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Agence France-Presse

Ozzy Osbourne, the legendary frontman of heavy metal group Black Sabbath, died on Tuesday at the age of 76, his family said, just weeks after he gave an epic farewell concert.
The hell-raising singer, who was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease in 2019, died just over a fortnight after playing a final gig before a sold-out crowd in his home city of Birmingham, England.
“It is with more sadness than mere words can convey that we have to report that our beloved Ozzy Osbourne has died this morning,” said a family statement.
“He was with his family and surrounded by love. We ask everyone to respect our family privacy at this time.”

On Black Sabbath’s official Instagram account, the remaining members simply posted “Ozzy Forever”.
Tributes poured in for the notorious figure nicknamed the “Prince of Darkness”, who once bit off the head of a bat while on stage.
Music icon Elton John praised Osbourne as “a huge trailblazer who secured his place in the pantheon of rock gods - a true legend”.
“He was also one of the funniest people I’ve ever met. I will miss him dearly,” John wrote on Instagram. Rolling Stones member Ronnie Wood said he was “very sad” to learn of Osbourne’s death.
Osbourne was instrumental in pioneering heavy metal - an offshoot of hard rock - as Black Sabbath enjoyed huge commercial success in the 1970s and 80s after forming in Birmingham in 1968.
Black Sabbath’s eponymous 1970 debut album made the UK top 10 and paved the way for a string of hit records, including their most famous song “Paranoid”.

“It was Ozzy’s voice that took me away to a dark universe. A great escape,” Pearl Jam guitarist Mike McCready posted on X. “Thanks for the music, Ozzy it makes our journey in life better.”
Black Sabbath went on to sell more than 75 million albums worldwide and were inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2006. Osbourne was added for a second time last year as a solo artist.
He gained huge notoriety along the way for his outlandish stunts, many of them fuelled by a hedonistic lifestyle involving the lavish use of drugs and alcohol.
His live performances at the height of his hedonism have gone down in rock folklore, particularly a 1982 gig in Des Moines, Iowa, when he bit the head off a bat on stage.
Osbourne said he thought a fan had thrown a fake rubber bat onstage, and it was not until he took a bite that he realised it was real.
“I can assure you the rabies shots I went through afterwards aren’t fun,” he told US TV host David Letterman in 1982.

Osbourne is also rumoured to have snorted a line of ants up his nose and once urinated on a cenotaph commemorating war dead.
His public persona took a new turn with the reality television series The Osbournes in the 2000s, which followed the ups and downs of his family life alongside wife Sharon, whom he married in 1982, and their three children.
Born John Michael Osbourne on December 3, 1948 in Birmingham, he left school at 15 and did odd jobs including factory work before teaming up with school friend Geezer Butler in several bands before finding success with Black Sabbath.
He paused touring in 2023 after extensive spinal surgery.
Osbourne suffered a fall at home in 2019, which aggravated injuries from a near-fatal quad bike crash in 2003.
He released his 12th studio album, Ordinary Man, in 2020, followed by Patient Number 9 in 2022, which went to number three and two in the UK charts, respectively.

Osbourne brought the curtain down on a wild career on July 5, when Black Sabbath rattled through their most iconic songs in front of 40,000 adoring fans at Villa Park, home of Premier League football club Aston Villa.
He was joined by original bandmates Butler, Tony Iommi, and Bill Ward for the concert, dubbed “Back to the Beginning” - their first gig together in 20 years.
Osbourne - stylish to the very d – h held court from a giant leather throne, topped with a bat.
“It’s the last song ever. Your support has enabled us to live an amazing lifestyle … Thank you from the bottom of our hearts,” Osbourne told the crowd after finishing the set with “Paranoid”.


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Obituaries

Black Sabbath frontman Ozzy Osbourne dead at 76, weeks after farewell concert

Ozzy Osbourne in 2022. The Black Sabbath frontman died on Tuesday at 76. File photo: AP

Visitors pay their respects at the star for Ozzy Osbourne at the Hollywood Walk of Fame in Los Angeles. Photo: AP

Ozzy Osbourne with his family in 2002. Photo: Reuters

Ozzy Osbourne in 1978. File photo: TNS

Ozzy Osbourne performing at Black Sabbath’s farewell show at Villa Park in Birmingham, Britain. Photo: Reuters

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 Malcolm-Jamal Warner in 2015. The Cosby Show star died by drowning at the age of 54. File photo: Invision via AP

The Cosby Show cast: Lisa Bonet, Malcolm-Jamal Warner, Phylicia Rashad, Sabrina Le Beauf, Keshia Knight Pulliam, Bill Cosby and Tempestt Bledsoe. Photo: NBCU Photo Bank

Malcolm-Jamal Warner in 2023. File photo: TNS

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Austrian extreme sports pioneer Felix Baumgartner. File photo: Joerg Mitter/Red Bull Content Pool via Reuters

Felix Baumgartner made international headlines in 2012 for his historic skydive from the edge of space. File photo: Red Bull Stratos via Reuters

In 2003, Felix Baumgartner flew across the English Channel in a carbon fibre wing after being dropped from a plane. File photo: Reuters

Australian killer dies without revealing location of UK backpacker Peter Falconio’s body

Bradley John Murdoch (centre) was convicted in 2005 of murdering a British backpacker in the Australian outback. File photo: AFP


British tourists Joanne Lees (left) and Peter Falconio were ambushed by a man in the Australian outback in 2001. File photo: Reuters

Nigeria’s former president Muhammadu Buhari, 82, dies in London

Nigeria’s former president Muhammadu Buhari in Lagos in 2023. Buhari died on Sunday aged 82. Photo: AFP

Buhari arrives for the opening of the 36th Ordinary session of the Assembly of the African Union at the African Union Headquarters in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia in 2023. Photo: Reuters

Britain’s King Charles, left, receives Buhari during an audience at Buckingham Palace in London in November 2022. Photo: WPA Rota / AFP

Jimmy Swaggart, US televangelist undone by prostitute scandal, dies at 90

Television evangelist Jimmy Swaggart breaks down in tears as he confesses his relationship with a prostitute in 1988. Photo: TNS

Jimmy Swaggart preaches to the nearly 14,000 faithful who attended his Los Angeles Crusade in March 1987. Photo: AP

Televangelist Jimmy Swaggart speaks at the funeral service for his cousin, rock ‘n’ roll pioneer Jerry Lee Lewis, in Ferriday, Louisiana, in November 2022. Photo: AP

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The ‘Prince of Darkness’ and pioneering voice of heavy metal battled Parkinson’s disease after a life of rock ‘n’ roll excess and reality TV fame


The ‘Prince of Darkness’ and pioneering voice of heavy metal battled Parkinson’s disease after a life of rock ‘n’ roll excess and reality TV fame.


Fame and celebrity

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