Thousands of fans lined the streets of Birmingham to watch Ozzy Osbourne make his final journey through his home city, with his tearful family laying tributes as crowds chanted the late singer’s name.
A hearse carrying Osbourne, who died last week aged 76, made its way through the city centre on Wednesday afternoon on the way to his private funeral.
The procession stopped on “Black Sabbath Bridge”, where his family members placed roses among the hundreds of tributes left for the heavy metal pioneer in front of a bench depicting the band.
A visibly emotional Sharon Osbourne, the singer’s wife of 43 years, was aided by her children, Aimee, Kelly and Jack, as she tearfully took in the sea of tributes and signalled a peace sign to the crowd before leaving.
They were joined by a number of family members, including some of Osbourne’s grandchildren who waved to the crowds offering their support.
People could be seen leaning out of windows and climbing on top of walls and bus stops to catch a glimpse of the Prince of Darkness’s funeral cortege.
His coffin began its journey in Aston, in the north of the city, passing Osbourne’s childhood home on Lodge Road and the football stadium Villa Park, where he performed in a huge farewell concert with his Black Sabbath bandmates just weeks ago.
People chanted his name, held up rock hand gestures and threw roses at the hearse carrying his coffin adorned with purple flowers spelling out “Ozzy”.
A local brass band, Bostin Brass, played songs including Black Sabbath’s Iron Man ahead of the procession of vehicles.
In an interview in 2011, Osbourne said he didn’t care what music was played at his funeral as long as it was “a celebration, not a mope-fest”, and the atmosphere along Broad Street seemed to reflect his wishes.
Will Howell, an 18-year-old student, said Osbourne was “a legend, so you know, you gotta go and say goodbye to him”.
He said: “I got up at six in the morning to go to work, to come here early so I could get here and see it.” He had been listening to Osbourne’s music since his dad introduced it to him aged eight. “Probably not the best age,” he said. “Ozzy changed music a lot, even inside of metal, and I think it’s just good to say goodbye to him.”
Paul Allen, 58, a musician from Birmingham, said Osbourne was “a great ambassador” for the city. “He was obviously a flawed character, and we’re all flawed characters aren’t we?” he said. “It just goes to show you that you can still make something of your life, even though you’ve got these flaws.
“He was one of life’s characters, really. They’re all dying off. It’s heartbreaking. I can’t believe he’s gone.”
He said he missed Osbourne’s final concert as he was abroad. “It was one of those times when you think there’ll probably be another time. We didn’t expect him to pass away. He’s had more comebacks than a boomerang,” he said.
Will Taylor, a musician from Chesterfield, said it was a “no-brainer” to come to the city to watch the funeral procession with his wife and dog. He is a massive fan of Black Sabbath and of Osbourne’s collaborations with the American guitarist Randy Rhoads, who died in a plane crash while on tour with Osbourne in 1982.
“A bit of me thinks if there’s something after death then Ozzy is with Rhoads looking down wherever they are,” he said.
Osbourne was the lead singer of Black Sabbath, who formed in Birmingham in 1968 and were widely credited with defining and popularising heavy metal music.
Earlier this year Osbourne and his bandmates – Terence “Geezer” Butler, Tony Iommi and Bill Ward – were given the freedom of the city of Birmingham to recognise their “exceptional service to the city”.
Osbourne’s health had declined in recent years and he was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease in 2019.
He appeared for a surprise performance at the Commonwealth Games closing ceremony in Birmingham in 2022 and performed his last gig on 5 July, a farewell concert at Villa Park featuring global metal stars such as Anthrax, Metallica and Guns N’ Roses.