#Rosemary Pearson

[a-froger-epic]

New Interview with Rose Rose (June 2023)

As some of you know, I have friends in the Russian Queen fandom (a handful of lovely Ukrainian and Russian ladies who are translating my writing) and so I was linked to this. It’s an exclusive interview Rosemary Pearson (Rose Rose) gave to the Russian translator of her books. The questions came from people in the main Russian Queen fan forum. The interview was posted in Russian. 

Here are some excepts in English.

Question: If you could turn back the clock, would you break up with Freddie again [...] or would you stay in a relationship with him, and what would happen?

Rose: I would break up with him again because he was, well and truly, attracted to men.

Question: Did you share the details of your childhood that you described in ‘Growing Up’ [Rose Rose’s new book, ‘Growing Up With ‘Filthy Lucre’’] with Freddie? If so, how did he react? Did he tell you about his childhood?

Rose: No, we didn’t tell each other about our childhoods, except that he and I went to boarding school. I mentioned this in my book.

[…]

Question: Which album covers and which Queen videos did you find artistically interesting?

Rose: The most interesting for me in that regard is the video clip for “Bohemian Rhapsody”.

Question: What are your favourite Queen or Freddie Mercury songs?

Rose: I like “Bohemian Rhapsody” the most.

Question: Did you and Freddie mostly coincide when it came to your tastes in music and art, or did you often have disagreements?

Rose: At the time, our tastes completely coincided. Jimi Hendrix is still my favorite artist.

Question: Which artists was Freddie particularly drawn to during his years at Ealing College? In your opinion, did Freddie imitate someone in his artistic work during his studies in Ealing? How would you describe his painting style in those days?

Rose: Freddie liked the work of Russian futurists especially and Russian ballet costumes. But, to be honest, he was not particularly interested in anything but his own imagination and the pop culture of the 60s.

[…]

Question: Did you and Freddie give each other gifts (like birthday gifts)? If so, which ones?

Rose: No, we never gifted each other anything. We weren't that sentimental about it.

[…]

Question: Have you seen the 2018 movie Bohemian Rhapsody? If so, how do you feel about the film?

Rose: I’ve seen it. About half of the movie is completely false.

[…]

Question: [...] Not so long ago, [Mary Austin] decided to auction off most of the art collection and personal belongings of Freddie’s. What would you have done with those things if you were Mary?

Rose: If I were Mary, I would donate it all to the Victoria & Albert Museum in London. Freddie would have preferred it this way, and it just goes to show how few people really understood him. It’s a shame that it won’t happen, as the museum staff are keen to preserve Freddie’s heritage for future generations. [The Victoria & Albert Museum researcher recently approached Rose for advice about the young Freddie Mercury’s interest in the museum’s expositions, in particular, of Russian ballet costumes, but this is a different story. - Note by the interviewer].

Question: What would you say to Freddie if you had the chance?

Rose: I’d say, “I’m so happy that you were able to realise your potential in such a brilliant way!”

[…]

Question: How do you respond to criticism of your work?

Rose: I ignore it!

Question: Did any of your children inherit your desire to become an artist?

Rose: No, they all hate what I do.

[…]

Question: What creative ideas or projects would you like to accomplish, but lack the opportunity? Does it bother you or do you prefer to focus on achievable goals?

Rose: I’ve done everything I wanted to do.

---

Honestly, I liked Rose Rose always, but now I properly love this woman. What a legend.

[not-the-coffee-machine4]

My Favorite Chaotic Queen Moments Part 4 (edited to provide sources)

Penguin: *poops all over couch* Freddie: Roger, what did you do!!!

Roger: *flexes his vocal range* Freddie: I hate you, b*tch (could not for the LIFE of me find the audio file with Roger’s high note but I found Freddie’s part at least)

Roger shaving one leg for the IWTBF video and then giving up in exasperation

Band makes a song almost entirely devoid of instruments. It ends up being one of the most iconic songs ever (We Will Rock You)

John throwing peanuts in Brian’s hair during his guitar solos

Freddie getting angry and spontaneously firing everyone in his vicinity in Garden Lodge, only to be reminded that he cannot, in fact, fire his partner, and then laughing and promptly reinstating everyone (pdf page 89)

That one time Roger and Crystal were in a bar, and when asked what they did for a living they said they were vacuum salesmen (to maintain anonymity I think). Except the guy then asked follow up questions and they found themselves having to make up shit about vacuums for like half an hour (the very bottom one)

Roger driving down a mountain in a blizzard while hanging out the window to clear snow off with his hand because the windshield wipers broke

Roger and John competing against each other in a car race 

Freddie writing Crazy Little Thing Called Love in a bathtub

John going out to buy a shirt and coming back with a beer (😭) (I linked the secondary source but it’s pretty buried in there so here’s the snippet)

