With the sheer scale of his adoration, Freddie Mercury put most cat parents to shame. According to Vanity Fair, he eventually lived with 10 total felines—Tom, Jerry, Tiffany, Dorothy, Delilah, Goliath, Lily, Miko, Oscar, and Romeo—who became a crucial part of his life, even inspiring music. For reference, consult the liner notes to the Queen singer‘s 1985 solo LP, Mr. Bad Guy, which included a dedication to “to my cat Jerry—also Tom, Oscar, and Tiffany, and all the cat lovers across the universe.” Making his devotion clear, he added, “screw everybody else!”
The most famous example of that loyalty is the 1991 Queen song “Delilah,” named after the titular kitty. The springy little synth-pop tune, which appears on the band’s 14th LP, Innuendo, may initially sound like a typical tale of romantic devotion. But then you spot the more specific lyrics, like “You’re all claws, and you bite” and “[Y]ou make me slightly mad when you pee all over my Chippendale suite.” Most on the nose: the various “meows” halfway through the track, chased by Brian May’s processed guitar leads. It’s an adorable twist on a traditional love song, but it’s still divisive—even within the band that recorded it. Queen drummer Roger Taylor told Classic Rock that he isn’t a fan: “I hate ‘Delilah,’” he said. “That’s just not me.”
While “Delilah” is rarely ranked among the band’s essential work, the sentiment behind the piece still resonates with pet owners. In the YouTube comments for the song’s official lyric video, one fan wrote in a years-old comment, “My cat was called Delilah because I`ve been a Queen fan since my teenage days. She was born in 1998 and died just a few days ago. She`s been with me and my Family for more than 19 years…” Another added, “I wish there were more innocent, sweet songs like this one. A great song, just a nice man that loves his cat.”
The Vanity Fair article explores just how much Mercury loves his kids, even citing the singer’s boyfriend of seven years, Jim Hutton, from his memoir Mercury and Me. “Freddie treated the cats like his own children,” he wrote. “He would constantly fuss over them, and if any of them came to any harm when Freddie was away, heaven help us. During the day the cats had the run of the house and grounds, and at night one of us would round them up and bring them inside.”
As part of an exhibit devoted to Mercury, who died in 1991, the fine art company Sotheby’s posted an article celebrating some of the Queen frontman’s beloved pets. “Delilah joined the cat clan in 1986, shortly after Freddie had moved into [his London house] Garden Lodge,” wrote Arsalan Mohammad. “Whilst Freddie’s love for each of his cats is without question—this was after all, the man who, while on tour, would insist on calling home to insist a cat or two be held up to the phone for a loving chat—it’s said Delilah was his favorite. Certainly, this self-possessed and charismatic animal beguiled and delighted him like none other…Freddie occasionally tried to capture this particular cat’s inscrutable essence. Former assistant Peter Freestone remembers frustrated attempts to capture her likeness in watercolors—Freddie begging the animal to please, just sit still for a moment whilst he frantically paddled his paintbrush and swiped a few strokes.”
Sotheby’s Story Café’ even created a special “one-off makeover” paying tribute to the Mercury clan. “At Garden Lodge, Mercury’s home in London,” the company wrote on Instagram, “each cat had its own roosting spot and they all often gathered in the kitchen, where they could keep a keen eye on the daily comings and goings.” He truly set the standard for all pampering pet parents.
