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Mary Austin
Mary Austin is British-born business woman known for being former girlfriend of Freddie Mercury.

Early Life
Mary grew up in Fulham, West London. She lived with her siblings and parents. Both her parents were deaf, and communicated through lip-reading and sign language. Her father working as a hand trimmer for wallpaper specialists and her mother working as well at a small company, she grew up poor. "There were five of us and my parents had a terrible time making ends meet, but they managed. Life was always a struggle for them." . At age 15 she left school without taking O-levels. She started work as a trainee secretary earning €5 per week.

Meeting Freddie Mercury And Queen
She met Freddie Mercury and Roger Taylor working at the Biba store in Kensington and was introduced to Freddie at a discussion about the group by guitarist Brian May, with whom she had a brief relationship with. She was nineteen at the time. They first moved into a €10/week bedsit in Victoria Road, Kensington. According to Mary, they had money for just one pair of curtains, which were hung in the bedroom. Their second flat was at Holland Road, which cost then £19 a week. The photographs for an album (either Queen or A Night At The Opera were taken at this flat. By this time, Bohemian Rhapsody had been released.

Commercial Success Of Queen
Queen began to reach commercial success and Austin felt, at first, no longer needed. 'When he came off the stage all the girls and his friends were crowding round him,' she recalls. 'He was so busy I just thought, "I don't think he needs me now." I started to walk away and he came running after me. He said "Where are you going?" I told him, "I'm going home."'. There are several Queen songs written about Mary, the most famous of which is Love Of My Life.

End Of Romantic Involvement With Freddie Mercury
Around 1976-1980, Austin felt that her relationship with the singer was changing and eventually a breakup ensued. Allegedly, Mercury had said "I think I'm bisexual." Mary responded with "I think you're gay." The breakup wasn't angry and left no hard feelings, and the two maintained close friendship for the rest of their lives. Mercury said of Mary: "All my lovers asked me why they couldn't replace Mary [Austin], 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. We believe in each other, that's enough for me."