Year: 1991

Author: Ross Clarke

Publisher: Kingsfleet Publications

ISBN: 1-874130-01-9

Price: £8.95

Details: 110 pages, mainly pics

The Show Must Go On

Year: 1992

Author: Rick Sky

Publisher: Fontana

ISBN: 0-00-637843-9

Price: £4.99

Details: 179 pages; This revealing biography of Freddie Mercury, one of rock music's greatest showmen, tells of the two women in his life and his desire to conceal his bisexuality in spite of having AIDS for the last five years of his life.

This Is The Real Life

Year: 1992

Author: David Evans & David Minns

Publisher: Britannia Press

ISBN: 0-9519937-1-2

Price: £8.99

Details: 158 pages, plus 8 pages of colour & b&w photos

Year: 1994

Author: Jim Hutton with Tim Wapshott

Publisher: Bloomsbury

ISBN: 0-7475-1922-6

Price: £14.99

Details: 211 pages; The relationship between Freddie Mercury and Jim Hutton evolved over several months in 1984 and 1985. Even when they first slept together Button had no idea who Mercury was, and when the star told him his name it meant nothing to him. Hutton worked as a barber at the Savoy Hotel and retained his job and his lodgings in Sutton, Surrey, for two years after moving in with Mercury, and then worked as his gardener. He was never fully assimilated into Mercury's jet-setting lifestyle, nor did he want to be, but from 1985 until Mercury's death in 1991 he was closer to him than anyone and knew all Mercury's closest friends: the other members of Queen, Elton John, David Bowie, Phil Collins to name a few. Ever present at the countless Sunday lunch gatherings and opulent parties, Hutton has a wealth of anecdotes about as well as a deep understanding of, Mercury's life. He also nursed Mercury through his terminal illness, often held him throughout the night in his final weeks, and was with him as he died. No one can tell the story of the last few years of Mercury's private life - the ecstasies and the agonies - more accurately or honestly than Jim Hutton.

Year: 1996

Author: Laura Jackson

Publisher: Smith Gryphon

ISBN: 1-85685-111-7

Price: £16.99

Details: 212 pages; In 1996, Freddie Mercury would have been 50 years old. November 1996 also marks the fifth anniversary of his untimely and tragic death. Written by the author of "Queen & I: The Brian May Story", this biography contains previously unseen photographs of Freddie at play, supplied especially for this book by some of his closest friends. Intimate stories by those who knew him give a look at his life and times, both with and without Queen. There are exclusive interviews with Sir Tim Rice, with whom Freddie co-wrote tracks for "Barcelona", with Malcolm McLaren, Peter Stringfellow, Michael Buerk, Simon Bates, Fish, Gary Glitter, Paul Young, Zandra Rhodes, Joe Elliott, Bruce Dickinson and David Essex. Laura Jackson is the author of "Golden Stone", an investigation of the life and murder of Rolling Stone Brian Jones.

Year: 1998

Author: Peter Freestone

Publisher: Tusitala

ISBN: 0 9533341 0 4

Price: £20

Details: 259 pages, plus an insert of 32 pages of photos

Year: 1998

Author: Lesley-Ann Jones

Publisher: Coronet Books

ISBN: 0340672099

Price:

Details: 480 pages; This biography aims to deconstruct the myths surrounding Queen's lead singer and provide an intimate portrayal of Freddie's life and death. From his birthplace in Zanzibar to his final home in London, the author interviews the key people in Mercury's life.