Earlier this week my London Shoes ventured ‘up west’ to visit a building it had never entered before, and probably never will again – the globally renowned………….“Sotheby’s-Auction House”
The purpose of this visit was to view the “Freddie Mercury – A World of His Own-Exhibition” – a unique one-off event – which was just too good to miss, as it will never happen again.
It has been 32 years since the legendary Queen singer ‘Freddie Mercury’ died.
From 1985 to his death, Freddie Mercury lived at ‘Garden Lodge’ situated in Logan Place-London W8.
His large Georgian style house is situated in the Kensington district of London.
Upon his death Freddie Mercury left his Garden Lodge home plus the majority of his assets, including future Queen royalties – to his ex-lover and long-time close friend and confidant ‘Mary Austin’ – who he first met and got together with in 1969 – and of whom he once publicly said:-
“All my lovers asked me why they couldn’t replace Mary, but it’s simply impossible. The only friend I’ve got is Mary, and I don’t want anybody else. To me, she was my common-law wife. To me, it was a marriage.”
Since inheriting Freddie’s wealth and his ‘Garden Lodge’ home, Mary Austin has always lived her life in the strictest privacy.
Throughout the years there has been increasing demand from fans and the like, for Freddie’s Garden Lodge home with all its fixtures/fittings and accompaniments – to be turned into a museum – but Mary has always steered well clear of any discussion of that sort.
However – having now lived in Freddie’s home for over 30 years, surrounded by all his possessions – it came as a surprise when, a couple of months ago Mary Austin broke her silence and made a public announcement declaring: –
“The time has come for me to take the difficult decision to close this very special chapter in my life. – I need to put my affairs in order”.
She has made the decision to part with 1,500 items of Freddie’s belongings/possessions/furniture….almost everything inside his home – only keeping back a few special presents that he gave her personally.
Mary Austin arranged for renowned auctioneers Sotheby’s to conduct a series of auction events to sell-off Freddie’s possessions.
Sotheby’s is a globally recognised famous Auction House.
The business was founded in 1744 – by Samuel Baker, a book seller – and by 1767 the business was established auctioneers of antique books.
They moved to their current New Bond Street site in 1917 – and today Sotheby’s have up to 80 locations in 40 countries throughout the world.
Sotheby’s are taking the unprecedented step of exhibiting ALL of the Freddie Mercury auction items – the very first time in their long history that they have ever hosted a pre-auction exhibition.
The “Freddie Mercury-A World of His Own” Exhibition is displayed over 2 floors of the historic auction house – and it runs until the 5th September, at which time there will then be a series of auctions categorising the items – which are estimated to achieve in excess of £10m.
So – my London Shoes could not miss this one-off unique opportunity to visit Sotheby’s to view all the Freddie Mercury belongings that have been up for auction – stuff includes furniture / personal clothes / stage clothes / musical instruments / paintings / photos / ornaments / crockery / cutlery / jewellery / clocks / watches / gold discs – literally hundreds of items big and small.
Just to get inside Sotheby’s was a first for Shoes, but to see the excellent way in which the auctioneers had laid out and displayed the items – was an amazing experience – and, the best part about it all was…..admission is completely FREE !!!
London Shoes can’t emphasise enough – how good this exhibition is – so if you are able to get up to New Bond Street before the 5th September – do yourself a favour and do so – don’t miss out on this unique experience.
So – after a really enjoyable few hours mooching around the Freddie Mercury exhibition, it was time for a well earned liquid refreshment, before heading off back home.
Now – throughout this particular blog trip, I was accompanied by the GLW (e.g.the ‘Good lady Wife’ – Angela) – very rarely does she accompany me on my London Shoes jaunts these days, as she has a dodgy knee and says I walk much too fast for her to be able to keep up with me. However – this particular blog topic appealed to her, and so she decided to suffer the pain and accompany me for this one – and a very nice change it was too.
