Thousands of Queen fans gathered on Saturday next to Freddie Mercury's statue in Montreux, Switzerland, to celebrate what would have been the legendary British singer's 80th birthday. The fans sang, cheered, and partied in tribute to the vocalist, wearing extravagant outfits that reflected Mercury's characteristic stage costumes.
Freddie Mercury sought peace in Montreux in his final years of life and recorded his last vocals in that Swiss city. The bronze statue, erected in 1996 overlooking Lake Geneva, shows Mercury in a triumphant pose and became the central point of the celebrations.
Among the thousands of attendees were fans from locations as far away as Australia and Japan. A fan identified as Sonia traveled from Canberra specifically for the occasion, stating that a special effort had to be made to celebrate Mercury's birthday.
Some fans also came from Feltham, a housing estate near Heathrow Airport in London, where Mercury's family moved after fleeing the Zanzibar Revolution in 1964. Mercury himself was born in Zanzibar, now Tanzania.
