Ozzy Osbourne is in talks to perform on stage one last time – despite the fact he struggles to walk or stand these days – but friends are urging him not to push himself too hard and only proceed if he gets the all-clear from doctors, a source exclusively tells In Touch.
“Ozzy talks about his farewell show all the time – this isn’t some random idea – he has his heart set on it so even though it may seem like a herculean task given his health troubles, his family and friends are pulling together to make it happen for him,” the insider says.
“He’s working very hard to get ready and is very hopeful and determined, but only time will tell if he can truly pull this off or if it’s just a dream at this point, because the reality is he does have Parkinson’s, and it has progressed.”
The 76-year-old has faced a slew of issues as of late in addition to his Parkinson’s diagnosis, which he revealed to fans in 2020. The former frontman added in January 2024 that he’s had “seven surgeries in the past five years,” and that his health woes have not only stopped him from performing on stage at his Rock’N’Roll Hall of Fame inauguration, but have also complicated his wife Sharon’s planned move back to the U.K. after two decades in Los Angeles.
He’s made it plain he would rather spend his final days in England, frankly telling The Observer in August 2022: “I don’t want to die in America.”
“I don’t want to be buried in f–cking Forest Lawn,” he said, referencing the famous cemetery in L.A. “I’m English. I want to be back. … It’s just time for me to come home.”
If he can work up the strength to perform one final time, the insider says it’s a sure thing that “his old band members from Black Sabbath are all in to join him on-stage.” Without a doubt, the reunion will “be extremely emotional, because of Ozzy’s decline, but they want to do it for him.”
Ozzy’s bandmate Geezer Butler already told LifeMinute he’d be back onstage with the legendary singer in a heartbeat if Ozzy could swing it. “Ozzy was talking to me about, when he does his farewell concert, which he still wants to do, he’s dying to still get out there and play; and he suggested, at his very final concert, for the four of us to get up on stage and maybe do three or four songs together,” the bassist said. “And that would be it, finished.”
Like his fellow songwriter Geezer, 76, Ozzy “gets so excited talking about it and planning it.” But the “Ironman” singer knows he’s nearing the end of a wild journey. “It’s like his curtain call,” the source says. “He is very aware of his mortality and that this will be his final show.”
“He’s not in great shape but putting this concert together and having it to motivate him has been good, it’s given him something to look forward to.”