Devastating final text Ozzy Osbourne sent to his sister before death aged 76

The sisters of heavy metal legend Ozzy Osbourne have revealed the final texts they received from the singer in the days leading up to his death.

Yesterday (22 July) it was confirmed that Ozzy - born John Michael Osbourne - had died at the age of 76, just over two weeks after performing a final farewell performance with Black Sabbath in his native Birmingham.

The singer and reality star had previously been diagnosed with Parkinson's disease back in 2019 and had been left unable to walk due to the progression of the illness.

Tributes to the singer have since begun to pour in, with his surviving sisters now sharing their memories of Ozzy.

Speaking about their brother's death in a new interview with The Mirror, sisters Jean Powell and Gillian Hemming revealed the 'Crazy Train' singer had been overwhelmed by the reaction to his final gig and spoke of his desire to visit Birmingham once again.

Ozzy Osbourne has died at the age of 76 (Kevin Mazur/Getty Images)

"He was frail but it still came as a shock," Jean told the outlet. "He still had plans and things he wanted to do. We don’t know the details of his death, it’s still too early. It’s just so sad. I’m just thankful he died in England."

She continued: "We just can’t believe he is gone and we won’t be getting another phone call or text from him. Every week without fail he would get in touch, either by phone or text, to ask how we were all doing and what was going on."

The sisters - who are 85 and 80 respectively - went on to add that they'd been present at Black Sabbath's Back to the Beginning concert on 5 July at Villa Park, revealing that Ozzy had been 'blown away' by the people making their way to the gig.

It's believed that 45,000 fans made the journey to Villa Park, which is close to where the singer grew up, and raised over $190 million (£140 million) for charity.

Jean then revealed the heartbreaking contents of her brother's final text message, where the singer had talked about his wish to visit Birmingham again.

Ozzy Osbourne photographed with one of his sisters at Hollywood's Walk of Fame in 2002 (Vince Bucci/Getty Images)

"In his last text to me he said he would be coming to Birmingham again," she said, adding: "He said 'I can’t wait to come back'. We were hoping to see him this week."

Osbourne's death was confirmed in a statement from his wife Sharon and their children yesterday evening, which read: "It is with more sadness than mere words can convey that we have to report that our beloved Ozzy Osbourne has passed away this morning.

"He was with his family and surrounded by love. We ask everyone to respect our family privacy at this time."

It was previously revealed that Sharon had been able to make sure her husband's 'final wish' of returning home to England and playing a final concert in his home town came true.