Don’t stop them now: Fans party for Freddie Mercury’s 80th birthday
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Fans gathering around the Freddie Mercury statue overlooking Lake Geneva during Montreux Freddie Day in Montreux, Switzerland.
PHOTO: AFP
- Thousands of fans gathered in Montreux to celebrate Freddie Mercury's 80th birthday, wearing costumes and leaving tributes at his statue.
- The annual Freddie Days event has grown since 2003, featuring concerts and talks about Mercury's musical legacy.
- Mercury's unique talent and Queen's music continue to inspire fans worldwide, with celebrations including his sister and a birthday cake cutting.
AI generated
MONTREUX – Thousands of Queen fans sang, cheered and partied at the Freddie Mercury statue in Montreux on Sept 5 to celebrate what would have been the legendary British singer’s 80th birthday.
Wearing outlandish outfits reflecting Mercury’s stage costumes, the fans gathered in honour of the frontman, in the Swiss lakeside town where he sought peace in his final years and recorded his last vocals.
“It is a special birthday so you’ve got to make the effort to come and celebrate all things Freddie,” said Sonia, who travelled from Canberra.
Her friend Khristina said she “fell in love with him, thought he was the most beautiful man – and then my husband looks just like him!”
The bronze statue of Mercury in a triumphant pose, erected in 1996 overlooking Lake Geneva, was decked with balloons, flowers and tributes left by well-wishers.
Bottles of Moet et Chandon champagne, referenced in Mercury’s song Killer Queen, and his favourite Stolichnaya vodka were also left at the foot of the plinth.
Appreciation of Queen’s legacy and Mercury’s unique talent has only grown since his death in 1991 from bronchial pneumonia, brought on by AIDS.
The group were among the world’s best-selling artists, and sales have come since the singer’s passing at the age of 45.
Lavish birthday cake
Queen owned Mountain Studios, built into the Montreux Casino, and recorded six albums there.
In Montreux, the Freddie Days birthday event has been running annually since 2003 and has grown over time.
“This is the busiest I’ve ever seen it,” said fan Gail Potter, 61, from York in northern England.
“It’s this that makes Queen different from any other band,” she said, looking at the sea of fans milling round the market square.
“The music keeps on going, which is extraordinary.”
Fans were dressed in a wealth of different Mercury outfits, including his iconic 1986 Magic Tour yellow jacket, his Invisible Man sunglasses, 1982 arrows jackets, and his 39th-birthday Living On My Own black-and-white leggings.
The event also saw concerts and talks, including one on Mercury’s trailblazing 1988 Barcelona duet album recorded with the Spanish opera diva Montserrat Caballe.
“He would have been amazed that people still come from all over the world in such large numbers to celebrate – he’d have loved it. He loved being idolised! – though he’d have hated being 80!,” said composer Mike Moran, who co-wrote the album with Mercury.
The day culminated with the cutting of a 80th birthday cake, with Mercury’s sister Kashmira Bulsara as special guest.
Fans sang Happy Birthday together, before the party continued into the night. AFP
