to read the words written on his palm... It was so important for him to get it right. I melted..."

"Best Friend of the Family."

Record producer Reinhold Mack met the legendary frontman. Queen during the recording of the first of the band's five albums:

"I came straight from the airport to the studio and there was a colossal amount of equipment! The door swung open and Freddie came down the stairs. There were six, seven people behind him, like a tribe of bodyguards! When he saw me, he said: "What are you doing here?" "Well, I thought I was supposed to be working with you," I replied. He said: "Um, no, not really. But since you're here..."

As a result Mac and Mercury have become very close! During the recording of their second album together, their pregnant wife Reinhold even joked that they'd be working on the album longer than she and Mac's baby was born! Well, that's exactly what happened. The baby's name was John Frederick or Little Freddie.and his godfather was none other than himself. Mercury! At one point, the frontman Queen became their family's best friend... One day Freddie asked his eldest son Mac, JulianaHe asked what he wanted for his birthday, to which he replied: "All I want is for you to turn up at my party in the costume from the music video. "It's a Hard Life!" And he did!

"Well, he didn't come straight to the door in a suit... I could hear him changing in my bedroom, muttering: "I can do it on stage, I can do it at this party too!"

"You could always have a laugh with Freddie."

One of the first roadies Queen, Peter Hincehe was with a band on tour A Night At The Opera 1975 a year before the last performance Freddie в 1986 Year. Hince recalls:

"People talk about Freddie and his ego, but his ego wasn't as big as a lot of people think. It was all just an image... He could make fun of himself while some of the other guys in the band couldn't do the same. You could have a laugh with Freddie, but you always knew where the line was..."

"When he sat down at the piano, I realised I had a real musician in front of me."

A lot of people would characterise the music Queen as opera rock, so it should come as no surprise to fans that. Mercury was a great admirer of classical art and had a great desire to perform alongside one of opera's greatest figures... A delightful Monserrat Caballé about their first meeting with Freddie:

"When he sat down at the piano, I realised that I had a real musician in front of me... He started improvising and it was perfect! Then he told me about his illness and we had the opportunity to compose songs that still made sense... I was touched because we were creating something special... You don't often have the good fortune to sing with someone great who's gone forever..."

"I held out my hand, and surprisingly, he shook it gently!"

From one fan's recollection:

"At one point Freddie took off his sunglasses, causing a commotion... When I finally approached him, I saw his eyes. I knew I would only have a minute, tops, so I ignored the other band members (sorry guys) and went straight to the lead singer. I handed Freddie my newly acquired Queen and Queen II... When he saw my selection, he looked up and saw a long-haired kid smiling at him!"

An admirer recalls nervously recounting. Freddiehow much he and his friend enjoyed the show, and that Freddie "signed one of the albums, all the while looking at him and his friend with a hint of fun...". He thanked the fan with a "subtle smirk". The fan also claims that he "held out his hand, and surprisingly, Freddie shook it gently!"

"I liked it, she liked it, and that's all that matters!"

One day, a groupie accidentally punched Freddie on her face the first time she met him... She described how she felt:

"The moment you first get so close to your idol for the first time, you just want to grab onto whatever you can. You just can't help it. You lose control... and you just do what you do..."

In the meantime. Freddie like this, giggling to himself: "Oh bloody hell... I liked it, she liked it, and that's all that matters!".