Queen‘s most famous concert is without a doubt their 1985 Live Aid performance at Wembley Stadium. To this day, music fans of all likes seemingly view it as one of the greatest concerts of all time. However, that concert has done Queen a disservice, as it has cast a shadow over Freddie Mercury‘s final performance with the band in 1986.
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Freddie Mercury was formally diagnosed with HIV/AIDS in 1987. However, before that formal diagnosis, Mercury was feeling the symptoms of the disease quite intensely. Consequently, in 1986, Freddie Mercury performed his last ever show with Queen at Knebworth Park in the United Kingdom. There were 120,000 fans in attendance, and not a single one of them knew it would be Freddie Mercury’s final show with the band.
Freddie Mercury’s Remarks Leading up to His Final Show
While Mercury did not publicly disclose his battle with HIV/AIDS until just one day before his death, he seemingly alluded to some medical ailment in several prior encounters. Particularly with a journalist in Budapest and with John Deacon of Queen.
According to Louder Sound, two weeks before Knebworth, a reporter from Budapest asked Mercury if he would return to the city to play sometime in the near future. Mercury reportedly and simply replied, “If I’m still alive.” Mercury also made a similar remark to Deacon, as Brian May recalled an argument they were having in which Freddie Mercury allegedly concluded it by stating, “Well, I won’t always be here to do this,” per Louder Sound.
Given those two comments, it seems Mercury knew his live-performance days were coming to an end. That being so, he, and he alone, just possibly might have known that his 1986 concert in Knebworth would be his last. There is no way to know that it is true. However, one fact pointing towards it is the epic show he put on at the UK venue.
It Was Never Recorded
Again, nobody knew this would be Freddie Mercury’s final show. This is an incredibly unfortunate fact, as videotaping it was seemingly not a priority. In other words, there are no official recordings of Mercury’s final concert with Queen. So, the only way one can relive the events of the show is through word of mouth and bootleg recordings.
After the August 9 show and his HIV/AIDS diagnosis in 1987, Mercury led a fairly private life. However, he did not stop contributing to Queen, as he sang on the 1991 album, Innuendo.
Photo by Fox Photos/Hulton Archive/Getty Images
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