Ozzy Osbourne’s infamous ‘live bat’ moment back in 1982 is making the headlines again after the Black Sabbath singer’s death aged 76.
The news of the rock icon's passing was announced by his family on Tuesday (22 July), who said he died 'surrounded by love' in a statement.
In full, it 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."
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Among the tributes was one from animal charity PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals) who praised him for ‘the gentle side he showed to animals’.
The charity wrote: "Ozzy Osbourne was a legend and a provocateur, but PETA will remember the 'Prince of Darkness' most fondly for the gentle side he showed to animals - most recently cats, by using his fame to decry painful, crippling declawing mutilations.
"Ozzy may have been the singer, but his wife, Sharon, and his daughter, Kelly, were of one voice when it meant protecting animals."
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They added: "Ozzy will be missed by animal advocates the world over."
However, the statement has left people confused after they went down the rabbit hole of looking into Osbourne’s most famous animal moments - some of which caused backlash.
Most notably, the late Black Sabbath star was at the centre of one of what the BBC has called ‘the most notorious moments in heavy metal history,’ involving a bat.
The moment has resurfaced after the PETA tribute, with lots of people confused about what actually went down.
Did Ozzy Osbourne really bite the head off a live bat?
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The incident took place at one of his concerts on January 20, 1982, in Des Moines, Iowa, US, when a fan threw what the rockstar thought was a toy bat onto the stage.
Putting on the dramatics for the crowd and failing to realise it was a real animal, he picked it up to use it for some theatrics and bit its head off - yes, really.
However, he has always maintained that although the bat was real, it wasn’t actually alive.
In his 2010 autobiography, I Am Ozzy, the singer recalled the shocking moment and delved into what really happened.
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He said he picked it up, put it in his mouth and bit it, before realising something was not quite right.
Osbourne wrote: "Immediately, though, something felt wrong. Very wrong. For a start my mouth was instantly full of this warm, gloopy liquid. Then the head in my mouth twitched.
"Somebody threw a bat. I just thought it was a rubber bat. And I picked it up and put it in my mouth. I bit into it. Oh no, it's real. It was a real live bat."
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And in a 2006 interview with the BBC, Osbourne said: "This bat comes on. I thought it was one of them Hallowe'en joke bats 'cos it had some string around its neck.
"I bite into it, and I look to my left and Sharon [Osbourne, his wife and then manager] was going [gesturing no].”
He added: "And I'm like, what you talking about? She [says], 'it's a dead real bat'. And I'm... I know now!"
Meanwhile, Mark Neal, who claims to have brought the bat to the concert, said it had been dead for days before it was thrown onto the stage at Ozzy.
Topics: Ozzy Osbourne, Animals, World News, Music, Entertainment
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Madison Burgess