Freddie Mercury was one of the biggest rock stars in music history, but even those at the top idolise other performers.
In an unearthed interview from the 1980s, the Queen singer who died in 1991 aged 45, was asked: “If there was anyone in history, living or dead, who you could meet and speak with, who would that be and what would you talk about?”
The star replied: “Living or dead… umm… the only person I wish I had met was John Lennon ‘cause he’s the one I did idolise and I just thought he was a very beautiful human being.
“And I’m sad to say that I didn’t get to meet him. He’s the only one.”
Lennon had tragically been murdered in 1980 at just 40 and the following day Queen performed in London where Freddie sang Imagine in the Beatles star’s memory, alongside sharing a touching tribute.
Freddie told Queen fans the day after Lennon was shot dead: “John Lennon was larger than life, and an absolute genius. Even at a very early stage when they were The Beatles, I always preferred John Lennon’s things. I don’t know why. He just had that magic… to be honest, I would never like to put myself on a par with John Lennon at all, because he was the greatest, as far as I’m concerned.
“It’s not a matter of having less talent, just that some people are capable of doing certain things better than anybody else, and I feel that I’m not equipped to do the things that Lennon did. I don’t think anybody should, because John Lennon was unique, a one-off, and that’s the way it is. I admire him very much and that’s as far as I want to go. When I heard that Lennon was dead, I was shocked and dumbfounded.”
