It’s clear to see the very real and meaningful impact Ozzy Osbourne’s death has made.

As a Brummie, it was heart-warming to see the community come together to celebrate the life of Ozzy Osbourne during his funeral procession, where his body came back home to the city centre streets of Birmingham.

Thousands of locals and fans from all across the globe lined up across the city centre streets to pay their respects and say goodbye to Birmingham’s rock hero.

The star’s family bid an emotional goodbye, Sharon Osbourne and her children Jack and Kelly joined thousands of fans in the city, as they looked at the tributes on Black Sabbath Bridge which have poured into the city over the past week.

The Lord Mayor said it was the last chance for the city to pay their respects to Ozzy Osbourne, after what was an incredibly busy month for the city, especially in light of Black Sabbath’s ‘Back To The Beginning’ show at Villa Park.

Ozzy Osbourne is undoubtedly Birmingham’s most well-known local celebrity. This has been extremely evident by most of the media coverage of him from across local, national and international news outlets.

Today, I saw the actual expression of this, as Ozzy Osbourne’s body was brought back to the city that made him who he was, and its residents showed up in their tens of thousands to say one last goodbye.

Growing up in Birmingham, whenever we drove to Aston to visit family, my mum would always point at Lodge road where Ozzy Osbourne grew up, it was a staple to show that even from the most humble of beginnings, stars can be born.

You can watch Osbourne revisit these humble origins in this 1995 BBC interview clip.

He was perhaps the best known person from our city, and it was heart-warming to see an outpouring of love onto our city. A city that has only been on the news as of late for negative perceptions - (our bins still aren’t collected).

There were plenty of heartbroken fans, weeping along the Broad Street, it’s clear to see the very real and meaningful impact Osbourne’s death has made.

Fans are given a chance to pay their respects to heavy metal legend Ozzy Osbourne as his cortege travels through his home city of Birmingham. | Mimi Ibrahim

When I interviewed Sharon Osbourne earlier this month, she told us that Birmingham held a special place in the family’s heart and life.

On the opening day of the Ozzy Osbourne exhibition, she happily shared, “Listen it’s where Ozzy was conceived, it’s where he lived, the first part of his life and it’s who Ozzy is. This is Ozzy and he’s come home. This is where this exhibition belongs.”

July has been an Ozzy Osbourne and Black Sabbath appreciation month for sure and it sadly ended with Ozzy Osbourne’s body being brought back home to Birmingham where it all started.

For today’s procession that took place on Broad Street it was clear Ozzy will be missed by his many adoring fans. with a hearse set to make its way to the Black Sabbath Bridge.

For Sandra, a nurse in the city she brought a white rose and spray painted it black to pay tribute to Ozzy Osbourne.

“I’m Birmingham born and bred and over the years, there’s been a lot of publicity about Ozzy and because I didn’t live far to where he was brought up as well. It’s just a big thing in my life, and I felt it was really appropriate to be here today.”

Similarly for Siobhan Burke, 26, a civil servant from Birmingham, Ozzy Osbourne represented Birmingham in a good light for the world’s stage.

“I feel he has made me feel so proud to be from Birmingham, and I watch the Osbourne’s all the time. I listen to his music all the time. I went to the ‘Back to the Beginning’ gig a couple of weeks ago, it just feels right.

“I didn't think the news would come just two weeks after I’ve seen him perform, it’s just so sad. There’s not a lot to be proud of living in Birmingham, being from here, so it’s just nice to have had him. He’s just an absolute legend, it’s just amazing he’s from here.”

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Likewise, for Jimmy, 43, a quality controller from Leicestershire, there was no where else he’d rather be today than here in Birmingham. When asked why he made the journey to Birmingham, he said: “Because it’s Ozzy, where would the music scene for us be without Ozzy, being a Midlander, where else are you going to be today?”

He was grateful to have had the chance to have seen Ozzy Osbourne recently at his homecoming concert earlier in the month. “I personally thought I’d never see him again, so just to see him back on stage with Black Sabbath was just amazing.”