Queen guitarist Brian May and his wife, actress Anita Dobson, have voiced scepticism over claims that late frontman Freddie Mercury fathered a secret daughter. The allegations appear in the new biography Love, Freddie by writer Lesley-Ann Jones, which asserts that Mercury had a child during an affair with a close friend's wife in 1976.
According to the book, Mercury visited his daughter regularly until his death in 1991 and gave her 17 volumes of personal journals. The woman, identified only as 'B', is now 48 and works as a medical professional in Europe. Jones claims to have DNA evidence supporting the story.
Dobson told The Mirror: “I went, ‘what?’ I thought, no? And I said to Brian: ‘Do you know about this?’ And he said: ‘Do you believe this?’” She added that Mercury was too famous for such a secret to have remained hidden for so long, calling it “inconceivable” and suggesting it might be “more fake news.”
Jones alleges that Mercury told bandmates May, John Deacon and Roger Taylor, as well as his parents, sister and long-time companion Mary Austin, about his daughter. The woman reportedly lives in Europe with her own family, and Mercury allegedly had a room in her home and called her daily while touring.
In a handwritten letter included in the book, the woman stated: “Freddie Mercury was and is my father. We had a very close and loving relationship from the moment I was born and throughout the final 15 years of his life.” She insisted that DNA verification had been obtained but would remain private.
