Ozzy Osbourne: rock star, heavy metal legend, Prince of fucking Darkness… reality TV star.
While most know the late singer for his iconic music, he was also the star of his own reality TV show, The Osbournes, which ran from 2002 to 2005 and followed the daily lives of Ozzy and his family: wife Sharon, son Jack, and daughter Kelly. The show was a massive hit around the world and helped catapult the family into a whole new section of the pop-cultural zeitgeist.
Turns out, though, and if you ever watched the show, you probably already know this… Ozzy hated it. Speaking to NME back in 2020, Ozzy reflected on The Osbournes series and confessed that he grew really tired of it. “The level of success that TV show got us was too much,” he said. “I had to bow out. I said to Sharon: ‘I don’t like the way it makes me feel, and I can’t stand fucking cameramen in my house.’”
“I’m not upset that I did it, but I wouldn’t do it again,” he continued. “People were going: ‘Aren’t you worried about losing your fans?’ I said: ‘I’m not worried about losing my fans – I’m worried about losing my fucking mind.’”
Ozzy then recalled a situation that was one of the final straws. “God’s honest truth: one day I’m lying on the couch and about six or seven Japanese people come in,” he shared. “I thought they were friends of Kelly’s. I said: ‘Upstairs, second door on the right.’ I didn’t even want to fucking get off the couch.”
“Turned out they’d just walked in. Got off a tour bus and walked in the fucking house,” Ozzy exclaimed. “It was nuts!”
Ozzy Osbourne Dead at 76
Ozzy Osbourne passed away on Tuesday, July 22, at the age of 76. In a statement shared to Sky News, the Osbourne family said: “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.”
In a post on Instagram, the family shared the same statement and added: “We ask everyone to respect our family privacy at this time,” signed, “Sharon, Jack, Kelly, Aimee and Louis.”
At this time, no cause of death has been shared, but Ozzy had been living with Parkinson’s and faced multiple health issues over the last several years.
The post Ozzy Osbourne Quit ‘The Osbournes’ Reality TV Show for One Simple Reason We Can All Respect appeared first on VICE.
