Sponsor A Star was an initiative created by the Mercury Phoenix Trust to raise funds and awareness for HIV/AIDS Worldwide. The campaign, under the banner of 'Lover Of Life, Singer Of Songs', was launched in September 2006 as part of a number of activities celebrating what would have been Freddie Mercury's 60th birthday.

Two virtual online constellations were created in Freddie's name and hosted at stars.loveroflifesingerofsongs.com. Fans were invited to post their own personal messages to Freddie and donate to the Mercury Phoenix Trust by sponsoring a virtual star, joining real life Superstars and fans from all around the world in celebrating Freddie's life and work.

To date, the Sponsor A Star campaign has raised over £50,000, and has seen over 1000 stars sponsored from across the globe. Stars have been sponsored by Robert De Niro, Annie Lennox, Dave Grohl and the Foo Fighters, Diana Ross, Paul Rodgers, members of Blur and Montserrat Caballé.

Other initiatives that celebrated Freddie's birthday included the release of  the 20 track album 'The Very Best Of Freddie Mercury Solo', a DVD that included the award winning film ' Freddie Mercury  - The Untold Story' and a book called 'A Life In His Own Words'. The Dominion Theatre also played host to Freddie's  60th birthday party which saw audience members attend in fancy dress a special performance of We Will Rock You that included a memorable three-song set performed by Brian May and Roger Taylor.

 

The Sponsor a Star site is still running and it looks great. If you would like to sponsor a star or just browse the messages left by others, please go to www.loveroflifesingerofsongs.com