United Kingdom, Aug. 11 -- Mary Austin has declared it would be "astonishing" if Freddie Mercury had fathered a secret daughter without her knowledge.

A new book titled Love, Freddie by Lesley-Ann Jones claims the Queen frontman became a dad to a little girl - named only as B - following an affair with a friend's wife in 1976 and the child is said to have inherited diaries written by the singer in the run-up to her birth.

However, Mary - who was close to the singer for two decades - is adamant it's unlikely Freddie could not have kept such huge news secret. She told The Sunday Times newspaper: "Freddie had a glorious openness, and I cannot imagine he would have wanted to, or been able to, keep such a joyful event a secret, either from m...