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I was lucky enough to be in Sydney, Australia on the 5th of September and spent a memorable few hours joining in what was a great party at the Hard Rock Café. All the staff got into the FFAD atmosphere and it was good seeing so many different Freddies running around the packed restaurant. I take my hat off to them.

Graham asked is Freddie was easy to live with.
Once I had spent a bit of time with Freddie, I figured out the priorities. Once I had done that, yes, it was fairly easy to get on with him. Like most of us, Freddie had his own way of dealing with situations and expected any of us who were with him to get along with that, even though we might deal with things differently. There were always times when I might tread a bit warily because Freddie might be in a bad mood, but that would soon pass and everything would be back to normal.

Dave asked what Freddie’s thoughts were on the show at Leeds United Football Ground. I cannot remember any specific thoughts from Freddie regarding this show except that for him it was one of the best shows he had done in the UK until that time. He felt the atmosphere was superb, and the feelings from the crowd flowed over the band.

David wanted to know if Freddie often went to the Copacabana Club on the Earl’s Court Road.
When Freddie was in London he went there very often because it was so close to home. Saying that, he never walked there. It could take the car longer to get there because of the one way traffic, but he always felt safer if the car was close by for a quick get away. This was the same for anywhere he went. He would never have the draw up outside a club or restaurant; it would stop 20/30 metres away so he could get out without lots of stares, and fewer people would see where he was going.

Renee asked if there was any specific thing I missed about Freddie even after all these years.
There are many things I miss, but I suppose his mischievous grin is amongst the top 5. He had such a great sense of humour and many of you who have seen the interview videos can see this. He loved laughter around him, and while he wasn’t particularly a joke person, he could find humour in almost any situation, often pointing out something that might have passed us all by.

Ian wanted to know if I knew Freddie was infected with the HIV/AIDS virus before he died.
Yes, I did know. I was one of the few who were told this fact. Freddie found me alone in the kitchen at Garden Lodge and told me himself not too long after he had learnt the bad news in Spring 1987. He told very few people because he wanted to protect his family and friends from press intrusion. I think he felt he should tell us in the house as we would have close contact with him and just wanted us to feel safe and take care.

Rafal asked if Queen planned to do a concert in Poland in the 80s.
Poland wasn’t high on the list of prospective tours, mainly because it was still fairly closed to the west during the 80s. There was one Polish gentleman Freddie often mentioned, Frederic Chopin. Freddie freely admitted his admiration for one of the greatest composers of piano music.

Chris, along with quite a few others asked if the Mr. Bad Guy album will get the Barcelona treatment and be re-released.
Along with many of you, I would love to see Mr. Bad Guy re-released. While admittedly not some of his best music, I think there is enough good on it to warrant it. The decision remains with the record company.

Salyado asked if Freddie had any favourite country that he liked to visit.
Japan. Freddie discovered Japan while on tour with Queen and instantly fell in love with it. It was one of the few countries he liked enough to go back there on holiday. Of course he went to Ibiza a few times during the late 80s, but Japan was the country of his dreams. He once went there on a huge shopping spree that lasted about 3 weeks.

Jessica wanted to know the inspiration behind Freddie’s lyrics.
I think Freddie gave the most concise answer to this in an interview; Love. While Roger was more politically minded and Brian wrote about situations he found himself in, Freddie just wrote about his feelings where love was concerned.

Nathan asked when and why did Freddie shave off his iconic moustache.
This happened for the first time during the video for I Want To Break Free. There is a photo floating around on the internet with Freddie half shaved with a cheeky grin on his face. While Freddie with a moustache with a vacuum cleaner, feather duster and a mini skirt was incongruous and funny, he thought it would be better to appear without the moustache for the ballet sequence and so off it came.

I hope all went well with your plans for FFAD. I know I had a great time. Wishing you all the best for the coming days.