Anyway – tucked away in a quiet corner of Duke Street – just a couple of mins north of the Selfridges dept store in Oxford Street – we stumbled upon a lovely little pub called the ‘Devonshire Arms’.
Records show there’s been a licensed premises on the site since 1771 – and the current building is built out of Portland stone and dates back to the 1930’s.
Throughout the Devonshire Arms there are numerous references to The Beatles – because just round the corner from the pub is Manchester Square, where EMI’s head office once stood (the Beatles record label at the time) – and where the now iconic album cover of the Beatles debut album ‘Please Please Me’, was photographed.
So – after a welcome couple of ‘cheeky’ Guinness’s and a bag of cheese & onion – it was time for me and my accomplice – to head off back home, after what was a very enjoyable and ‘cheap’ day out.
___________________
See below the extensive gallery of photos taken to support this blog
The official Freddie Mercury- “A World of His Own”-Exhibition Guide”
The iconic “Sotheby’s-Auction House” – New Bond Street-London W1 – hosts of the Freddie Mercury pre-action exhibition
The Sotheby’s Lower Galleries floor plan – for the Freddie Mercury pre-auction exhibition
The Sotheby’s Upper Galleries floor plan – for the Freddie Mercury pre-auction exhibition
The Auction dates – on the reverse of the Exhibition Guide
“Garden Lodge” – Logan Place – Kensington-London W8 – Freddie Mercury’s home from 1980 up until his death in 1991
An entrance door of the walled garden at Freddie Mercury’s ‘Garden Lodge’ home in Logan Place – exhibited as a lot in the forthcoming auction.
The first auction lot exhibit when entering the Freddie Mercury ‘A World of His Own’ pre-auction exhibition – at Sotheby’s Auction House
A famous Freddie Mercury quote – it seems only right that Sotheby’s should host the auction
Just one of the many lot exhibits of furniture – from Freddie Mercury’s Garden Lodge-Logan Place home – that is now up for auction.
Just one of the many lot exhibits of furniture – from Freddie Mercury’s Garden Lodge-Logan Place home – that is now up for auction.
Just one of the many lot exhibits of furniture – from Freddie Mercury’s Garden Lodge-Logan Place home – that is now up for auction.
Me – alongside an item of Freddie Mercury’s furniture – up for auction
Just one of the many lot exhibits of furniture – that once adorned Freddie Mercury’s Garden Lodge-Logan Place home – that is now up for auction.
Freddie’s antique Chinese decorated piano – Just one of the many lot exhibits of furniture – that once adorned Freddie Mercury’s Garden Lodge-Logan Place home – that is now up for auction
Freddie’s antique Chinese decorated piano
Freddie’s antique Chinese decorated piano
Me – alongside Freddie’s antique Chinese decorated piano – up for auction at Sotheby’s.
Just one of the many lot exhibits of furniture – that once adorned Freddie Mercury’s Garden Lodge-Logan Place home – that is now up for auction.
Just one of the many lot exhibits of furniture – that once adorned Freddie Mercury’s Garden Lodge-Logan Place home – that is now up for auction m- note the see-through phone on the far right
The said see through phone – as viewed in the previous photo – now up for auction
Me – alongside an item of Freddie Mercury’s furniture – up for auction
Just one of the many lot exhibits of furniture – that once adorned Freddie Mercury’s Garden Lodge-Logan Place home – that is now up for auction.
Just one of the many lot exhibits – that once could be found at Freddie Mercury’s Garden Lodge-Logan Place home – that are now up for auction.
Just one of the many lot exhibits of furniture – that once adorned Freddie Mercury’s Garden Lodge-Logan Place home – that is now up for auction.
Just one of the many lot exhibits – that once could be found at Freddie Mercury’s Garden Lodge-Logan Place home – that are now up for auction.
Me – reflected in an item of Freddie Mercury’s furniture – up for auction
Just one of the many lot exhibits of furniture – that once was a fixture at Freddie Mercury’s Garden Lodge-Logan Place home – that is now up for auction.
