2021-11-24 - 30 Year Anniversary [All Discussion]

i think your last 11 words sum it up (more or less) precisely. Additionally, almost 10 years of chemical abuse of his body; vodka, cigarettes and coke - make it harder to stay in A1 condition. I think any 40-yr-old (no matter how fit) would struggle to run around those catwalks and gantries for 1½hrs at a time without looking absolutely shagged-out - even more so after a decade of vodka, cigs & coke!


i agree with almost everything you've said, but I've singled out the above. why?

The tabloids weren't jumping to any conclusion, I believe they "knew" pretty much for certain, that's why.
In those days, paparazzi and journos would dig into undergrowth, hiding in bushes and cars - trying to get exclusive images of all celebs. Just stop and think how often grainy tele-lens Princess Di images appeared.
Freddie may have been a private figure but his private life - the parties etc were widely reported from 79-86. Then, in 1988/9 he just drops off the face of the earth. The journo/paps sonar would've started to bleep like crazy. So, what do they do? They know where he lives (here and in Europe), so the snooping begins. It's not inconceivable to think that they may have rewarded people working at a certain hospital for information concerning specific appointments and visits.

They probably knew all along, but - as they weren't in a position to disclose their sources they couldn't really "publish and be damned", could they? If your intel is unofficial, then you can't report it, so what you do is allude to it instead. This way, a journo stays on the legal side of the privacy laws - and newspapers don't get sued.

just my 2¢

I believe it did come out later that one of the awful Murdoch tabloids tapped Freddie's phone lines to get the information they were looking for. Pure class.

I found out watching the news on TV. Being in the US, I had no idea that Freddie was ill. The Show Must Go On was just a corny song to me.

Read his announcement on BBC Teletext (CEEFAX) the night before, and went to bed with it on my mind, but I never thought I would wake up in the morning, literally to the news that he had passed, as it was on my radio alarm.

Having 'known' him since I was 10 years old, it really felt like a family member or a close friend had died. They played Queen songs on the radio all day long, which I don't think happened even for Lennon (I don't recall all that much about Elvis Presley's death), and obviously he was at the top of every news bulletin.

I was glad he made the announcement the night before, as it kind of ended the speculation, but it was still a huge shock to hear that he had passed away.

I only noticed this recently but in Budapest Freddie is already knackered just five songs in (Tear It Up).

This is pretty much a mirror image of my Monday morning after Freddie passed away…. Especially the piss taking at school.
I think it was the first time I actually cried over someone dying

Cocaine & vodka.

I feel like I should know this but this is one of those topics that is all over the place (especially in the movie's most ludicrous scene).

Do we actually know when Freddie told the band he was ill?

Maybe in 1988 or so?

I believe they went out to dinner somewhere at a fancy restaurant. Maybe in Montreux?

I've heard the story a million times but it always seems a bit unclear on what year it actually took place.

Welcome back to Queenzone

The band knew by the Miracle sessions at the latest. At one point they didn't even think Freddie would be around to see it released. That's why they changed the album title from The Invisible Men as it was a 'miracle' that he was still around.

Personally I think Freddie told them early in 1988 and he may have been aware that the Magic tour would be his last.

Can't remember what the occasion was (someone on here will know), but it was around early to mid 1989 where Roger mentioned in a radio interview that the band had plans of doing something special in front of a live audience upon the release of The Miracle. I can't seem to find the clip on YouTube 🤷‍♂️ (anyone else remember?) but there's surely no way Roger would've mentioned this if he knew of Freddie's health. My guess is that Freddie would've had to tell the band shortly after this interview took place (or not long after the Queen For An Hour interview, whichever took place the latest).

Eh, Brian and Roger were still talking about maybe touring America in 1992 when they were on Rockline promoting Innuendo, and they definitely knew by then that Freddie didn’t have much longer, so it all could have been smoke and mirrors to give off the impression that all was well.

It's hard to believe that it's 30 years. I'm not sure if 30 years should be any more significant than it being 21, 28, or 31 years ago, but it does give us a moment to pause and reflect on Freddie.

Let's remember a wonderful singer, an incredible song writer, an extraordinary musician and an electrifying performer. For those who knew him personally, it's hard to know what they'll be feeling today. I'm sure they'll shed a tear along with the rest of us and I'm also sure they'll remember the happy memories.

Thank you Freddie for all you left us, we still love you.

hi folks, I know people want to discuss this anniversary, but there were FOUR threads. Now some might think that each dealt with a different aspect of Freddie's Passing. But, naturally each has/will cross over into other territory.

I've therefore, merged all FOUR threads and retitled this one.

Any similar threads created after this point WILL be deleted.