5 famous stars who revealed unbelievable secrets on their deathbed right before they passed away

The stage and silent film actress suffered a heart attack in her home on October 21, 1964, and called to her neighbours for assistance. While the 70-year-old initially asked for a priest to be sent over so that she could make one last confession, Margaret was running out of time, and so told her secret to the neighbour.

The star allegedly then confessed to killing director William Desmond Taylor in 1922, after making four short films with him. William had been found dead inside his home with a gunshot wound, but his case ultimately went cold due to a botched police investigation.

Margaret died shortly after her confession, and no evidence of her involvement in the murder was ever found.  

Freddie Mercury's health was dwindling for years before he died in 1991, but the Queen frontman refused to comment on the topic, and his team denied reports time and again that he had AIDS, the latest stage of an HIV infection.

It wasn't until the day before his passing on the 24th of November that he admitted the truth to the world, revealing that he had been diagnosed with HIV four years earlier and was dying of the illness.  

"Following the enormous conjecture in the press over the last two weeks, I wish to confirm that I have been tested HIV positive and have AIDS," he said in the statement.

"I felt it correct to keep this information private to date to protect the privacy of those around me. However, the time has come now for my friends and fans around the world to know the truth, and I hope that everyone will join with me, my doctors and all those worldwide in the fight against this terrible disease."

"My privacy has always been very special to me, and I am famous for my lack of interviews. Please understand this policy will continue," he concluded. Freddie tragically passed away the following day, after issuing his deathbed confession.

When Brian Jones, the guitarist and one of the founders of the Rolling Stones, was found drowned in his pool in 1969, his death was ruled accidental, and the case was closed. 

He had left the band a month earlier and was known for his excessive drug use and partying ways. It wasn't until 1994 that an alternate theory arose: that Brian had allegedly been murdered by Frank Thorogood, a builder who was working on his property at the time.

According to the books Paint it Black: The Murder of Brian Jones by Geoffrey Giuliano, and Who Killed Christopher Robin? by Terry Rawlings, Frank had allegedly admitted to the murder on his deathbed in 1993.

He reportedly told the Stones' road manager, Tom Keylock, "It was me that did Brian. I just finally snapped." The books alleged that Brian and Frank got into an argument over money; however, police examined new material related to the case in 2009 and decided not to reopen it due to lack of evidence.

The Psycho star took the secret of his illness to his deathbed, where he then had a statement prepared and ready to go when he passed on. Anthony was diagnosed with HIV in 1990, and a health worker leaked his blood results to the press, but he kept his battle with AIDS under wraps for as long as possible.

Anthony died of AIDS-related pneumonia in 1992, and his team released his prepared statement to the media. "I chose not to go public about [my diagnosis] because, to misquote Casablanca, 'I'm not much good at being noble,' but it doesn't take much to see that the problems of one old actor don't amount to a hill of beans in this crazy world," he said.

"I have learned more about love, selflessness and human understanding from the people I have met in this great adventure in the world of AIDS than I ever did in the cutthroat, competitive world in which I spent my life."

David Bowie released his deathbed confession in the form of his final album, Blackstar, which dropped just two days before his death on the 8th of January, 2016. The singer had been diagnosed with liver cancer 18 months prior, and chose to keep his illness a secret as he worked on his final farewell.

After his unexpected passing, fans and critics examined the album for clues about his final months, and found that David had written extensively about life, death and illness. 

The closing track, 'I Can't Give Everything Away', is a poignant end to the album, and speaks to his desire to keep some secrets of his own, even in death.