Sharon Osbourne has opened up about life without her husband, rock legend Ozzy Osbourne, as she marked the first anniversary of his passing with an emotional interview reflecting on his legacy and the man behind the myth.

Speaking to the BBC, Sharon shared what she hopes fans will remember most about the Black Sabbath frontman, to whom she was married for 43 years. Rather than focusing on his “Prince of Darkness” persona, she emphasised his warmth and wit: “how funny he was – funny and charismatic and real”. She added that Ozzy himself had a simple request for those mourning him: “when you want to remember me, just yank up the music really loud, as loud as you can get it, and just head bang”.

Describing her late husband, Sharon used one word above all others: “authentic”. “He never tried to be anything other than what he was, and he would tell you the truth about everything and that was him, you knew where you were with him,” she said. “He was just genuine, so genuine and funny”.

Even their most heated arguments, she recalled, rarely ended in lingering resentment. “I mean we could have the worst arguments in the world but we would end up laughing because he would say something so ridiculous that we would just crack up,” Sharon said.

Sharon was in Ozzy’s hometown of Birmingham on Wednesday as the city prepared to host its first ever Ozzy Day – a free celebration honouring the rock icon’s life and career. Ozzy died on 22 July 2025 at the age of 76, just weeks after Black Sabbath’s farewell concert Back to the Beginning at Villa Park. That final performance raised funds for several charities, including Cure Parkinson’s, Acorns Children’s Hospice and Birmingham Children’s Hospital Charity.

His official death certificate listed acute myocardial infarction and out-of-hospital cardiac arrest as the causes of death, with coronary artery disease and Parkinson’s disease with autonomic dysfunction noted as contributing factors.

Sharon also spoke about continuing Ozzy’s charitable work in his memory. “We will continue that until we find a cure for Parkinson’s, because people don’t realise it’s more and more prevalent,” she stated, adding that supporting causes in his name was “something that will go on”.