Just one of the many lot exhibits of furniture – that once was a fixture at Freddie Mercury’s Garden Lodge-Logan Place home – that is now up for auction.
Me – alongside an item of Freddie Mercury’s furniture – up for auction
Just one of the many lot exhibits of furniture – that once was a fixture at Freddie Mercury’s Garden Lodge-Logan Place home – that is now up for auction.
Just one of the many lot exhibits of furniture – that once was a fixture at Freddie Mercury’s Garden Lodge-Logan Place home – that is now up for auction.
Just one of the many lot exhibits of furniture – that once was a fixture at Freddie Mercury’s Garden Lodge-Logan Place home – that is now up for auction.
Just one of the many lot exhibits – that once could be found at Freddie Mercury’s Garden Lodge-Logan Place home – that are now up for auction.
Just one of the many lot exhibits of furniture – that once was a fixture at Freddie Mercury’s Garden Lodge-Logan Place home – that is now up for auction.
Just one of the many lot exhibits of furniture – that once was a fixture at Freddie Mercury’s Garden Lodge-Logan Place home – that is now up for auction.
Just one of the many lot exhibits of furniture – that once was a fixture at Freddie Mercury’s Garden Lodge-Logan Place home – that is now up for auction.
Me – alongside just one of the many lot exhibits – that once could be found at Freddie Mercury’s Garden Lodge-Logan Place home – that are now up for auction.
An old Juke Box – Just one of the many lot exhibits that once was a fixture at Freddie Mercury’s Garden Lodge-Logan Place home – that is now up for auction.
A couple of personal photos of Freddie with some of his pet cats – both up for auction.
Just some of the ornamental cats from Freddie’s personal collection – up for auction at Sotheby’s
Just one of the many lot exhibits – that once could be found at Freddie Mercury’s Garden Lodge-Logan Place home – that are now up for auction.
Just one of the many lot exhibits – that once could be found at Freddie Mercury’s Garden Lodge-Logan Place home – that are now up for auction.
Me – and Angela (the ‘GLW’ – eg Good Lady Wife) – my compatriot for the day at Sotheby’s.
Exhibition attendees viewing Freddie’s many notebooks with hand written lyrics to many Queen classics – in one of the Sotheby’s anti-chambers on its upper floor.
Original jottings of Queen lyrics – now up for auction at Sotheby’s
Original jottings of Queen lyrics – now up for auction at Sotheby’s
A collection of Freddie’s personal photos – particularly of Queen’s early gigs – now all up for auction.
Just a selection of Queen’s many Gold Discs – that are up for auction at Sotheby’s.
A Gold Discs for Queen’s ‘Another One Bites the Dust’- up for auction at Sotheby’s.
Just a selection of Queen’s many Gold Discs – that are up for auction at Sotheby’s.
A photo of Freddie in his Royal Regalia robe – up for auction
Freddie’s Royal Regalia robe and Crown – up for auction
Me – alongside Freddie’s Royal Regalia robe and Crown
A couple of early Queen promo photos – up for auction at Sotheby’s
Just some of Freddie Mercury’s stage clothes – up for auction at Sotheby’s
A rack of Freddie’s suits – all up for auction at Sotheby’s
A display of a later photo of Freddie in one of his favourite suits – up for auction at Sotheby’s
A whole display of Freddie’s t-shirts and promo jackets — all up for auction
Me – & my companion for the day – (the wife Angela) – amongst the hundreds of Freddie’s clothing items (stage & personal) up for auction at Sotheby’s
Just some of Freddie Mercury’s stage clothes – up for auction at Sotheby’s
Just some of Freddie Mercury’s kimono’s – up for auction at Sotheby’s
A framed photo of Freddie in his pink sating suit – up for auction at Sotheby’s
The very same pink satin suit as per the previous photo.
