The BBC has revealed it delayed an hour-long documentary about Ozzy Osbourne at the last minute at the request of his family.
The film about the musician’s final years was suddenly pulled from listings on Monday, with the corporation making no comment about the decision. Its scheduled screening was less than a month after Osbourne’s death. It was also less than three weeks after his wife, Sharon, and their children appeared before crowds in his home city of Birmingham.
In a new statement, the corporation suggested the delay had come after a request from the musician’s family. “Our sympathies are with the Osbourne family at this difficult time,” a BBC spokesperson said. “We are respecting the family’s wishes to wait a bit longer before airing this very special film. The new [broadcast] date will be confirmed shortly.”
The BBC had recently stated that the film would go ahead. Clare Sillery, head of commissioning for BBC Documentaries, said earlier this month that the film, Ozzy Osbourne: Coming Home, captured “family moments, humour, reflection and shows the enduring spirit that made Ozzy a global icon. We hope it brings comfort and joy to Ozzy’s fans and viewers as they remember and celebrate his extraordinary life”.
The programme is not the only documentary in the offing about the life of the late star. Paramount+ has also made a feature-length film, Ozzy Osbourne: No Escape From Now, about his struggles since a serious fall in LA in 2019. It had been slated to run later this year.
The BBC’s documentary had already been completely overhauled as Osbourne’s health deteriorated. It was originally envisaged as a much wider, 10-part series called Home to Roost, which followed Ozzy and Sharon’s attempt to restart their lives back in the UK.
It has now been re-edited into a one-off film, showing Osbourne’s battling attempts to become strong enough to perform and his struggles with ill-health. Osbourne died last month, aged 76, just weeks after performing from a throne on stage at Villa Park. The singer had been diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease in 2019.
The BBC film includes interviews with Osbourne family members, including Sharon, Kelly and Jack. It had been due to air on BBC One on Monday night, but was removed from the schedule earlier in the day. The broadcaster initially stated it had been “moved in the schedules” and replaced it with an episode of Fake Or Fortune?
