Just in case anyone may have forgotten, Freddie’s birthplace was Zanzibar, and he spent his very early years in India, but his religion was that of both his parents, Zoroastrian, since the family, Parsees, originally came from Persia. This has absolutely nothing to do with the Christian, Muslim, or any other religion – Zoroastrianism is one the most ancient religions on our planet. If you want to know more, Google it! He was always respectful to his parents’ wishes. And, in spite of sharing his Mum’s wicked sense of humour, which led him to love shocking her (!), he was a very caring and loving son. But the overriding driving force in Freddie’s life was his music, and this was a passion we all shared, and took great pride in carrying it across every frontier we could. We played to people who wanted to share our passion, regardless of their nationality, colour, religion, or sexual proclivity. Strangely enough, this is what the name Queen embodied to me when it was first suggested, as one of the names we could make our own; I remember saying so at the time, in an interview. The same standards and dreams govern our actions still. At Freddie’s 60th we will all celebrate the path he trod, and be proud that we still tread it.
Happy Birthday Freddie !!!
With love
Bri