Jack Osbourne Reflects on Family Mansion’s MTV Fame in Final Instagram Post Before Dad Ozzy’s Death

Jack Osbourne has recalled his bizarre introduction to the house that eventually became his family home and the backdrop for iconic MTV reality show, The Osbournes. 

Fans across the world are currently mourning the loss of family patriarch Ozzy Osbourne following the Black Sabbath legend’s death at the age of 76 on June 22. 

And appearing on the Trying Not To Die podcast shortly before news of his father’s death was confirmed, Jack recalled paying an initial visit to the sprawling Beverly Hills mansion with his family while they were searching for a property in Los Angeles. 

He said: ‘Our house that we filmed The Osbournes in, we bought it off this guy who at the time was the President of the Congo, and his name was President Bongo? No joke. 

‘And when we were looking at the house, my mum goes into the guy’s closet and he had these campaign T-shirts? And we stole one of these campaign T-shirts. I put it on under my hoodie, we walked out. 

‘But all around the house they had pictures of them with their pet lions and crazy exotic animals’.

When asked if the campaign T-shirt had a slogan, he added: ‘President Bongo, for the Congo.’ 

Despite Jack’s claim, there appears to be no record of a President Bongo ruling either the Republic of the Congo or its central African neighbour – formerly known as Zaire until it became the Democratic Republic of the Congo in 1997. 

However, Gabon – another central African country – was ruled by President Ali Bongo from 1967 until his death in 2009. 

Bongo’s son Ali Bongo Ondimba succeeded his father, serving as Gabon’s third President until he was deposed during a political coup in 2023.   

Jack’s palatial former home, located in exclusive Doheny Drive, was owned by the Osbourne’s until 2007, when it was subsequently bought by pop star Christina Aguilera for a reported $11.5million. 

The TV personality’s post, shared to promote the podcast he hosts with Ryan Drexler, was his last before the death of his father was announced on Tuesday evening. 

The metal legend died just weeks after he took to the stage for his final show with Black Sabbath, with his family confirming the sad news in a statement.

‘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,’ it read. 

‘He was with his family and surrounded by love. We ask everyone to respect our family privacy at this time. Sharon, Jack, Kelly, Aimee and Louis.’ 

His Black Sabbath band mates – Terence “Geezer” Butler, Tony Iommi and Bill Ward – led tributes to Osbourne alongside fans from his home city of Birmingham, where he had taken to the stage as part of a reunion concert just weeks earlier. 

Black Sabbath co-founder Iommi said it was “brilliant” to reunite with the band before Osbourne died, saying the singer “really wanted” to perform together again and “felt at home”.

He told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme: ‘It is really a shock. It’s really hit me today to be honest, but yeah, a terrible shock.’

On their reunion concert two weeks ago, Iommi said: ‘It was brilliant to be with all the guys again… and it was brilliant for Ozzy because he really wanted to do that, you know, he felt at home there and it was really good for him.

‘It was good for all of us, and lovely to be able to get together for a final thing. I mean, we didn’t realise it was going to be this final.’ 

Earlier this month, Osbourne took to the stage as part of the Black Sabbath reunion, telling thousands of heavy metal enthusiasts at Villa Park – a stone’s throw from where the band was formed in 1968 – that it was “so good to be on this stage” as he performed his last set from a large black throne.

The group were inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2006 and Osbourne was added for a second time last year.

He rose to further fame alongside his wife Sharon – whom he married in 1982 and with whom he has three children, Aimee, Jack and Kelly – through their MTV reality TV series The Osbournes.

In 2020, Osbourne revealed he had been diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease, telling Good Morning America that it was discovered he had the neurodegenerative disorder after a fall.

He said: ‘I did my last show New Year’s Eve at The Forum. Then I had a bad fall. I had to have surgery on my neck, which screwed all my nerves and I found out that I have a mild form.’ 

He released his 12th studio album Ordinary Man in 2020, followed by Patient Number 9 in 2022, which went to number three and two in the UK charts, respectively.