Those who loved and adored Ozzy Osbourne will have a chance to pay homage to the legendary rock legend before he’s laid to rest by close friends and family in a “small, private funeral.”
On Tuesday, the Birmingham City Council announced plans to pay its final respects to Osbourne with a lively procession along the streets of Birmingham on Wednesday afternoon.
“The hearse and accompanying vehicles will slowly make their way down Broad Street from 1pm to the Black Sabbath bridge and bench, where thousands of fans have left heartfelt messages and floral tributes in recent days,” the city announced. “The cortège will be accompanied by a live brass band performance by local musicians from Bostin’ Brass, bringing a final musical moment to honour the extraordinary life and legacy of Ozzy Osbourne.”
The Lord Mayor of Birmingham, Councillor Zafar Iqbal MBE, JP, said it was “important” for the city to honor Osbourne in the city that he loved so much.
“Ozzy was more than a music legend – he was a son of Birmingham. Having recently been awarded the Freedom of the City and following his celebrated appearance at the ‘Back to the Beginning’ concert at Villa Park earlier this month, it was important to the city that we support a fitting, dignified tribute ahead of a private family funeral. We know how much this moment will mean to his fans. We’re proud to host it here with his loving family in the place where it all began, and we are grateful that they have generously offered to pay to enable this to happen and support the city is giving him the farewell he deserves.”
According to People, Osbourne — who died on July 22 — will be honored privately by his close family and friends with an intimate funeral.
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“They’re very grateful for the special family time they had together before Ozzy passed,” a source told the outlet. “They’re planning a small, private funeral that will be a celebration of his life. Ozzy would never want a mope-fest.”
The source said that the rocker’s family, including wife Sharon, 72, and their children, Aimee, 41, Jack, 39, and Kelly, 40, is “touched by all the love and support pouring in from around the world.”
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In a “Dear Ozzy” column for The Times in 2011, Osbourne shared his wishes on what he hoped his future funeral would be like after a fan asked if it was “too morbid to plan your own funeral? Or is it a thoughtful gift for your surviving relatives?”
“I honestly don’t care what they play at my funeral; they can put on a medley of Justin Bieber, Susan Boyle and We Are the Diddymen if it makes ’em happy,” Osbourne wrote. “But I do want to make sure it’s a celebration, not a mope-fest.”
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“I’d also like some pranks: maybe the sound of knocking inside the coffin; or a video of me asking my doctor for a second opinion on his diagnosis of ‘death,’” he continued. “There’ll be no harping on the bad times.”
“So to answer your question, yes, a bit of planning is the right thing to do for the family you leave behind,” he said. “It’s worth remembering that a lot of people see nothing but misery their whole lives. So by any measure, most of us in this country — especially rock stars like me — are very lucky.”
“That’s why I don’t want my funeral to be sad. I want it to be a time to say ‘thanks.’”
On July 22, Osbourne’s family announced the singer’s death with a heartfelt statement.
“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,” the family said in a statement provided to Fox News Digital. “He was with his family and surrounded by love. We ask everyone to respect our family privacy at this time.”
Osbourne recently performed his final concert with the band in Birmingham, England. The 10-hour show on July 5 was hosted by Jason Momoa, and featured performances from Metallica, Guns N’ Roses, Jack Black, Steven Tyler and more.
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The “Iron Man” singer was diagnosed with Parkinson’s in 2003. However, he didn’t speak publicly about his diagnosis until 2020.
The Black Sabbath frontman — who struggled with a number of physical ailments over the years — admitted that he couldn’t walk anymore on a Jan. 29 episode of his Sirius XM show, “Ozzy Speaks.” “I may be moaning about how I can’t walk, but I look down the road and there’s people that didn’t do half as much as me, and they didn’t make it,” he said at the time.
Osbourne is survived by wife Sharon, daughters Kelly and Aimee, and son Jack, in addition to daughter Jessica, and sons Elliot and Louis from his first marriage to Thelma Riley.
Fox News Digital’s Tracy Wright contributed to this report.
