Osbourne family gather to grant Ozzy his incredible final wish in grounds of UK mansion
Music legend Ozzy Osbourne was laid to rest today (31 July) in the grounds of his UK mansion, as his family honoured his final wish.
A procession made its way through Birmingham yesterday (30 July), and thousands of people lined the streets to bid one final farewell to the Prince of Darkness.
Following that emotional display full of tributes, Ozzy's body was buried in a private ceremony attended by his family and friends held at his home in Buckinghamshire.
The rock star had made it clear how he'd like to be buried, laying out in his autobiography I Am Ozzy his thoughts on what he wanted to happen to his body.
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"I've said to Sharon: 'Don't cremate me, whatever you do?' I want to be put in the ground, in a nice garden somewhere, with a tree planted over my head," the rock singer had said.
"A crabapple tree, preferably, so the kids can make wine out of me and get p**sed out of their heads."
As such, his burial in the garden of his home would have been exactly what he was hoping for.
His family had previously fulfilled another one of his requests by moving back to the UK before he died; Ozzy had said that, after decades living in the US, he wanted to return to England.
Elsewhere in his 2009 autobiography, Ozzy also suggested the inscription for his gravestone.
He wrote: "As for what they'll put on my headstone, I ain't under any illusions.
"If I close my eyes, I can already see it: Ozzy Osbourne, born 1948. Died, whenever. He bit the head off a bat."
While Ozzy wrote that he suspected he'd 'go out in some stupid way' such as tripping over, choking 'on a throat lozenge', or catching 'some weird virus from another planet' from a bird, his family said he actually passed away 'surrounded by love'.
Ozzy had also said he didn't want his funeral to be a 'mope fest', and while his family's grief at losing him was apparent, the public procession featured music as a brass band played as they accompanied his hearse.
The man himself made some suggestions as to the songs he'd want at his funeral, having said he 'definitely don't want my f**king greatest hits album', and also didn't want 'a f**king happy song'.
A lifelong Beatles fan, Ozzy suggested he'd quite like their song 'A Day In The Life'.
In 2016, he told NME: "I really need a few more years to think this over, but probably something from Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band or Revolver."
Topics: Celebrity, Music, Ozzy Osbourne, UK News
Joe Harker