5 September 1987 – Freddie Mercury throws the THE ULTIMATE BIRTHDAY PARTY…..
When Freddie planned his 41st birthday party, he selected the Pikes Hotel on the island of Ibiza for the site. Ibiza and Pikes had a noted reputation for hedonistic behavior, which his party did nothing to reduce. The party thrown by Freddie was the most lavish, and expensive, ever thrown at the site, leading the proprietor, stunned by the size of the bar bill being run up, to wonder if the rock star could afford to pay up. Tony said: “Money was no object. Freddie sought sanctuary in the hotel and wanted a party to remember.
“When I asked him about the budget he laughed and said there was none. We could freeze the pool and have skating elephants if we wanted. He just wanted it to be wild.” 
The party was originally going to be for Freddie and former Queen manager, John Reid (his birthday is 9 September) but John backed out at last minute with other pressing plans. The invitations have John Reid’s name under Freddie’s.
Freddie had thousands of helium balloons, colored black and gold, prepared for the party, which took three full days for them all to be inflated. The hotel owner, Anthony Pike, was a close friend of Freddie’s, but even he was unprepared for the size of the celebration.
A cake in the shape of Gaudi’s Sagrada Familia Cathedral was prepared but it collapsed under its own weight, and was replaced with a six foot sponge decorated with the notes of Freddie’s recording Barcelona.
Flamenco dancers were hired to perform throughout the event, as well as other dancers and professional models to enhance the mood. The guest list read like a who’s who of film, music, and the arts, and included Anthony Quinn, Tony Curtis, Julio Iglesias, and Spandau Ballet, to name just a few. Freddie opened the festivities by ordering 350 bottles of chilled Moet et Chandon champagne for his guests which the waiters opened in less than an hour for the 700 guests.
Its climax was a fireworks display, launched on Ibiza, which was so lavish that it was reported as being seen in Majorca, over 100 miles away. The bill for the extravaganza was sent to Jim Beach, to be paid by Queen.
Numerous urban legends emerged over the behavior of guests and their host at Queen’s parties. Freddie’s parties were extravagant enough that they don’t need to be embellished with stale rumors and myths.
In the cold light of morning, hotel boss Tony Pike meticulously drew up the bill – the largest he had ever presented.
It was to give him an astonishing insight into how the Queen money machine could pay out massive amounts – yet still subject tiny details to the biggest scrutiny.
“I gave the party bill to Queen’s manager Jim Beach who went through it very carefully,” said Pike.
“There were items like 232 broken glasses – and suddenly he pointed to one entry of four vodka-and-tonics, and said, ‘Take it off. We didn’t have any vodkas’.
“I said that if it was on the bill then someone must have ordered the drinks. But Beach repeated, ‘No-one ordered vodkas’.
“I was about to stand my ground when a quiet voice cut in and asked, ‘Is there a problem here?’
“It was Freddie. I explained the situation and he replied: ‘Yes, it’s correct. I bought those myself for the bar staff’.”
Another frequent guest to Freddie’s parties was songwriter friend Mike Moran. “There was nothing cheap about Freddie,” he says.
“It always had to be the finest champagne and food and his attention to detail was amazing.
After the Freddie passed, Tony kept his large bedroom suite intact and it has now been turned into the in-House nightclub – Freddie’s – complete with karaoke in the bathroom – by newish owners Dawn Hindle and Andy McKay from Ibiza Rocks, a big hotel in Ibiza with live music and pool parties.