A memorial garden honoring the late Freddie Mercury, the iconic lead singer of Queen, has been inaugurated in Feltham, West London, where he once resided.
The garden was officially opened on Friday by Queen guitarist Sir Brian May and Mercury’s sister, Kashmira Bulsara. The project is part of a broader, council-led initiative for local regeneration.
The space features a “green eco cabin” intended to serve as a community hub for local gatherings and events.
Sir Brian May, who also spent his early years in Feltham, remarked to the BBC, “It’s so nice that they’ve honoured Freddie in this way, as a son of the village… we’re very proud.”
Sir Brian further commented on the positive changes in Feltham since the 1960s, when he and Mercury lived there.
“It’s great to see such a community emerge in Feltham, because as I remember it, it wasn’t like this in the old days and now you have this lovely coming together of artists and craftsmen.
“It’s very exciting to see this…I’m very happy that this is now a place where people come together and help each other.”
According to Hounslow Council, the cabin will serve as a base for the Friends of Feltham Green volunteer group and will host a range of activities, including gardening workshops, after-school clubs, exhibitions, and other community events.
The facility, constructed on previously unused land, aims to further enhance the “strong sense of community” in the area.
Council Leader Shantanu Rajawat described the opening as a “fantastic moment” for both Feltham and the wider borough of Hounslow.
“Using the opportunities that present themselves in underused spaces as well as commemorating those that are famous and have lived here is really important and it really adds to that sense of civic identity… Freddie Mercury was such an intrinsic part of our recent heritage and it’s great that we can properly commemorate the fact that he lived in Feltham.”
The project was made possible through funding from Hounslow Council’s Thriving Communities Fund, the Mayor of London’s Good Growth Fund, and A2Dominion.
Special hybrid roses, bred in tribute to Mercury, are planted alongside a Sakura cherry tree acquired through crowdfunding by 185 of Queen’s Japanese fans.
Angela Parton, Chair of the Friends of Feltham Green, expressed her hope that the new cabin and memorial garden would offer a “welcoming space” that would “radiate out positive waves” into the local community.
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