Meghalt Ozzy Osbourne

Controversial British musician and TV personality Ozzy Osbourne (aka The Prince of Darkness) was a true beloved rock legend. He was lead vocalist for the iconic heavy metal band Black Sabbath before successfully going solo and then later having a reality TV career with his family on the show The Osbournes. Throughout his career, he sold more than 100 million records.

Background

John Michael “Ozzy” Osbourne was born on 3 December 1948 in England. His mother, Lilian worked at a factory and his father, John Thomas (Jack) was a toolmaker at the General Electric Company.

Osbourne was the fourth of six children – with three older sisters and two younger brothers. The family were poor and lived in a small two-bedroom home in Birmingham.  

Osbourne dealt with dyslexia and abuse at school. He left school early at 15 and was employed in a few roles such as a labourer, toolmaker, and even a slaughterhouse worker. After getting into petty crime, he spent six weeks in prison when he was unable to pay a fine after being convicted of burgling a clothes shop.

Interested in drama he took part in school plays and got into music after hearing the Beatles and names their song She Loves You for inspiring him to become a musician.

Music Career

In 1968 Osbourne teamed with other musicians to form a band named Earth, they changed the name after another band was using the same and so Black Sabbath were formed. The band had a loud, ominous amplified sound and often referenced Gothic influences and the occult in its lyrics. They released their first album in 1970 and quickly gained a fan following across the UK and the USA. They continued to release albums through the mid-1970s. After a tour in 1978 Ozzy left, and went through a difficult time with his then marriage and drug dependency before meeting and marrying Sharon Arden who encouraged his solo career.

His first solo album Blizzard of Ozz in 1980 was a huge success and went multi-platinum and included the single Crazy Train. The next album was Diary of a Madman in 1981 which sold millions. The tour for this album was the famous one where Ozzy allegedly bit the head off a live bat thinking that it was actually a rubber toy.

Throughout the 1980s, Osbourne continued with his angry rebellious image, building his public persona and he was often picked out by religious groups as an example of the negative impact of rock music on good society.

Despite time in rehab, Osbourne continued his success, with albums Bark at the Moon (1983), The Ultimate Sin (1986) and No Rest for the Wicked (1988) going multi-platinum. His sixth solo album No More Tears (1991) reached the Top 10. He won a Grammy Award for best metal performance for the song I Don’t Want to Change the World.

Despite announcing his retirement over the years, he continued recording. 

He organised the successful Ozzfest with Sharon, an annual summer music festival featuring heavy metal acts which began in 1996 and toured throughout the USA and parts of Europe.

By the end of the 1990s, Osbourne got back with the original members of Black Sabbath for a new album and tour, and in 1999 the band won a Grammy for best metal performance for the song Iron Man.

In 2007 he released the solo album Black Rain, followed by Scream (2010) and Ordinary Man (2020).  In 2013 Osbourne made the studio recording 13 with Black Sabbath after 35 years.

In 2020, Osbourne released his first solo album in almost ten years, Ordinary Man, which debuted at number three on the UK Albums Chart and 2022 saw the release of his thirteenth album Patient Number 9.

TV Show

In 2001 the popular reality television show, The Osbournes, which focused on the life of Ozzy and his family, premiered on MTV. The show ran until 2005, earning a Primetime Emmy and becoming one of MTV’s highest-rated shows ever.

Acting

Osbourne has starred in movies like Austin Powers Goldmember (2002) and the remake of Ghostbusters (2016).  

Personal Life

In 1971, Osbourne met his first wife Thelma and children Jessica, and Louis were later born.

Osbourne married his manager Sharon Arden in 1982 and the couple had three children together, Aimee, Kelly, and Jack. They were married for over 40 years and the family lived between their Buckinghamshire mansion and a home in Los Angeles.

Osbourne suffered health issues over the years and was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease in 2019. It was well-reported that he misused alcohol and drugs for much of his life, but he managed to remain sober for extended periods in recent years.

The heavy metal star reunited with his Black Sabbath bandmates on stage at Villa Park earlier in July. Just three weeks after the farewell concert Ozzy died peacefully on 22 July, 2025, surrounded by his family.