Piano used by Freddie Mercury to be sold at auction

A piano and other items used by Freddie Mercury could be sold for a total of £3m at auction.

Hertfordshire-based Propstore is selling 82 lots from the collection of German producer Reinhold Mack, who worked with Queen on several albums in the 1980s.

This includes a Yamaha C3 Grand Piano, used to compose Crazy Little Thing Called Love, and a teddy bear given to Mack's son Freddie Jr, who was also the Queen frontman's only godson.

The auction for the items which include a microphone used by Mercury and handwritten lyrics from his debut solo album, is scheduled to begin on 1 October.

Ahead of that date the items will be displayed in a free exhibition at The Cumberland Hotel in London between 23 and 27 September.

The piano, which was also played by Leonard Cohen, Donna Summer and Bryan Ferry, is expected to sell for at least £200,000.

Queen used the piano during the recording of The Game, Hot Space and The Works.

An AKG C414 EB microphone, which can be seen in footage of the band recording the song One Vision, could fetch at least £40,000.

Mack said: "Freddie was not only a colleague and close friend; in many ways, he was part of our family.

"To us, he was never a celebrity; he was 'Uncle Freddie' - spending time with his godson Freddie Jr.... and celebrating family birthdays with us."

He said he hoped a fan would appreciate the items, but added: "The memories we shared can never be auctioned; they will remain with our family forever."

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