The BBC’s much-anticipated documentary on the late Ozzy Osbourne was pulled from the schedules at the last minute — and now new details have emerged about why the film was shelved.
Ozzy Osbourne: Coming Home had been due to air on BBC One on Monday, August 18th, as a “deeply personal and inspiring” look at the Prince of Darkness’s final years. Condensed from three years of filming originally intended for a ten-part series called Home To Roost, the one-hour special followed Ozzy and Sharon Osbourne’s return to the UK while documenting his health struggles and final performances.
Instead, viewers were met with Fake or Fortune: What Happened Next? in the 9 p.m. slot. At the time, the BBC said only that the film “has moved in the schedules” and would air at a later date.
Now, The Sun’s TV editor Rod McPhee has reported that the delay was due to concerns from Ozzy’s family about the documentary’s final cut.
“Although the Beeb [BBC] initially offered no explanation for the last minute axing of Ozzy and Sharon’s hotly anticipated show, Coming Home, I’ve been told there were concerns about how the family felt about the end product,” McPhee wrote.
A source added: “There have been conversations behind the scenes that maybe the BBC were rushing their show on Ozzy out – especially because Paramount+ also had a film in the offing.
“The BBC’s production had been originally planned to run as a ten part series following Ozzy and Sharon’s move back to the UK called Home To Roost. After Ozzy passed away, the makers of the series then decided it should be a one-off film.
“What mattered the most to the family was the overall tone and theme of the programme, which features Ozzy and Sharon in one of their last interviews together.”
The update follows a wave of tributes for the BLACK SABBATH legend, who died of a heart attack on July 22 at his Buckinghamshire home, aged 76. His daughter Aimée later confirmed coronary artery disease and Parkinson’s disease as contributing factors.
Thousands of fans lined the streets of Birmingham for his funeral procession, which concluded at the Black Sabbath Bridge. Just two weeks before his passing, Ozzy gave his final live performance at Villa Park, reuniting with his SABBATH bandmates and delivering a five-song solo set to 40,000 fans — a fitting farewell for heavy metal’s ultimate showman.
Reeder, the visionary behind Metal Addicts, has transformed his lifelong passion for metal into a thriving online community for metal aficionados. As a fervent devotee of black metal, Reeder is captivated by its dark, atmospheric, and often unorthodox soundscapes.