By Neil Ramos
LIKE many, we thoroughly enjoyed “Bohemian Rhapsody.” It’s a fun ride replete with the necessary drama inherent to a Hollywood-approved biopic not to mention superb casting.
That said, as a fan, it was obvious to us the film diverted from history.
Here, we put together events and people depicted in the film, and how they compare to what was written about the band and, of course, Freddie Mercury, himself, prior.
How Freddie became part of the band
In the film, Brian May (Gwilym Lee) and Roger Taylor (Ben Hardy) met Freddie (Rami Malek) in 1970 after bassist Tim Staffell quit their group Smile in 1970.
But according to “Queen: As It Began,” Freddie knew Tim (they were schoolmates) as with Brian and Roger for some time prior.
Mary Austin
As shown in the film, Freddie encountered Mary Austin (Lucy Boynton) in a Smile gig.
But in the book “Is This the Real Life?” Freddie met Mary at a clothing store.
TRIVIA: Brian dated Mary ahead of Freddie.
He revealed in a 2017 interview that he was already going out with Mary when “Freddie came up to me one day and said, ‘Are you serious with Mary? Can I ask her out?’ And he did, and they were lovers for a long time.”
ANOTHER TRIVIA: When Freddie died in 1991, he left Austin not only his mansion but also 50 percent of his estate.
Jim Hutton
In “Bohemian Rhapsody,” Freddie met Jim (Aaron McCusker), while the latter was cleaning up after one of his lavish parties.
In “Queen: As It Began,” Freddie met Jim at a London club called Heaven sometime in the early-to-mid-‘80s.
TRIVIA: Hutton died of lung cancer in 2010 at the age of 60.
John Reid
In the film, John Reid (Aiden Gillen) sought to manage Queen from the beginning.
In real life, John only came into the picture after the band asked him to manage them around 1975.
Also, in the film, Freddie fired John as manager for suggesting he leave Queen to pursue a solo career.
In real life, John split from Queen amicably in 1977.
Ray Foster
In the film, Ray Foster was an executive at EMI Records, Queen’s British record label, who refused to release “Bohemian Rhapsody” as single.
There is no mention of a Ray Foster in Queen history. Many believe it is a composite of several record executives. Others think the character was added merely to heighten drama.
Paul Prenter
In the film, Paul is presented as the guy responsible for unleashing the destructive, party-loving animal in Freddie.
He was shown being fired by Freddie after he hid from him the offer to play at the Live Aid event.
The real-life Paul was Freddie’s personal manager. He was fired after he threw a party at Freddie’s home and got it trashed. Like movie Paul, real life Paul also went to media to paint an unflattering picture of Freddie right after.
Brian pointed to Paul as the cause of Freddie’s nosedive.
“He was certainly responsible for leading Freddie off on a different path,” Brian said in “Queen in 3-D.”
TRIVIA: Paul succumbed to complications caused by AIDS only a few months after Mercury died in 1991.
Freddie’s HIV Diagnosis
In the film, Freddie learned he’s HIV positive after a consultation with a doctor right before Queen’s performance at Live Aid.
But in previous reports, both official and unofficial, Mercury’s HIV diagnosis happened sometime after Live Aid. And Freddie only publicly revealed he had AIDS on Nov. 23, 1991, the day before he died.