Hot Space taking so long to record that their producer’s (Mack’s) pregnant wife told them that if she has her baby and they’re STILL not done, they all had to be godfathers. They said one baby having four godfathers was ridiculous. She had the baby before Hot Space was done. Freddie and John ended up the godfathers and she named the baby John Frederick, aka “Little Freddie” (as opposed to FM, who was “Big Freddie”) (also, Mack’s son talking about it)

[I had the thing about Roger asking out Rosemary Pearson RIGHT after she broke up with Freddie here but apparently she may not be all that reliable so consider that one alleged]

Brian getting stopped at his OWN BAND’S CONCERT because he forgot to show his backstage pass

That one time Freddie and Jim were sitting together, and this lady came up and started flirting with Freddie, asked if he had a wife and Freddie proceeded to put his hand on Jim’s knee and say “yes, this is the wife” (pdf page 51)

[pink-strawberry-kissess]

Without thinking of Aeon for a second, what do you expect for RE9? I'll go first:

Jill Valentine, she hasm't been in a mainoine re game in a while now, last being RE5;

Aeo-

Leaks suggest it's gonna be open world kinda like "The Evil Within" and I heard good things about it so yeah, I also expect open world;

I wanna see how Rosemary ended up. I always immagined how a potential RE with an adult Rose could end up. Maybe she's with a husband and child and becouse she had no contact with her mother for a lot she despises Mia.

Old Leon finnaly playable but also Jill being playable, maybe a coop mode.

Don't know what else really, dunno who's gonna be the next antagonist, maybe Jake Muller or sombody new. Something else could be a post credit scene placed before RE9 where we play as Ada first pearson waking up next to Leon in his appartment, reaciving a message in her comms and we discover she has to do a mission where Leon is going to, hinting to maybe a future expansion. Who knows? What about you heartie? What do you expect in Re9 that is not neccessarly Aeon?

ahhh i've said before that i don't care too much speculating on re9! but i'll post this for other people if they wanna engage :3

[treleaven]

Publication date: 10 October 2024

A Garden Manifesto Edited by Olivia Laing and Richard Porter 

❀What do gardens mean and how can they change the world? A Garden Manifesto gathers radical visions rooted in the earth from artists, writers, gardeners and activists, among them Lubaina Himid, Derek Jarman, Jamaica Kincaid, Ana Mendieta, Dan Pearson and Wolfgang Tillmans. It’s a seed box for an uncertain future, packed with anarchic dreams of Eden-making and humming with resistance to the colonial project of homogenisation and destruction. ❀ Featuring 

William Blake, Joe Brainard, Jonny Bruce, John Clare, Gerry Dalton, Ellen Dillon, Baha Ebdeir, Alys Fowler, Magdalena Suarez Frimkess, Gaylene Gould, Green Guerillas, Joy Gregory, Fritz Haeg, Lubaina Himid, Philip Hoare, Rosie Hudson, Derek Jarman, Chantal Joffe, Laura Joy, Jamaica Kincaid, Elisabeth Kley, Olivia Laing, Jeremy Lee, Siobhan Liddell, Alison Lloyd, Hilary Lloyd, Jo McKerr, Lee Mary Manning, Ana Mendieta, Bernadette Mayer, Rosemary Mayer, Huw Morgan, Eileen Myles, Hussein Omar, Palestinian, Heirloom Seed Library, Ian Patterson, Dan Pearson, Jean Perréal, Charlie Porter, Pat Porter, J. H. Prynne, Claire Ratinon, Jamie Reid, Lisa Robertson, Kuba Ryniewicz, Saadi, Sui Searle, Sei Shōnagon, Colin Stewart, Tabboo!, Edward Thomasson, Wolfgang Tillmans, Scott Treleaven, John Wieners, David Wojnarowicz, Matt Wolf and Sarah Wood ❀ Design and typesetting by Richard Porter Cover artwork: David Wojnarowicz, What is this little guy's job in the world, 1990 © Estate of David Wojnarowicz

Paperback

148x190mm

ISBN: 9781068758607

[universalvsprivatehealthcare]

Article References

de Oliveira Costa, Juliana, Sallie-Anne Pearson, David Brieger, Sanja Lujic, Md Shajedur Rahman Shawon, Louisa R. Jorm, Kees van Gool, and Michael O. Falster. 2023. “In-Hospital Outcomes by Insurance Type among Patients Undergoing Percutaneous Coronary Interventions for Acute Myocardial Infarction in New South Wales Public Hospitals.” International Journal for Equity in Health 22(1): 1–11. 

Kesici, Zeynep, Volkan Yilmaz. 2023. “Insurance-based disparities in breast cancer treatment pathways in a universal healthcare system: a qualitative study.” BMC Health Services Research 23(1):1-10.

