Freddie Mercury: Sotheby’s Exhibition
Freddie Mercury: A World of His Own
4 August 2023 - 5 September 2023
Sotheby’s, 34-35 New Bond Street, London.
Admission: Free
Guide: Outside famous Sotheby’s
When I first heard Freddie’s personal and home furnishings were going on exhibition before being sold at Sotheby’s. I thought it’d be ghoulish given as I understood it, Freddie had specifically stated he didn’t want his personal items going on display in museums. Then a few days ago I saw the exhibition advertised in my Instagram feed titled Freddie Mercury: A World of His Own.
I was drawn into the instagram post by a pair of Adidas hi-top trainers worn by Freddie and then I stumbled across the comment section. I was astounded at how vile and venomous the comments were and all directed to Mary Austin. The one time girlfriend who Freddie said he’d loved like he’d loved no one. And whom he bequeathed his £25m West London mansion Garden Lodge and all of its contents.
It seemed all those commenting felt the sale was in bad taste or that the items should have gone to a museum for all to see and admire. I guess when you reach the level of fame Freddie did along with being elevated to music legend status given his passing of an AIDS-related illness. I guess fans and fanatics will tend to forever feel they ‘own’ someone and their possessions.
Mary Austin now 72 shared in an interview with the BBC she has decided to sell the collection "because I need to put my affairs in order. The time has come for me to take the difficult decision to close this very special chapter in my life". And with the exception of a few "personal gifts" and photographs of the pair together, Mary Austin is selling everything. "I decided that it wouldn't be appropriate for me to keep things back. If I was going to sell, I had to be brave and sell the lot."
I arrived a little before 11am when the doors were due to open and there was a queue that stretched from the entrance of Sotheby’s. Right along New Bond Street and around the corner onto Maddox Street. I joined the end of the line outside the Maddox Tavern and it continued to grow to the frustration of people trying to walk along the pavement. By 11:28 I was at the front door and being ushered inside. I dropped my bag in the cloakroom and was given a guide all free of charge.
I walked down the corridor lined with mock red brick wall and a replica bottle green ‘Garden Lodge’ gate. I was advised to turn back as this was not as I thought a service/fire exit door as part of a ‘set’ but the entrance to the start of the exhibition. The flow of hundreds of people was steady and respectful although I observed the odd bit of ‘argy bargy’. Almost everybody was filming or taking photographs closeup and often breathless, shaking, and in a clamber of some very opulent and decorative pieces.
And as I walked around the exhibition I heard many voices stating they didn’t agree with the sale nor the items being on display yet here they were, ghoulishly prying and gawping like the rest of us. Some mentioned a percentage of the sale should have gone to AIDS charities and I had to bite my tongue from turning sharply and asking “Why”? Just because Freddie died from AIDS-related complications why on earth does Mary need to share a percentage of the sale in his name? I just found this narrative bizarre. I had to bite my tongue from also saying ‘I have ‘the AIDS’ [HIV] and while HIV charities and organisations always need funding to do their work. We sure don’t need a cut of something that Freddie explicitly bequeathed to Mary’. I couldn’t help but wonder if it was the fact these people couldn’t afford much of what was up for sale and acting with an air of Hyacinth Bucket. And according to the only interview Mary did with the BBC, it concluded “The auction is expected to fetch in excess of £6m and some of the proceeds will be donated to charity”.
Freddie’s life was not lived through ‘HIV/AIDS’ and the items certainly take you on a journey away from the cause/reminder of his demise. And it is a joyous reminder that a very flamboyant man lived a very camp and flamboyant life. Clearly surrounding himself as we all do, with possessions as a result of his talent and success that no doubt brought him joy and made him happy.
The only time I was a little choked was when I turned the corner into the Wilson Gallery and was faced with the clothes he wore in his final video ‘These Are the Days of Our Lives’. The instantly recognisable cat waistcoat and the black shirt that hung on a frail and gaunt-looking Freddie. After a moment of reflection, I couldn’t help but feel guilty that I take one pill a day for HIV which allows me to live another day and many more after that.
It was 13:32 when I left the exhibition and I couldn’t believe that two hours had passed. I enjoyed the exhibition on the merit of feeling super privileged to be up close and personal with Freddie Mercury’s personal possessions. Admiring his taste and wondering what it must have been like shopping with him and for a home that no doubt is more than a hundred times bigger than my own. And while Mary states she still holds a deep affection for Freddie and misses him dearly. What life must have been like living in what was effectively a Freddie Museum for over 30 years? Being a custodian of the collection is one thing but to have the burden of what to do with it and when. Only to be criticised by those that felt they knew Freddy best when in reality they hardly knew him at all, not like Mary.
I had a vast collection of Cher’s personal, Film, and television wardrobe along with some personal effects. And while I didn’t consider placing any bids at the Freddie auction. I was somewhat surprised by how mauled the items were by the sweaty digits of the great unwashed that pass through the exhibition. And as I saw on Tik Tok, Sotheby’s opening-up glass cases so that unofficial Freddie/Queen fans can maul items without gloves for clickbait. As a collector of such items myself previously, direct from the individual’s home/collection. There is an expectation that the items you purchase retain their untouched ‘magical’ value given they have been handled ‘appropriately’ by an extraordinarily privileged few.
Inside: Freddie Mercury Exhibition Sotheby’s
I passed through the exhibition for a second time having bid on a few items. I accompanied a friend on 21 August 2023 who was equally a Freddie/Queen fan and like Freddie a passionate cat lover.
Given the reluctance of the LGBT media in the UK to cover the petition advocating the UK Government update the UK public on HIV/AIDS and U=U. I decided to prepare a sweatshirt advertising the petition on my back. In the hope walking around the exhibition given the manner in which the great Freddie Mercury passed, would inspire those attending to sign the petition for an update. Of course, I was well aware that visitors’ eyes would be on the exhibition and not my back, but there were times when we queued and waited to pass through the exhibition and I felt it was worth a try with a space on my back that would otherwise be blank.
Please sign the petition below calling upon the UK Government to update the public on HIV/AIDS. It has been 36 years of silence since the UK Governments AIDS tombstone campaign.
I am not sure how it happened but before I knew it. I had registered with Sotheby’s and completed their verification and identification process. I was assigned paddle number 1293 for the ‘At Home’ auction and paddle 816 for the ‘Crazy Little Things 1’ auction. I was now eligible to bid, and I was eager to bid on a couple of things but got a little carried away.
I had never bid in an auction before, not even online. And there seemed to be rules and fees [Buyers Premium], fees [Overhead Premium], and more fees [VAT applied to premiums]. I never knew being an auctioneer was so lucrative.
I set about browsing the catalogue and saved 138 items that I was interested in. I had owned personal items of various notable people before, mainly Cher. Gowns, costumes from her films, and personal items including homewares. I sold all these on as I got older given I made no effort to display them and asked why I had them in my possession. So my first bid in the act of dipping my toe was to bid on a piece of furniture, something I could display if I were fortunate to be the highest bidder which is all dependent on how deep I am willing to dig.
