To the thunderous sound of Black Sabbath and the chants of thousands of fans decked in purple and black, the father of heavy metal was laid to rest – in the city that made him, and that he never truly left behind.
Ozzy Osbourne’s funeral procession brought Birmingham to a standstill on Wednesday as admirers from across the generations gathered to bid farewell to one of its most iconic sons.
The hearse carrying the 76-year-old legend made its way from his childhood home in Aston to Broad Street, where fans stood shoulder to shoulder on the route, some having waited through the night to bid farewell to their hero.
Among them was Simon Hall, 57, wearing a thick leather jacket imprinted with Black Sabbath logos and record signs. “He was a working-class hero,” he said. “He represented the best of us and the worst of us in so many ways. The best thing about Ozzy is his humility, his honesty, the fact that he’s flawed like all of us and yet he did it all with an elfish smile and a cheeky grin.”
Some of his most dedicated fans had gathered early along Broad Street with their camping chairs to nab a prime spot. By 8am the numbers had reached the hundreds, and by midday tens of thousands lined the popular nightclubbing street.
So eager were many to glimpse the cortege that several climbed up onto bus stops, shop roofs and even lampposts to wave a final farewell.
Another who had travelled to pay tribute was Roy Brown-Lowe, 64, accompanied by his dog Bruce – temporarily renamed “Doggy Osbourne” for the occasion, complete with wig and sunglasses. “Ozzy Osbourne is Birmingham,” Mr Brown-Lowe said. “Birmingham loves Ozzy and Ozzy loved Birmingham.”
Adorned with purple flowers spelling out “Ozzy”, the hearse passed his childhood home in Lodge Road, Aston, at 12.45pm before heading towards the city centre. The procession was accompanied by local brass band Bostin Brass, who played some of his most iconic music, to the delight of onlookers. As the coffin moved slowly through the streets, fans chanted “Ozzy, Ozzy, Ozzy”, raised black spray-painted roses and blew kisses in tribute.
In one of the day’s most emotional moments, Sharon Osbourne, 72, and the couple’s children, left their Mercedes funeral cars to view the sea of tributes left at the Black Sabbath bench. Each carrying a pink rose, they stood quietly as Sharon wiped away tears before kissing her own flower and placing it beside a poster that read: “Birmingham will always love you.”
For Jane Ashford, 57, the occasion was both a celebration and deeply emotional. “It is the reality that he is gone,” she said. “But his legend and everything that he represents for Birmingham and the rock world will always represent the rock movement. I am so so proud.”
Lucy Nicholson, 37, had sat outside Villa Park just weeks ago after being unable to get tickets for Black Sabbath’s final concert. “Emotional,” she said of the funeral. “It’s lovely to see all ages here, fans from the very beginning and new fans. It’s the final farewell.”
Among the younger generation paying tribute were aspiring heavy metal musicians Callum Parkins, 19, his brother Finlay, 15, and their friend Ethan Farmer, also 15. “I’ve been a fan as long as I’ve been alive,” said Callum. “My earliest memories are of being in my mum and dad’s car listening to his music on CDs. Ozzy has been a huge inspiration to me all my life.”
Having now inspired them to start their own rock band, Ethan said, “He’s done everything for us. We are in a heavy metal band and it’s Black Sabbath that inspired us. I didn’t get to see him alive but I wanted to see him off.
They were far from alone. Louise Blackburn, 46, brought her 13-year-old son Samuel to pay their respects as a family. The two had attended the Back to the Beginning concert earlier this month – a particularly poignant moment for her, following the death of her brother, a fellow superfan, last year.
“Ozzy Osbourne is a fantastic figurehead for the city,” she said. “Wherever he went he always stayed the same.”