Korda, Rosemary J., Mark S. Clements, and Chris W. Kelman. 2009. “Universal Health Care No Guarantee of Equity: Comparison of Socioeconomic Inequalities in the Receipt of Coronary Procedures in Patients with Acute Myocardial Infarction and Angina.” BMC Public Health 9(1): 460–71. 

Rashford, Marleise. 2007. “A Universal Healthcare System: Is It Right for the United States?.” Nursing Forum, 42(1): 3–11. 

Sneed, Rodlescia S., Alexander Stubblefield, Graham Gardner, Tamara Jordan, and Briana Mezuk. 2024. “Chronic Disease, Functional Limitations, and Workforce Participation Among Medicaid Enrollees Over 50: The Potential Impact of Medicaid Work Requirements Post-COVID-19.” Journal of Aging & Social Policy 36(3): 380–98.

Saydah SH, Imperatore G, Beckles GL, Sharon H Saydah, Giuseppina Imperatore, and Gloria L Beckles. 2013. “Socioeconomic Status and Mortality: Contribution of Health Care Access and Psychological Distress among U.S. Adults with Diagnosed Diabetes.” Diabetes Care 36(1): 49–55.

[freddie-mercury-rising]

All Through Our Splendour

Rosemary Pearson, who dated Freddie Mercury in the late 60s, said they went to see a French-Italian film: "Women in Love". During the film, there is a nude wrestling scene between two men.

Rosemary stated: "We had been to the V&A and seen Eadweard Muybridge’s photographs of men wrestling in the nude. I could see he was enamoured in a way that went beyond art appreciation. Then we went to see Ken Russell’s Women in Love and he was dumbfounded by the wrestling scene. He wanted to stay in the cinema and see the whole thing again."

In the late 1960s, Freddie Mercury, who is in a relationship with a woman, struggles to understand his ever present and pervasive attraction to men. He knows he's destined for greatness, but the one thing holding him back is something he is unable or unwilling to face within himself.

[queen-thinky-thoughts]

I also never understood Freddie’s point of getting into a relationship with another woman if he already knew he was gay it doesn’t make sense and it’s very selfish of him in my opinion what he did to Mary he basically knew he was gay or suspecting he was and still lead her on and was cheating on her too

Woah, woah. Hold up there, anon.

Who says Freddie knew he was gay when he started dating Mary? Were you in his head? How could you possibly know that? We can speculate that he suspected he was gay. We know he told Rosemary he was bi. Whether that was what he believed himself to be at the time or if it was just what he told her, all the while knowing he was gay, is something we will never know. Personally, I think he was very confused and frightened.

There are several things which may have happened when it comes to Mary.

1) He knew he was gay, but thought this was something he could "cure" if he really wanted to. (Not an unusual assumption at the time, when sexuality was still largely understood as depending on actions rather than urges.)

2) He really wasn't sure. He was aware that he was attracted to men, but he wasn't sure that he really wasn't attracted to women, the very thought that he might be gay was too much for him to handle. Basically, denial.

3) He did feel some attraction to women. Now, listen, some of my gay male friends - who 100% identify as gay - have told me that they have occasionally, rarely found a woman attractive here and there. Attraction isn't all that black and white. It's entirely possible he was attracted enough to Mary in the beginning to believe that this could work for him. Only to discover that it really didn't.

We will simply never know what exactly was going on in his head at the time.

[queen-for-life]

“I didn’t know he was going to become a singer then. But I had a suspicion he might. He didn't do that much work. In the studio, he just sang all the time. He was charismatic, dressed outrageously – sometimes in shorts, no top and a fur coat – and was determined to make it as a singer. He always behaved as though he were in front of an audience, even if he was just with me. His gestures were theatrical, and often he’d break into song embarrassingly in the street. Yes, he liked to be the centre of attention, but he was sometimes remorseful about that, and was always genuinely interested in me and my work.

He was a clown, so much fun to be around. Freddie was also the only truly fearless person I ever met. I haven't acknowledged until now the massive impact knowing Freddie had on me. For me, he was the ultimate model of how to follow your dream. The experience of loving him left me feeling rejected and uncertain, but in the end, it gave me the impetus to be my own person, to try and do what he had done." - Rosemary Pearson [Freddie’s (girl)friend]

[targentis]

I'm dating a gay man.jpg

[a-froger-epic]

People in Freddie's life 4/?

