![\"Norman](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/37b68206cd333f614982eea86876d2a2.jpeg\")
Norman Sheffield lived at Trevigue in the 1970s (Hamptons) <\/p>\n Norman Sheffield lived at Trevigue in the 1970s (Hamptons) <\/p>\n
The former Hertfordshire<\/a> home of Queen\u2019s first manager is for sale with Hamptons<\/a> for \u00a33.5 million.<\/p>\n Norman Sheffield is understood to have lived at the mock-Tudor property on Springle Lane, Hertford, during the 1970s, while managing the band.<\/p>\n Sheffield, a drummer, founded Trident Studios in 1968 with his brother Barry. Over the next 15 years, it would be used by some of Britain\u2019s biggest artists, including The Beatles \u2014who recorded \u2018Hey Jude\u2019 there\u2014 David Bowie, Elton John and the Rolling Stones.<\/p>\n By 1972, the Sheffield brothers had started to develop their own talent, and had become aware of a \u201craw and demanding\u201d new four-piece rock band which was then known as Smile.<\/p>\n After watching them play a one-hour support gig in Denmark Hill, they agreed to sign and manage the band, which was promptly renamed Queen.<\/p>\n Under Trident\u2019s management, the band recorded three albums and a number of hit singles, including \u2018Seven Seas of Rhye\u2019 and \u2018Killer Queen\u2019.<\/p>\n Sheffield and the band had a fractious relationship, though \u2013 particularly with frontman Freddie Mercury<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cRoger Taylor was a really good-looking kid, with long blond hair and charm. Brian May was tall with a mane of curls and a little introverted but clearly very intelligent.<\/p>\n \u201cThe bass player, John Deacon, was also quiet. I could tell right away that the fourth member was going to be high maintenance,\u201d wrote Sheffield in his biography, Life on Two Legs: Set the Record Straight.<\/p>\n \u201cThe more successful they became, the more agitated Queen had grown about money. One of the most heated rows came when John got married. In the run-up to the wedding he announced he wanted me to spring \u00a310,000 (about \u00a390,000 in 2013 values) for him to buy a house. I didn\u2019t react too well.\u201d<\/p>\n By 1975, the relationship had completed deteriorated, with Mercury dedicating a scathing song to Sheffield, called \u2018Death on Two Legs\u2019.<\/p>\n In it, he called him a \u201csewer rat decaying in a cesspool of pride\u201d, writing: \u201cYou suck my blood like a leach\u201d. Sheffield sued Queen for defamation and secured an out-of-court settlement.<\/p>\n In the end, the band\u2019s acrimonious split with Sheffield happened later that year, with Queen paying Trident \u00a3100,000 in severance fees and reluctantly agreeing to 1 per cent of album royalties, according to Laura Jackson\u2019s biography of the band.<\/p>\n EMI initially took control of recording and publishing, and John Reid \u2014who managed Elton John\u2014 took over as manager later in the year.<\/p>\n Sheffield\u2019s former home, called Trevigue, would have formed the backdrop to his turbulent time with Queen.<\/p>\n According to the current owners, the band spent a lot of time at Sheffield\u2019s home, mingling with the other stars he worked with \u2013 including Elton John<\/a>, who allegedly played the piano for them.<\/p>\n Born in Enfield, Sheffield spent most of his life in Hertfordshire, later moving to nearby Broxbourne.<\/p>\n Queen stars John Deacon, Freddie Mercury, Roger Taylor and Brian May (PA Archive) <\/p>\n
According to the current owners, Queen spent time at Sheffield’s house (Hamptons) <\/p>\n