Sharon Osbourne is remembering her “Prince of Darkness” following his tragic death.
“The Talk” alum, 72, shared a tribute to her late husband, Ozzy Osbourne, in the wake of his passing at the age of 76.
“I’m still having trouble finding the words to express how grateful I am for the overwhelming love and support you’ve shown on social media,” Sharon wrote alongside an Instagram video of herself and her daughter Kelly. “Your comments, posts, and tributes have brought me more comfort than you know. None of it has gone unnoticed, in fact, it’s carried me through many nights.”
“Though I’m still finding my footing, I wanted to share some glorious creatures I had the chance to spend an afternoon with,” she added. “The connection you make with these powerful birds is built entirely on trust and confidence. They’ll choose to perch on you only if they sense you are safe and unafraid of them. It’s a bond I know all too well, and the experience was nothing short of magical.”
Before signing off, Sharon addressed fans, writing, “I love you all, and I thank you deeply for the otherworldly amount of love you continue to send my way. ✌️❤️.”
Two days prior to her post, the family matriarch was spotted out with her daughter.
“Today I introduced my mum to falconry and she loved it!” Kelly, 40, wrote alongside a cute clip showing an owl flying onto her mom’s hand. “Thank you [Gerard Sulter] for putting a smile on my mum’s face too!”
Ozzy and Sharon had been married for 43 years before his death, having tied the knot on July 4, 1982.
The couple first met in 1970 through Sharon’s father, Don Arden, who was also the manager of Ozzy’s band Black Sabbath. They began dating only after Ozzy ended his marriage to his first wife, Thelma Riley.
They shared three children together: daughters Aimee, 41, and Kelly, and son Jack, 39. Ozzy also had three other children — Elliot [Kingsley], Jessica and Louis — from his first marriage.
The family first announced Ozzy’s heartbreaking passing on July 22. His cause of death was later determined to be from cardiac arrest, acute myocardial infarction, coronary artery disease and Parkinson’s disease.
“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,” they said in a statement to The Post. “He was his family and surrounded by love. We ask everyone to respect our family privacy at this time. Sharon, Jack, Kelly, Aimee and Louis.”
Elliot, whom Ozzy adopted from Riley’s previous relationship, and Jessica were notably absent from the statement’s signature.
An insider close to the Osbournes later revealed that Ozzy’s passing left Sharon so distraught that their children stepped in to help take care of her.
“Sharon’s heartbroken but very proud of the life the family built together,” a source told People. “Everyone’s rallying around her. She’s been the rock of this family for decades, and now it’s her turn to be held up.”
“The kids are making sure she’s never alone – they’ve been with her constantly, sharing stories, laughing through the tears and just being together,” the insider continued. “There’s a lot of pain, but also a lot of comfort from the family time that they got to enjoy up until the very end.”
Sharon was first seen by the public for a funeral procession held in Ozzy’s home city of Birmingham, England, on July 30.
She was joined by her and the late rocker’s children as thousands of fans gathered around.
Sharon wore Ozzy’s wedding ring on a chain around her neck.
One day later, Ozzy was laid to rest one during a private ceremony next to the lake of his Buckinghamshire home.
Ozzy’s longtime guitarist Zakk Wylde, as well as his former Black Sabbath bandmates, Marilyn Manson, punk rocker Yungblud, Elton John and more, joined Sharon and her kids to say goodbye to singer.
In 2017, Sharon reflected on first meeting her future husband at 18.
She told AXS TV’s Dan Rather that when she first met Ozzy — and the rest of Black Sabbath — it wasn’t love at first sight, as some might presume.
“I was like, ‘Oh Lord, look at them.’ They were all odd and hairy,” Sharon recalled. “I’d been used to dealing with artists who were American, and they were slick, and they were really put together, and they smelt nice.”
She continued, “Suddenly, these guys come in, and they’re hairy, and they’re very, you know, from the north of England, and they don’t look or dress like anything I’ve ever seen. And so, I was very nervous of them.”
Sharon didn’t become interested in Ozzy until 1979, when she became his manager after he was kicked out of Black Sabbath due to substance abuse issues.
“He was so funny — so funny — and quick-witted, and yet very vulnerable,” she explained. “I just thought he was the funniest, sweetest guy I’d ever met because he was so vulnerable about everything, and that just attracted me to him.”
Though their marriage spanned more than four decades, Sharon and Ozzy’s relationship had its share of challenges.
In 1989, Ozzy was arrested for attempted murder after he tried to kill Sharon while under the influence.
During the incident, he allegedly told her, “We’ve come to a decision that you’ve got to die,” before lunging at her and attempting to strangle her.
“It was probably the most frightened I’ve ever been,” Sharon later recalled.
The couple split in May 2016 amid rumors of an affair, though they reconciled just three months later.
“I was broken — broken as a woman, totally broken,” Sharon told Dan Rather about the aftermath of Ozzy’s infidelity. “I’ve taken all kinds of s–t, all kinds of s–t you can throw at me, but never this. Never this. It really, really sent me into a whole other state of mind.”
Still, they went on to celebrate their 40th wedding anniversary in 2022 with a staycation at The Beverly Hills Hotel.
“40 Years Ago Today! Happy Anniversary My Love,” Ozzy captioned a throwback photo from their wedding on Instagram.
Sharon, for her part, wrote: “We first met when I was 18, over 52 years we have been friends, lovers, husband & wife, grandparents and soulmates. Always at each other’s side. I love you Ozzy.”
She remained by his side through his Parkinson’s diagnosis in 2020 and attended his final show with Black Sabbath on July 5, less than three weeks before his death.