Rosemary

- - -

Kashmira

Joe

Jim

[a-froger-epic]

Their relationship wasn't a good one because he was a gay man struggling with his sexuality, but it wasn't a terrible one, either. It's always been very interesting to me how much he did open up to her - or at least so Rosemary claims in her book. His hinting at and talking about his attraction to men was almost constant, but at the same time she did believe him when he told her he was bi because apparently he was making a genuine effort to be in that relationship with her. It's an endlessly fascinating time in his life for me. Did he really think he might be bi at the time? Did he already know that he was gay, really? How accurate are her accounts of their relationship? Did Roger really ask her out right after she broke up with Freddie?? lol

And most importantly, which is just my personal speculation, was Rosemary breaking up with him one of the reasons why Freddie decided to never say a word to Mary about his attraction to men? (Apart from Rosemary being a lot more open-minded as an artist and a hippie, than I think Mary was.) Or was the breakup perhaps even what pushed him to look for another relationship with a woman and make it work, that time? Seeing as in his mind, the idea of being with men had maybe only been feasible in the context of free love (after all, he and Rosemary were in an open relationship, pretty much) and so as even that hadn't worked out, Freddie decided any relationships with men while also having a regular life - which must include a woman, because heteronormativity - was impossible?

I HAVE SO MANY QUESTIONS.

everyone always conveniently forgets rosemary who broke up with freddie because he struggled so hard with his sexuality and internalized homophobia. she saw him cry in bed and run away from other gay men because he was so afraid of his sexuality but yet everyone seems to not know that, and there’s a reason for that. their relationship was not exactly a good one because of his sexuality struggles and nobody ever mentions it because it shows what it was like being gay in the 60s

[freddie-mercury-rising]

Finally, an update to my Rosemary fic:

All Through Our Splendour

Chapter 7: Enough

Rosemary put a hand over her mouth. She breathed deeply, willing herself to calm down, even though the adrenaline coursing through her body made her feel light-headed.

—

[a-froger-epic]

I 100% agree with you about everything you're saying here about Freddie and how he had to live as a queer person in an environment that was at the time absolutely hostile and just awful for queer people. The part about Jim having to leave the house breaks my heart especially!

There was one thing I wanted to say though, just because it's also been on my mind recently. I had long heard the story about Freddie crying in bed with his ex-girlfriend, and often it was told with the implication that he was so upset because straight sex distraught him so much, etc. But then I actually read Rosemary's book and I think that isn't accurate. It is, in fact, somehow even worse? See, this is the section:

My reading here is that he wasn't crying because of the sex itself. (I'm not saying it was good sex, I'm not making any judgement as to how difficult he did or didn't find it, sleeping with women. I think that's impossible to say.) But what I see happening here is that he was upset because Rosemary is questioning the validity of his feelings, she is basically saying: 'You seem pretty straight to me, why can't you just be straight and stop all this silly nonsense about being attracted to men?'

She invalidates him entirely, and that is the upsetting part for him. Not only does he feel unable at this point to explore his attraction to men, but he feels as if no one in the world even believes him that it's anything but some silly fantasy he's spinning in his head. That, surely, if he just decided to, he could be happily straight! It's like he's just being difficult and gay "on purpose".

Let that sink in. Damn.

I'd be raging and crying, too.

Every so often I’m reminded of the image of a young, 20-something year old Freddie Mercury, crying in bed with a woman because he wanted to have sex with men, and of Brian later saying he doesn’t think Freddie got to explore his sexuality in a healthy way due to the rock n roll lifestyle, and I feel really sad for him

[queen-thinky-thoughts]

Ok I personally feel like he maybe at the time felt more comfortably coming out to Rosemary because him and Rosemary were not in a relationship for a very long time and I don’t think their relationship was ever as serious as his relationship with Mary plus Rosemary had gay friends so that’s also maybe another reason he felt comfortable talking about it with her i don’t think it had anything to do with Mary personally!

Overall, I think the fact that Freddie didn't come out to Mary at all until the end of their relationship did have more to do with Freddie than it did with Mary.

I think that most likely, yes, he thought he had made a mistake coming out to Rosemary because she had concluded from it that she couldn't be with him anymore (and rightly so, the poor woman, her instinct was spot on while Freddie was in denial, thinking he could be alright in a heterosexual relationship). I also think you do have a point and things with Mary were, hmm, perhaps not so much more serious as more traditional. I think one of the reasons why Freddie thought he could explore his "bisexuality" with Rosemary (he wasn't, of course, bisexual - but at the time I think it's possible he had himself convinced that he was/could be) was that they were in an open relationship already and it was all very 'free love'. It wasn't like that with Mary.

I will gladly admit that my speculations that perhaps he also didn't mention his same-sex attraction to Mary because he felt like she would have not taken it as lightly as Rosemary is just speculation. It's based on my personal perception of Mary overall.

[kensingtonmarketstall]

a second reminder, in case you couldn’t read the last post i reblogged: freddie mercury was a gay man who said he was gay, and was described as being gay by his closest friends

[a-froger-epic]

From Rosemary's book.

Today, I shall spend the afternoon contemplating the totally unknowable, and that is: How much did Roger know/suspect? 👀

I have many headcanons, and I will enjoy them in silence in the privacy of ny mind.