Freddie Mercury’s handwritten drafts for Queen’s legendary hit Bohemian Rhapsody have sold at auction for more than £1.3m.
Written on paper for the now-defunct airline British Midland, the 15-page manuscript shows the different directions the singer considered for the band’s six-minute epic.
It features the song’s timeless lyric “nothing really matters” and shows how the star considered naming the song “Mongolian Rhapsody” – before crossing out “Mongolian” in favour of “Bohemian”.
The notes were one of the star items among a treasure trove of the Queen frontman’s most prized possessions, which were put up for sale with the luxury auctioneer Sotheby’s.
Mercury’s Yamaha baby grand piano – used to compose some of the group’s most iconic hits – was sold at the same auction for £1.7m.
Image: Freddie Mercury’s Yamaha grand piano. Pic: AP
A Victorian-style snake bangle famously worn by Mercury in the video for Bohemian Rhapsody sold for £698,500 – the highest price ever paid for a piece of jewellery owned by a rock star.
It beat the £295,000 ($368,000) paid for a leather and bead talisman worn by Beatles star John Lennon.
The items were put up for auction by Mercury’s close friend, Mary Austin.
Image: A Victorian-style silver snake bangle worn by Freddie Mercury. Pic: Sotheby’s
The singer left her his Kensington home and all the possessions inside when he died of AIDS-related pneumonia in 1991, at the age of 45.
A total of 1,400 items are being auctioned – including a green door covered in hand-painted love notes from fans which sold for £412,750 ($521,000).
Image: Freddie Mercury’s rainbow coloured satin arrow applique jacket from 1982. Pic: AP
Image: Mercury’s signature crown worn throughout the Magic tour. Pic: AP
Other items to go under the hammer include the star’s flamboyant stage costumes and handwritten drafts of hits such as We Are The Champions.
Some of the proceeds of the auction – which is expected to bring in around £6m in total – will be donated to charity.
All the proceeds of the sale of a Cartier onyx and diamond ring given to Mercury by Elton John that sold for £273,000 ($344,000) will be donated to the Rocket Man singer’s AIDS charity.
Image: The entrance at Sotheby’s auction house hosted “Freddie Mercury – A World Of His Own”
The items in the auction were put on display in Sotheby’s galleries ahead of the auction to create a free museum-esque exhibit – named Freddie Mercury: A World Of His Own.
The display attracted more than 140,000 visitors in just over a month.
A man has been arrested on suspicion of assault and sexual assault – which reportedly took place on the set of EastEnders.
The alleged incident happened on the set of the BBC soap at Elstree Studios in Hertfordshire, according to The Sun newspaper.
Hertfordshire Police confirmed a man in his 50s was arrested after the report in Eldon Avenue, Borehamwood, on 7 May.
The man is accused of sexual assault and common assault in relation to two victims, the force said.
The suspect is on bail while inquiries continue, police added.
EastEnders said in a statement: “While we would never comment on individuals, EastEnders has on-site security and well-established procedures in place to safeguard the safety and welfare of everyone who works on the show.”
BST Hyde Park festival has cancelled its final night after Jeff Lynne’s Electric Light Orchestra pulled out of the headline slot.
Lynne, 77, was due to play alongside his band on Sunday but has been forced to withdraw from the event following a “systemic infection”.
The London show was supposed to be a “final goodbye” from ELO following their farewell US tour.
Organisers said on Saturday that Lynne was “heartbroken” at being unable to perform.
A statement read: “Jeff has been battling a systemic infection and is currently in the care of a team of doctors who have advised him that performing is simply not possible at this time nor will he be able to reschedule.
“The legacy of the band and his longtime fans are foremost in Jeff’s mind today – and while he is so sorry that he cannot perform, he knows that he must focus on his health and rehabilitation at this time.”
They later confirmed the whole of Sunday’s event would be cancelled.
“Ticket holders will be refunded and contacted directly by their ticket agent with further details,” another statement said.
Stevie Wonder played the festival on Saturday – now its final event of 2025.
US rock band The Doobie Brothers and blues rock singer Steve Winwood were among those who had been due to perform to before ELO’s headline performance.
The cancellation comes after the band, best known for their hit Mr Blue Sky, pulled out of a performance due to take place at Manchester’s Co-Op Live Arena on Thursday.
ELO was formed in Birmingham in 1970 by Lynne, multi-instrumentalist Roy Wood and drummer Bev Bevan.
They first split in 1986, before frontman Lynne resurrected the band in 2014.
Donald Trump has said he is considering “taking away” the US citizenship of actress and comedian Rosie O’Donnell, despite a Supreme Court ruling that expressly prohibits a government from doing so.
In a post on Truth Social on Saturday, the US president said: “Because of the fact that Rosie O’Donnell is not in the best interests of our Great Country, I am giving serious consideration to taking away her Citizenship.”
He also labelled O’Donnell, who has moved to Ireland, as a “threat to humanity” and said she should “remain in the wonderful country of Ireland, if they want her”.
O’Donnell responded on Instagram by posting a photograph of Mr Trump with Jeffrey Epstein.
“You are everything that is wrong with America and I’m everything you hate about what’s still right with it,” she wrote in the caption.
“I’m not yours to silence. I never was.”
Image: Rosie O’Donnell moved to Ireland after Donald Trump secured a second term. Pic: AP
O’Donnell moved to Ireland with her 12-year-old son in January after Mr Trump had secured a second term.
She has said she’s in the process of obtaining Irish citizenship based on family lineage and that she would only return to the US “when it is safe for all citizens to have equal rights there in America”.
O’Donnell and the US president have criticised each other publicly for years, in an often-bitter back-and-forth that predates Mr Trump’s move into politics.
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
2:46
Will Trump address parliament on UK state visit?
This is just the latest threat by the president to revoke the citizenship of someone he has disagreed with, most recently his former ally Elon Musk.
But the two situations are different as while Musk was born in South Africa, O’Donnell was born in the US and has a constitutional right to American citizenship.
Amanda Frost, a law professor at the University of Virginia School of Law, said the Supreme Court ruled in a 1967 case that the fourteenth amendment of the constitution prevents the government from taking away citizenship.
“The president has no authority to take away the citizenship of a native-born US citizen,” he added.
“In short, we are nation founded on the principle that the people choose the government; the government cannot choose the people.”