When Ozzy Osbourne was honored with a funeral procession that snaked through his hometown of Birmingham, fans covered the Black Sabbath bridge and bench with flowers, artwork, personal messages, merchandise, and more. “Ozzy forever,” posters around the locations read. “Birmingham will always love you.” The Central Birmingham Business Improvement District is making sure this won’t be forgotten as it works to preserve the thousands of items left in tribute.
The Central BID team has transported the offerings and started the process of “sorting through them at a secret location, large enough to accommodate the thousands of poignant messages, flowers and gifts,” according to their official website. “They are ensuring they are preserved in the best possible condition, ready to be sent to the Osbourne family.”
A digital record will be created for all of the tributes, which is being “laid out and catalogued with care” to ensure long-term preservation. Fans left behind “guitars, mini amplifiers, angels, candles, plus lots and lots of toy bats,” the Central BID shared. Black Sabbath shirts, plaques, and albums also appear in the collection.
The Central BID shared images from the location, where the items have been sorted by type. In one image, a note signed by a fan named Angie reads, “Ozzy, your music has made my life so much better. You will always be missed.” Another adds, “To Ozzy, Thank you for bringing the world metal. You are a legend. Rest easy, Prince of Darkness.” Ozzy died of a heart attack on July 22 at the age of 76.
Flowers from the memorial have also been collected. “The bouquets are set to be close to Ozzy going forward, as they are being mulched and bagged. This confetti compost will be used at Ozzy’s final resting place,” the Central BID shared. This includes the purple flowers wrapped in black tissue and ribbon that Sharon Osbourne and their children left at the Black Sabbath bench. “At the wishes of the family, these will also be mulched into the special compost.”
Birmingham’s honorary lord mayor, Zafar Iqbal, shared a statement following Osbourne’s death, saying the musician was “more than a music legend — he was a son of Birmingham.” He added: “[I]t was important to the city that we support a fitting, dignified tribute ahead of a private family funeral. We know how much this moment will mean to his fans. We’re proud to host it here with his loving family in the place where it all began, and we are grateful that they have generously offered to pay to enable this to happen and support the city is giving him the farewell he deserves.”
