Thousands of Ozzy Osbourne fans line the streets of Birmingham for star’s funeral procession
There were emotional scenes as a distraught Sharon Osbourne was comforted by her children and thousands lined the streets of Birmingham for Ozzy Osbourne’s funeral procession.
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A distraught and tearful Sharon Osbourne hung onto her children for support and broke down as she read fans’ touching tributes to her beloved husband Ozzy.
Sharon was supported by their children Jack, 39, Kelly, 40 and Aimee, 41, and Ozzy’s son Louis, 50, as the family followed behind the Black Sabbath icon’s hearse through the streets of Birmingham.
The Sun reported Sharon hugged daughter Kelly and held son Jack’s hand as she broke down in tears while laying flowers and reading heartfelt messages penned by fans.
The family arrived carrying small bouquets of purple flowers to place on a memorial for the late heavy metal legend.
Kelly, wore her hair in a platinum blonde bun and donned round sunglasses in a nod her father’s famous look.
She turned to lean on her fiance Sid Wilson who was standing next to her with their son Sidney.
Sharon and her rarely seen daughter Aimee waved to the emotional crowd and tried to smile, giving peace signs to fans.
Louis, Ozzy’s son from his first marriage to Thelma Riley, also joined the family.
The crowd chanted “Ozzy, Ozzy, Ozzy”, with many shouting messages of support for Sharon.
One could be heard saying “we love you Sharon” as she laid flowers next to the cortege.
The procession was led by a live brass band formed with local musicians from Bostin’ Brass in honour of Ozzy’s legacy.
The Jaguar hearse carrying the singer’s coffin went by his humble childhood home, a small row house, where tributes also are being placed.
Following the Jaguar were six Mercedes funeral cars, police motorcycle riders and a police car.
The hearses were adorned with purple flower arrangements in the shape of a crucifix and ‘Ozzy’.
Fans began gathering from early in the morning, with touching floral tributes left by the Black Sabbath bench in the centre of the city.
Some displayed handpainted signs, while others dressed themselves and their pets in honour of the Prince of Darkness.
The Prince of Darkness will be laid to rest in an intimate gathering.
“They’re planning a small, private funeral that will be a celebration of his life,” a source told People “Ozzy would never want a mope-fest.”
Fans will be given a chance to pay their respects to Osbourne, as his funeral cortege travels through his beloved home city of Birmingham.
Osbourne’s body was brought back to the city for a procession that travelled along Broad Street from 1pm on Wednesday, local time (10pm AEST), as a way of giving fans a chance to say goodbye.
Osbourne’s loved ones, including his wife Sharon, 72, and their kids Aimee, 41, Jack, 39, and Kelly, 40, said they are all “touched by all the love and support pouring in from around the world.”
The former Black Sabbath frontman has previously made his funeral wishes clear.
In a Dear Ozzy column for The Times of London in 2011, Osbourne was asked about his future memorial.
“I honestly don’t care what they play at my funeral; they can put on a medley of Justin Bieber, Susan Boyle and We Are the Diddymen if it makes ’em happy,” he revealed to the outlet. “But I do want to make sure it’s a celebration, not a mope-fest.”
Osbourne added, “I’d also like some pranks: maybe the sound of knocking inside the coffin; or a video of me asking my doctor for a second opinion on his diagnosis of ‘death.’ There’ll be no harping on the bad times.”
“So to answer your question, yes,” he continued, “a bit of planning is the right thing to do for the family you leave behind.”
For the heavy metal icon, Osbourne felt it was “worth remembering that a lot of people see nothing but misery their whole lives. So by any measure, most of us in this country — especially rock stars like me — are very lucky.”
With that notion in mind, the musician concluded, “That’s why I don’t want my funeral to be sad. I want it to be a time to say ‘thanks.’”
In 2023, the reality star — who revealed his Parkinson’s diagnosis in 2020 — also insisted that he “doesn’t fear death” and was well-aware that he had “at best 10 years left.”
“I don’t fear dying, but I don’t want to have a long, painful and miserable existence,” he explained to Rolling Stone. “I like the idea that if you have a terminal illness, you can go to a place in Switzerland and get it done quickly. I saw my father die of cancer.”
“But look, I said to Sharon that I’d smoked a joint recently and she said, ‘What are you doing that for? It’ll f – king kill you!’” Osbourne admitted. “I said, ‘How long do you want me to f – king live for?!’ At best, I’ve got 10 years left and when you’re older, time picks up speed.”
The late star noted about his union to the former talk show host: “Me and Sharon had our 41st wedding anniversary recently, and that’s just unbelievable to me.”
At the time, he also shared that he wanted to feel “well enough” for one more live performance before his time was up.
“If I can’t continue doing shows regularly, I just want to be well enough to do one show where I can say, ‘Hi guys, thanks so much for my life,’” he told the outlet. “That’s what I’m working towards, and if I drop down dead at the end of it, I’ll die a happy man.”
Along with plans for his memorial, Osbourne also detailed how he wanted to be remembered.
In recent years, Osbourne had undergone multiple surgeries, including going under the knife for a debilitating spinal injury in 2019.
“I mean, I’m 73. People go, ‘Well, you’re 70 … why don’t I throw the towel in?’ Why should I? People still want to buy my records,” he told People. “People still want to see me, so why should I? It motivates me to get off my backside and do something. I mean, if my career had gone down the toilet and I knew it was the end, I’d be pretty miserable.”
On July 5, Osbourne was able to turn one of his dreams into a reality. The singer performed at Black Sabbath’s “Back to the Beginning” farewell concert in his native Birmingham, England.
Osbourne, who couldn’t walk on his own anymore, sat in a black leather chair. He sang five songs solo, and was then accompanied by his former bandmates Tony Iommi, Bill Ward and Geezer Butler for four final Black Sabbath tunes.
“You have no idea how I feel,” he told the crowd at Villa Park. “Thank you from the bottom of my heart.”
This article originally appeared on the New York Post
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