Freddie Mercury’s ‘Secret’ Daughter Bibi Dies Aged 48 - Details

The world knew him as a rock legend. She knew him as Dad.

Freddie Mercury's secret daughter — Bibi — has died at the age of 48, her family confirmed Thursday, 15 January 2026, following a long and painful fight with chordoma, a rare and aggressive spinal cancer.

Her existence, long concealed, was only made public last summer in the explosive biography "Love, Freddie" by journalist Lesley-Ann Jones.

It was the revelation that stunned even Queen's most devoted followers: Freddie had a daughter — and wrote songs for her.

Bibi, born from a secret affair in 1976, had kept her identity hidden for decades, living quietly in France, working as a doctor, and raising two young sons. According to her widower Thomas, she passed away "peacefully after a long battle."

He added:

"B is now with her beloved and loving father in the world of thoughts. Her ashes were scattered to the wind over the Alps."

In "Love, Freddie," Lesley revealed that the Queen frontman referred to his daughter affectionately as "Bibi," and called her his "trésor" — French for "treasure" — and his "little froggie." She claimed that Freddie wrote the hauntingly tender songs "Bijou" and "Don't Try So Hard" about her.

The two shared a deeply private bond until Freddie's death in 1991 from bronchial pneumonia brought on by AIDS. Bibi was only a teenager.

Lesley, who became close with Bibi during the final years of her life, said the late doctor was determined to reclaim her father's legacy from decades of what she described as "lies" and "rewriting."

"I am devastated by the loss of this woman who became my close friend," Lesley said. "[She] had come to me with a selfless aim: to brush aside all those who have had free rein with Freddie's story for 32 years [...] and deliver the truth."

Bibi first reached out to Lesley after reading her earlier book "Freddie, Love of My Life," writing that it came "closer to the real Freddie than any previous writer or filmmaker" — though she particularly loathed the Oscar-winning Queen biopic "Bohemian Rhapsody."

Still, Bibi told Lesley that there were "still some things you should know."

The two worked together for four years on the book. During that time, Bibi became gravely ill. She had battled chordoma once before as a child, which forced her family to relocate frequently to access treatment. According to Lesley, the disease had been in remission — until it returned.

And even then, Bibi put the story first.

The book is based on 17 volumes of private journals Freddie gave Bibi shortly before his death. Bibi, as a teenager, had watched her father perform from the crowds, tracking his world tours on a globe he had gifted her — all while her very existence remained one of the music world's best-kept secrets.

But not everyone accepted her truth.

In an interview with The Sunday Times shortly before the book's release, Freddie's former fiancée Mary Austin said she would be "astonished" if the star had a daughter. She insisted she had never known of a child and claimed Freddie kept no journals or diaries. According to Lesley, this devastated Bibi.

"She was devastated by Mary Austin's attempts to deny her existence, and her denunciation of the veracity of the book," she said. "Mary's lawyers, Farrer & Co, were heavy-handed in their attempts to prevent publication. They tried everything. They failed. After the book was published, they never contacted us again."

Lesley added that Mary's statements were "shocking" and "deeply upsetting," but "unsurprising." Still, despite the opposition, she and Bibi saw their mission through.

"It was the honour of my life to have been chosen by her to share Freddie's true story," the author said.

Bibi had kept her identity hidden not out of shame, but because she feared exposure would cost her career and compromise her patients. Now, her family — still based in France — is considering releasing photos of her with Freddie, including some taken when she was a young woman.

Before the book's release, she released a rare public statement after learning that Mary denied knowing of her existence.

"After his death, I had to learn to live with the attacks against him, the misrepresentations of him, and with the feeling that my Dad now belonged to everyone," she wrote. "I cried and mourned my Dad, while fans all around the world mourned Freddie. When you are 15 years old, it's not easy."

Bibi spoke candidly of growing up in the shadows — without his guidance, without his protection, and with the rest of the world redefining who he was.

"For 30 years, while the rest of the world was reinterpreting [Freddie's] life, his music and all that he had been, I needed to have my Dad just for me and my family. How could I have spoken before?" Bibi said.

Now, after decades of silence, that hidden chapter of Freddie's life has finally been opened — and gently, irrevocably, laid to rest.