Five months after Freddie Mercury's onetime fiance and best friend Mary Austin sold off his belongings, which he left to her, she's now selling his home that housed them all.
Mercury bought the house, known as Garden Lodge, in 1980. Located in London's Kensington neighborhood, Mary says, “This house has been the most glorious memory box, because it has such love and warmth in every room.
“It has been a joy to live in and I have many wonderful memories here. Now that it is empty, I’m transported back to the first time we viewed it.
“Ever since Freddie and I stepped through the fabled green door, it has been a place of peace, a true artist’s house, and now is the time to entrust that sense of peace to the next person.”
Built in the Neo-Georgian architectural style in 1907, Mercury called it his “country house in central London.”
It featured a double-height drawing room, which originally served as an artists’ studio for the house’s original owners. It's where Mercury Freddie put his grand piano, and where he wrote Queen's “Bohemian Rhapsody.”
There's also a redesigned minstrels’ gallery, which is now a bar, that overlooks the main room and Japanese-style garden, featuring magnolia trees that bloom in spring, and Asian-inspired water features.
Paddy Dring of realtor Knight Frank says, "Having been carefully preserved with love and respect over the last three decades, we expect that the exceptional provenance of the property will be incredibly alluring to buyers across the world. Notwithstanding the legacy of the house, it is very rare that an unmodernized home of this scale, set in such beautiful mature gardens comes to market, so it is certainly an exciting prospect for any future purchaser.”
The asking price is $38-million.
Mercury died in 1991 from AIDS. He was 45.