How Freddie Mercury Was Ridiculed Because of His Teeth, Who His Lovers Were, and How He Spent His Final Days

On September 5, 1946, Farrokh Bulsara was born. 77 years later, he remains an iconic rock legend that not only was a phenomenon while he was alive but left a legacy for generations to come. As we celebrate this milestone, 3 quarters of a century since he came to be, let’s dive a bit deeper into how he became Freddie Mercury, who he loved, and how he spent his final days.

Bright Side believes some people were born to make history; let’s see how Freddie did it and uncover some little-known facts about him.

He was born with extra teeth — a superpower that brought Freddie the recognition he deserved.

Freddie’s nickname growing up was Bucky because of his famous bucktooth grin. The star with supernumerary teeth never got them fixed because he believed his impressive 4-octave vocal range would never be the same. At the age of 7, Freddie was already taking piano classes. 5 years later, he’d go on to join his first band, The Hectics.

On June 2, 1969, Freddie became a British citizen, and soon after, his family immigrated to England. After graduating from Ealing Art College, he joined different bands, while selling Edwardian clothes and scarves at the London market. He did all this while working as a baggage handler at Heathrow Airport.

“When I’m performing, I’m an extrovert, yet inside I’m a completely different man.” — Freddie M.

In 1970, when the band Smile’s lead singer quit, Farrokh replaced him. At this point, he’d already been friends with the other band members, guitarist Brian May and drummer Roger Taylor. Smile turned into Queen and the rest is history.

Well, it wasn’t that simple. Around this time, Farrokh Bulsara officially became Freddie Mercury. 3 years after the band came together, they released their first 2 albums, Queen and Queen II, blending elements of heavy metal and glam rock, but they didn’t break any charts. The third time proved to be a charm, as they say, because their third album, Sheer Heart Attack, shook the international charts.

“Bohemian Rhapsody,” which can be found on their album, A Night at the Opera, and is still popular today, 50 years after its debut, was written mainly by Freddie, and spent 9 weeks atop the British singles chart. “We Are the Champions” and “We Will Rock You” followed in 1977, and by the early ’80s, Queen was deemed an international phenomenon.

One of Queen’s most memorable career milestones was recognized at the Live Aid concert in 1985. In front of 72,000 live viewers and a TV audience of close to 2 billion, the band delivered a stellar performance, and Freddie dominated the stage like an experienced ventriloquist, controlling his audience. Today, this concert is widely known as the greatest performance of all time.

Freddie had 2 special relationships — one with Mary and one with James.

During his life, Freddie admitted to having multiple partners. However, only 2 people made it to the list of the most special. Mercury met Mary Austin in 1969 and got engaged in 1973, while dedicating the song, “Love of My Life” to her.

Years later, while Freddie couldn’t deny his attraction to men, he admitted to Mary that he was bisexual. Mary later said, “I’ll never forget that moment. I remember saying to him, ’No, Freddie, I don’t think you’re bisexual. I think you are gay.’”

“All my lovers asked me why they couldn’t replace Mary, but it’s simply impossible,” Mercury said in a 1985 interview. “The only friend I’ve got is Mary, and I don’t want anybody else. To me, she was my common-law wife. To me, it was a marriage. We believe in each other, that’s enough for me.” The couple remained close until his last days.

On the left is Jim Hutton, Freddie’s boyfriend.

James Hutton, an Irish-born hairdresser, Freddie’s boyfriend, and life partner, was someone the singer met in a gay nightclub back in the ’80s. The 2 were together for 7 years, and James stood by Mercury’s side all the way to the end. When Freddie made his first advances, James had no idea how famous he was. It wasn’t love at first sight, however, the couple lived a happy, quiet life together. James shared, “He loved his cats. I’d get in from work. We’d lie together on the sofa. He would massage my feet and ask about my day.”

Freddie’s HIV diagnosis was kept private, but this didn’t stop him from doing what he loved, creating music.

Around 1987, Mercury received his HIV diagnosis and chose to keep it away from the public eye. He always said, “I don’t want to put any burden on other people by telling them my tragedy.” At the time, the frowned-upon virus was at its peak all around the world and effective treatments for it were, sadly, yet to be discovered. The rock music icon lost many friends to AIDS and always hoped it would never happen to him.

The next year, fans noticed Freddie seemed to be feeling unwell. In 1990, when Queen accepted their award for Outstanding Contribution to British music, Freddie had a sickly appearance.

Despite being unwell, Freddie kept working until his final days.

Even during his struggle with the harsh condition of HIV, Freddie tried to keep his spirits up. When able, he would visit the studio 1 or 2 hours at a time and, according to Brian May, say, “’Write me more. Write me stuff. I want to just sing this and do it and when I am gone you can finish it off.’ He had no fear, really.”

The last music video Queen ever released, “These Are the Days of Our Lives”, showcased a thin, frail Freddie, sporting a cat vest, as he kept trying to entertain us until the very end. The video ends with Freddie looking straight into the camera and singing, “Those were the days of our lives, the bad things in life were so few. Those days are all gone now but one thing’s still true; when I look and I find, I still love you!”

Just one day before he passed away in November 1991, Freddie made his diagnosis public:

“Following enormous conjecture in the press, I wish to confirm that I have been tested HIV positive and have AIDS. I felt it correct to keep this information private in order to protect the privacy of those around me. However, the time has now come for my friends and fans around the world to know the truth, and I hope everyone will join with me, my doctors, and all those worldwide in the fight against this terrible disease.”

Freddie Mercury passed away on November 24 at only 45 years old. We will remember his legacy forever and always cherish Queen’s music that will survive for decades, centuries, and, hopefully, millennia. To Freddie, we bow and thank you for every shiver down our spines and every song that you’ve left us, forever.

Do you know the lyrics to “Bohemian Rhapsody?” How did you find out about Queen? If you could ask Freddie one question, what would it be? Let’s celebrate Freddie together!