5 years ago last week, the ‘Queen’ biopic “Bohemian Rhapsody” was released in cinemas in the UK. Although it received mixed reviews (A Metascore of 49 and an IMDb rating of 7.9/10), the movie was awarded four Oscars and 2 BAFTAs. It was the highest-grossing biopic when it was released (a record later broken by “Oppenheimer”). A little-known fact about the film is that the scenes set inside Freddie Mercury’s Kensington home were filmed in Surbiton, inside a house on Ashcombe Avenue. Filming in the property took place over a week and involved over 100 extras as guests at parties. Local resident Hannah Evans found it “So cool that such a huge movie was filmed locally.”

When Freddie Mercury is first introduced to us, he is a baggage handler at Heathrow Airport. After seeing the band ‘Smile’ performing at a pub, Mercury, still going by his birth name of Farrokh Bulsara, searches for the band. He finds the band’s guitarist and drummer, who have just found out that their lead singer has quit the band. Freddie promptly joins the band, and from that point we are taken on a rollercoaster of a journey through the ups and downs of Mercury’s career, finally hurtling to a stop at Queen’s iconic Live Aid performance. 

Mercury’s Kensington home plays a large role in the film; it is both the venue of his many wild parties and the setting for some of the most emotional scenes, particularly those focussed on his relationship with his long-term friend and near-wife Mary Austin. The house presents a common theme throughout: Mercury’s loneliness at the low points in his life. These parts of the film are immensely well-written and directed – the film conveys emotion very effectively, immersing the viewer in the story. This investment, however, does not prevent the film from being clear about what it is – A biopic. The montages of tours and song creation, at points overlaid with quotes and articles about Queen, prevent the film from straying too far from the (perhaps already changed) source material. Surprisingly, rather than taking the viewer out of the movie experience, these pieces of information heighten the awe felt at Queen’s success by reminding them that a real band achieved such high levels of success. 

If you are a local resident who never got around to watching “Bohemian Rhapsody” when it first came out, now is the time to take its 5th birthday as an opportunity to watch a multi-award-winning movie and witness Surbiton’s part of movie history.