Just some of Freddie Mercury’s stage clothes – up for auction at Sotheby’s
Me – alongside some of Freddie Mercury’s stage clothes – up for auction at Sotheby’s
Just some of Freddie Mercury’s stage clothes – up for auction at Sotheby’s
Just some of Freddie Mercury’s stage clothes – up for auction at Sotheby’s
Me – alongside some of Freddie Mercury’s stage clothes – up for auction at Sotheby’s
Just some of Freddie Mercury’s personal clothes – up for auction at Sotheby’s
Just one of Freddie Mercury’s kimono’s – up for auction at Sotheby’s
Just some of Freddie Mercury’s stage clothes – up for auction at Sotheby’s
Just some of Freddie Mercury’s stage clothes – up for auction at Sotheby’s
Just some of Freddie Mercury’s stage clothes – up for auction at Sotheby’s
Just one of the iconic Freddie Mercury’s stage costumes – up for auction at Sotheby’s
A famous quote of Freddie Mercury – just one of the many personalised backdrops displayed throughout the exhibition at Sotheby’s.
Me – alongside the famous Yamaha piano that Freddie regularly played on stage and/or at home. Many a Queen composition was written using this instrument.
Me – and the GLW leaving Sotheby’s – having thoroughly enjoyed a good few hours viewing the many hundreds of Freddie Mercury’s possessions on display at the pre-auction exhibition.
The ‘Devonshire Arms’ pub in Duke Street-London W1 – there’s been a licensed premises on this site since 1771. The current building is built in Portland stone and dates back to 1928
Throughout the Devonshire Arms there are numerous references to The Beatles – because just round the corner from the pub is Manchester Square, where EMI’s head office once stood – and where the now iconic album cover of the Beatles 1st album ‘Please Please Me’ was photographed.
More ‘Beatles’ themed photos inside the Devonshire Arms pub
Me & the wife Angela – my accomplice for the day – enjoying some much needed liquid refreshment in the Devonshire Arms – Duke Street.
A ‘cheeky’ Guinness waits patiently for me at the Devonshire Arms pub – in Duke Street-W1
Me – finally getting to knock back a ‘cheeky’ Guinness at the Devonshire Arms pub in Duke Street – after an enjoyable few hours at Sotheby’s
As ever a great story, well written and the pictures are great, especially of the GLW. Well done both of you
Lovely pics.. must try and get to view this. The garden gate to Garden Lodge gave me a bit of a shock…last saw that when I was gently putting a hand on it as I took a wander down Logan Place a few months after Freddie’s death. Mary Austin popped out to put the bins out at that moment… I was apologetic and she was briefly pleasant .
Thanks for this blog- looking at taking my daughter on Monday – although only 12 she is absolutely obsessed with Freddie.
Cheers Geoff, looking good
Alan Hill
Great read Geoff , another genius taken too soon
Thanks Geoff
Brilliant (as always) I will go there myself.
How much was that pint of Guinness in West End pub ?
Hi Peter – you’ll get very little change from £7 !!!!!……its obscene!!!
I really enjoyed my day at the exhibition. I visited on August 23rd and I basically photographed and created as much video as I could. In the end I created a 34 minute video which I placed on my YouTube channel.
When I saw the piano I was very tempted to just play it and then beg for forgiveness later. I didn’t bid on anything but someone later told me they placed a £1,000 bid on the piano knowing that it would go for a lot more – thus, he had a story saying that he bid on Freddies piano … I should have done that. Overall it was an amazing day and I still have once video to create about that day and that’s Freddie Mercury’s Waterford Crystal clock , as I’m from Waterford Ireland where the clock was made.
Thanks for sharing the photos and details of your visit.
Hi Shane – many thanks for sharing your memories and experiences of that special auction day, with my London Shoes – much appreciated.
And say hello to Waterford from me – my late Dad grew up in Lismore – not that too far away from Waterford.
Cheers
GEOFF (www.londonshoes.blog)