Queen frontman Freddie Mercury's estate was worth an eye watering £37.5million when he died on November 24, 1991 at the age of just 45. Although unmarried and with no children the music icon had a lot of very signifcant people in his life and was in a relationship with Jim Hutton at the time of his death. However the bulk of his fortune would go to his ex-lover Mary Austin and this lead to falling outs and fueds that still resonate today. Most recently Freddie's sister, Kashmira Bulsara, was forced to buy back her brother's personal items after Mary auctioned them off in September 2023. This is just the latest disagreement over the Bohemian Rhapsody singer's last will and testament. Kashmira, 73, wass said to be "angry and upset to see so many of her beloved brother’s possessions become available for anyone to buy" and reportedly spent £3million purchasing cherished mementos of her sibling from Southeby's in the record breaking auction.
Mary, now 75, was Freddie’s oldest and closest friend and was almost his wife after he popped the question to her in 1973. Just 23 years old at the time, she later said the marriage proposal was unexpected. Explaining why he made her his main beificiairy he told her: "If things had been different, you would have been my wife, and this would have been yours anyway".
In his will, Freddie left Mary his Kensington mansion called Garden Lodge and personal belongings contained within. In total her inheritance came to half of his vast wealth and he also left her half of all future earnings from his share of Queen royalties.
His parents, Bomi and Jer Bulsara, and sister received 25% each of the remaining royalties. However upon his parents' deaths their shares reverted to Mary rather than their daughter meaning Mary'stotal increased to 75%. Today Mary is in charge of 18.75% of the overall company's earnings, Queen Productions.
Outside of Mary and immediate family Freddie left lump sums and homes to others who were close to him. Long term boyfriend Jim Hutton and personal assistant Peter Freestone received £500,000 each and Peter also received a home.
Jim was able to build his own home back in Ireland with the money and he lived until his death on January 1, 2010. However, he later publicly claimed that he had been told he was going to receive Garden Lodge, which Mary currently has on the market for £30million.
In an interview with The Times in 2006 he said Freddie had verbally stated that he should stay at Garden Lodge after his death but nothing was signed and he was given three months to leave. This reportedly “devastated” him and he went “absolutely crazy". “In all honesty, my only thought was ‘How long have I got to live?’” he told the publication.
However Freddie's former personal assistant Peter later disputed this in a chat with Express.co.uk. Asked whether he believed Freddie had ever formally promised Garden Lodge to Jim, Peter said: "No. I doubt that would ever have happened. It is something Freddie might have said in a moment but he was always very particular to write down anything he really wanted to happen, especially in his will. Anything verbal doesn’t mean anything.
"I do think it is significant that, in the end, he gave Mary the house and half of all his future earnings from Queen. That is what he felt for her..."
Freddie also entrusted Mary with one final item in his will. His ashes. One of his final requests was that she scatter them in secret as he was worried his resting place would be desecrated if it was known.
She has remained true to his wishes and kept his ashes in a secret place, promising to never reveal the location.
