Ozzy Osbourne ‘prayed he would die in his sleep’ after agonising surgery

Ozzy Osbourne has spoken of the extreme pain and discomfort he has endured from multiple surgeries on his neck and spine.

The Black Sabbath star suffered damage to his neck vertebrae from a 2003 quad bike accident, which was exacerbated by a fall at home in 2019.

Osbourne, 76, was told in intensive care that if he didn’t go ahead with an operation he would be left paraplegic.

The operation itself, he told The Guardian, was “the worst f***ing surgery you can imagine. I should have got a second opinion, bu you think surgeons know what the f*** they’re doing.”

Screws from two metal plates put in either side of his spine apparently came loose, creating bone fragments and lesions; another surgeon was found to slowly remove all the metal.

“Five operations later, it just f***ed his body,” Sharon told the publication. “It was torturous for him: Parkinson’s and damage to his spine. It’s just been horrendous.”

Osbourne said he suffered depression after the surgery to the point that he prayed to die in his sleep: “You wake up the next morning and find that something else has gone wrong,” he said.

“You begin to think this is never going to end.”

It was at this point that Sharon apparently had the idea to organise a huge farewell show, which is taking place on 5 July in Osbourne’s hometown of Birmingham, at Villa Park.

The line-up, curated between Osbourne, his wife and manager Sharon, and musical director Tom Morello, includes bands such as Metallica, Guns N’ Roses, Slayer, Alice in Chains, Tool and members of Red Hot Chili Peppers, Judas Priest, van Halen and Limp Bizkit.

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The show will also mark the first time the four original members of Black Sabbath have performed together in two decades.

While some of Osbourne’s fellow artists – including Tool frontman Maynard James – have expressed doubt as to whether he would be well enough to perform, he pointed out that he’d only be playing a few songs each.

“I may be sitting down, but the point is I’ll be there, and I’ll do the best I can,” he said. “So all I can do is turn up.”

Formed in 1968, Black Sabbath are regarded as one of the most influential and successful metal bands of all time, selling more than 75 million albums.

Osbourne is one of a rare group of musicians to have been inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame twice, first with his Black Sabbath bandmates in 2006, then as a solo artist last year.

Speaking to The Independent last month, Morello said the farewell concert would be “emotional” for Black Sabbath fans and advised anyone with tickets to “get there early”, as there would be surprises through the day.