Freddie Mercury was born in Zanzibar and studied in India before moving to England. He formed bands that eventually became Queen, where he was the lead singer and songwriter. Some of Queen's biggest hits were composed by Mercury. He had a successful solo career in addition to his work with Queen. Mercury died of AIDS-related bronchopneumonia in 1991.

1. LISTENING
1 Listen and answer the next questions.
Do you know this song? Who was the vocalist of this band?
READING
 1 Read the biography of Freddie Mercury and fill the gaps with the information
given in the box below.
were formed (x2) studied composed joined (x2) died led was called began
changed said brought played fled held showed
USE OF ENGLISH
PAST SIMPLE
We use past simple to express
the idea that an action started
and finished.
FORMATION:
VERB+ ED (for regular verbs)
i.e. Walk walked
*Irregular verbs have a change:
Arise arose arisen
Mercury_____born in Farrokh Bulsara, on the island of Zanzibar, off the coast of Tanzania. His
parents, Bomi and Jer Bulsara, _____ Parsis from the Gujarat region of the then province of Bombay
Presidency in British India. The Bulsara family had moved to Zanzibar in order for his father to
continue his job as a cashier at the British Colonial Office. In 1954, at the age of eight, Mercury was
shipped to study at St. Peter's School, a boarding school for boys in Panchgani near Mumbai, India. At
school, he_____a popular school band, _____The Hectics, for which he _____ the piano." It was also
at St. Peter's where he______ to call himself "Freddie". At the age of 17, Mercury and his family _____
from Zanzibar for safety reasons due to the 1964 Zanzibar Revolution. Mercury enrolled at Isle worth
Polytechnic in West London where he_____ art. Mercury remained a British citizen for the rest of his
life. He also _____ a job at Heathrow airport. Friends from the time remember him as a quiet and shy
young man who ______ a great deal of interest in music. In 1969 he______ the band Ibex, which was
later renamed Wreckage. When this band failed to take off, he _____a second band called Sour Milk
Sea. However, by early 1970, this group broke up as well. In April 1970, Mercury ______ with guitarist
Brian May and drummer Roger Taylor who had previously been in a band called Smile. Despite
reservations from the other members, Mercury chose the name "Queen" for the new band. He later
______ about the band's name, "I was certainly aware of the gay connotations, but that was just one
facet of it." At about the same time, Mercury also_____ his own name. As a performer, he was known
for his flamboyant stage personal and powerful vocals over a four-octave range.
As a songwriter, Mercury ______many hits for Queen, including
"Bohemian Rhapsody", "Killer Queen", "Somebody to Love", "Don't
Stop Me Now", "Crazy Little Thing Called Love" and "We Are the
Champions". In addition to his work with Queen, he____ a solo
career, and also occasionally served as a producer and guest
musician (piano or vocals) for other artists. He____ of
bronchopneumonia_____ on by AIDS on 24 November 1991, only
one day after publicly acknowledging he had the disease.

2. PRE
 They’re going to listen “I want to break free” by Queen and answer the following
questions: Do you know this song? Who was the vocalist of this band?
WHILE
 They’re going to read the biography of Freddie Mercury and fill the gaps with the
information given in the box below.
were formed (x2) studied composed joined (x2) died led was called began
changed said brought played fled held showed
AFTER
Check the answers.
1. Was
2. Were
3. Formed
4. Called
5. Played
6. Began
7. Fled
8. Studied
9. Held
10. Showed
11. Formed
12. Joined
13. Joined
14. Said
15. Changed
16. Composed
17. Led
18. Died
19. Brought
After that, we’re going to read the little box of “use of English” in the bottom in order to learn how
to form verbs in past simple.
FOLLOW-UP
For homework the students have to write a relative’s biography by using verbs in past.