Freddie Mercury's off stage t-shirts and vests including a 'Gold's Gym Covent Garden' vest and a blue bomber jacket

Freddie Mercury’s off stage t-shirts and vests including a 'Gold's Gym Covent Garden' vest and a blue bomber jacket, late 1970s

-A blue cotton vest with white trim, printed with yellow lettering ‘Gold’s Gym Covent Garden London’ and in white with a caricature of a weightlifter, labelled inside ‘Gold’s Merchandise’; and

- a white ribbed cotton vest with ‘THE WORKS NYC’ printed in black, label removed; and

- a sleeveless black cotton vest with cut-out back and white trim, labelled inside ‘Uni Sex Fashion -S’ with an additional small ink-stamped label ‘GH655’ [possibly a wardrobe or cleaner’s label]; and

- a red ribbed cotton vest with ‘Market Tavern’ lettering printed in black and an image of the rear view of a naked male torso, labelled inside ‘Body Zone London’; and

- a circa late 1970s bomber jacket of air force blue quilted satin, ivory knitted collar, cuffs and hem, two slip pockets, zip-fastening to front, lined in plain ivory cotton, labelled inside ‘Orlon’

(qty 5)

The ‘Gold’s Gym’ Vest in this lot is very similar in appearance to the worn one in lot CQ4R8 apart from the gym’s location in Covent Garden, London and the cotton trim which is white on this one and red on the photographed off stage used version.

Gold’s Gym opened by Jim Gold at Venice Beach, California in 1965 was the first specialist health club of its time. It became known as "The Mecca of Bodybuilding" attracting clients such as Arnold Schwarzenegger and the world’s top body builders. In 1977 it secured its iconic status as the world’s most famous gym and centre for the culture of bodybuilding and physique in general when it featured as the primary location for the film ‘Pumping Iron’. Since then it has counted many notable Hollywood stars and famous sporting celebrities amongst its clientele. One of the first of its kind to start a franchise in 1980, ‘Gold’s Gym’ is still revered as a remarkable pioneer of the global health and fitness industry.