FREDDIE MERCURY: AUCTION SPECIAL

He was, say many, the greatest lead-singer in the history of rock music. Freddie Mercury was flamboyant in a way that set him apart from his contemporaries but saw himself as two people, saying: ‘When I’m performing I’m an extrovert, yet inside I’m a completely different man.’

This is his story told through the sale of his personal effects at Sotheby’s in London – one of the biggest auctions in the history of the auction house.

During a month-long preview, 140,000 fans turned out to see the contents of his home including the grand piano at which he composed Bohemian Rhapsody, the scribbled lyrics of that most famous Number 1, and the costumes he wore on his many world tours as frontman of the rock band Queen. Then, at the auction itself, prices soared above the estimates; his tiny silver moustache comb fetched £152,000!

In all, the sale made £40 million.

Also available Auction: Series: 1 – 11: 113 x half hours