Sharon Osbourne emotional as family look at Ozzy Osbourne tributes in Birmingham
Sharon Osbourne was visibly emotional as fans shouted “Ozzy Ozzy Ozzy” during a procession through the streets of Birmingham in honour of the heavy metal star.
Black Sabbath frontman Ozzy, who played a farewell gig in the city earlier this month, died at the age of 76 last Tuesday.
His wife, former X Factor judge Sharon, 72, could be seen hugging the Lord Mayor of Birmingham, Zafar Iqbal, after she arrived at the Black Sabbath bench where floral tributes have been laid.
Sharon and the couple’s children could be seen wiping away tears at the bench as they inspected tributes, with members of the crowd shouting “we love you Ozzy”.
Each family member carried a pink rose, wrapped in black paper tied with a purple ribbon, that they laid on top of the many other floral tributes that sat next to a poster of the star, which said: “Birmingham will always love you”.
The hearse carrying Ozzy’s coffin passed the star’s childhood home in Lodge Road, Aston, at about 12.45pm on Wednesday on its route into Birmingham city centre.
The Jaguar hearse and six Mercedes funeral cars, accompanied by police motorcycle riders and a police car, drove slowly along the street on Lodge Road, watched by a handful of fans and the current owner of the house.
The hearse, adorned with purple flowers spelling out “Ozzy”, then made its way down Broad Street before stopping at the Black Sabbath bench, where thousands of tributes, balloons and flowers have been left.
Fans also left tributes outside a mural on Navigation Street, which was created ahead of the Back to the Beginning concert at Villa Park, which took place a few weeks ago.
One Osbourne fan, called Goose, told the PA news agency he “was a family member” and said they discovered heavy metal as a teenager.
“That’s when I found, like millions of people around the world, that there was music that was for us, something that understood us,” they said.
“We knew that there was somebody out there that felt the way that we did and it was a constant presence.
Evie Mayo, from Wolverhampton, said the heavy metal star had inspired her and everyone in Birmingham.
She told PA: “I think he was so influential, he was such an inspirational person. I think he really impacted everyone here, especially in Birmingham as well.
“Now that he’s not here any more, you can feel the impact of it. He inspired a lot of people and he was a great person.”
Elsewhere, the Lord Mayor of Birmingham told PA that Osbourne was a “working class hero” who loved his city.
Osbourne and his Black Sabbath bandmates – Terence “Geezer” Butler, Tony Iommi and Bill Ward – were recently given the freedom of the city of Birmingham, which recognises people’s exceptional service to the city.
The group, which formed in 1968, is widely credited with defining and popularising the sound of heavy metal.
Osbourne, who also had a successful solo career, found a new legion of fans when he appeared in the 2000s reality TV series The Osbournes, starring alongside his wife Sharon and two youngest children, Kelly and Jack.
The music star, who was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease in 2019, performed his last gig on July 5 in a concert that also saw performances from the likes of Anthrax, Metallica and Guns N’ Roses.
Osbourne died just over two weeks after Black Sabbath were reunited barely two miles from where they first played together more than 50 years ago.