Ozzy Osbourne’s heartbroken family confirmed on Tuesday (July 22) that the beloved hellraiser had died at the age of 76. His wife Sharon revealed he had passed away “surrounded by love” at their home in Buckinghamshire.
In a post shared on Ozzy’s official Instagram page, the family wrote: “It is with more sadness than mere words can convey that we have to report that our beloved Ozzy Osbourne has passed away this morning.”
“He was with his family and surrounded by love. We ask everyone to respect our family privacy at this time. Sharon, Jack, Kelly, Aimee and Louis.”
Sharon, who called Ozzy her “best friend” and “soul mate”, has long been credited with saving her husband’s life and career — even to the detriment of her own relationships with loved ones.
The couple first met in 1970 when Sharon was just 18 and her father, legendary music agent Don Arden, was representing Black Sabbath. However, the two didn’t begin officially dating until 1979 when Sharon took over management of Ozzy after he was kicked out of the band.
But stepping in to manage Ozzy sparked a fiery 19-year rift with her father, who was dubbed the “Al Capone of pop” for his ruthless tactics in the 1960s and ’70s.
Sharon took charge as his manager, leveraging her family’s industry savvy and even mortgaging her own home to bankroll his solo comeback in the US. Her gamble paid off and Ozzy’s solo career soared, with Sharon steering him toward global superstardom.
However, the decision caused Sharon and Don to fall out. He was said to be furious and deeply resentful, calling it a betrayal. Things even escalated when a physical altercation between the two occured and Sharon was attacked by her father’s dogs. Tragically, it caused her have a miscarriage.
But as music journalist Garry Bushell recounts in his book Riff‑Raff, Rebels and Rock Gods, Arden was furious. “Sharon is most definitely the power behind the throne… She may seem sweetness and light … but the former Sharon Arden is every bit as tough and shrewd as her notorious father,” he wrote.
In one standout story from 1981, Bushell says: “Back in 1981 we arrived at a concert in the US. Ozzy was supposed to be topping the bill but he wasn’t. Sharon asked the Yank promoter why and he started to reply ‘listen little lady’… but she knocked him out with one punch.”
She reportedly turned to Bushell afterward and quipped: “Patronising git.” He recalled that this fearless moment cemented her reputation in rock royalty.
According to Bushell, Don Arden responded to Sharon’s take over of Ozzy by disowning his daughter. The tense family estrangement endured for nearly two decades, during which he reportedly threatened: “When my daughter dies I’ll be at her funeral p*ing on her grave.”
However, after years apart and animosity, the father and daughter reconcided in the early 2000s. He even appeared on the family’s reality show, The Osbournes in 2002, and by the end of his life, Sharon was caring for him through Alzheimer’s and even financing his final years.