Rock legend Ozzy Osbourne is set to take to the stage for one last performance.
The 76-year-old, whose real name is John Michael Osbourne, will reunite with his Black Sabbath bandmates at Aston Villa’s Villa Park for a gig that promises to be the “greatest heavy metal show ever”.
The all-day Back To The Beginning show will be the metal band’s first performance together in 20 years, with original stars Osbourne, Tony Iommi, Terence ‘Geezer’ Butler and Bill Ward.
The comeback marks the first major show Osbourne has done since he cancelled planned gigs in Europe and the UK back in 2023, saying at that time that he is no longer “physically capable” of performing.
In 2020 the singer also revealed he has Parkinson’s disease.
The show, planned for 5 July, is the latest in a career that has spanned five decades and earned Osbourne the nickname The Prince Of Darkness.
Black Sabbath in the 1970s. Pic: Everett/Shutterstock
Who is Ozzy Osbourne?
Born in Birmingham, Osbourne rose to fame as a founding member and lead singer of the band Black Sabbath.
The band formed in 1968 and two years later released their self-titled debut album which included songs like The Wizard and Evil Woman.
Ozzy Osbourne and Black Sabbath Performing Live in the mid 1980s. Pic: Busacca/Mediapunch/Shutterstock
The group’s follow-up album, Paranoid, included some of the band’s most famous songs including War Pigs, Iron Man, Fairies Wear Boots and Paranoid.
The record was a huge success, topping the charts in the UK and reaching no 12 in the US.
Black Sabbath went on to become one of the most successful metal bands of all time, selling more than 75 million albums worldwide over the years.
Pic: Andrew Kent/Retna/Mediapunch/Shutterstock
The band played its “last” gig in 2017 in Birmingham with Osborne, guitarist Iommi and bassist Butler but without Ward on drums.
The singer went on to have success as a solo artist after leaving the band.
His solo debut album Blizzard Of Ozz reached the top 10 in the UK, and in 2020 he achieved his highest-ever charting album with Ordinary Man, which featured collaborations with Elton John, Slash, Post Malone and Tom Morello.
Family life and reality TV
Away from music, Osbourne’s personal life has been a key feature of his career.
In 1970, he was introduced to Sharon Levy – who would later become his wife and manager, Sharon Osbourne.
They went on to have three children – Aimee, Kelly and Jack Osbourne.
Ozzy Osbourne, wife Sharon and children at the Kerrang Awards 1997 in London. Pic: PA
The family hit new heights of fame when they starred in the reality TV series The Osbournes.
The show followed the family during their daily lives in Beverley Hills in Los Angeles, including Sharon’s public battle with colon cancer.
After appearing on the show, Jack and Kelly went on to have successful careers on their own in the public eye.
Jack has since presented numerous programmes on travel and fitness while Kelly has appeared on shows including Australia’s Got Talent, Project Catwalk and The View.
The Osbournes lasted from 2002 to 2005, winning an Emmy Award for outstanding reality programme.
Substance abuse and health troubles
Osbourne has spoken publicly about his problems with drugs and alcohol and his time in rehab.
The singer told Variety in 2021 that he had experience of drugs from a “very early age” adding that he felt “lucky” to have survived.
“There’s nothing special about me. I should have been dead 1,000 times. I’m not being big-headed about that, or invincible. It doesn’t take much to kill you, he said.
