Sharon Osbourne has moved to strip her late husband’s longtime accountant from control of his estate.
The widow, 73, filed papers Tuesday with the High Court of Justice in England seeking the removal of Colin Newman, 79, as an executor of Ozzy Osbourne’s estimated $100 million fortune. Sharon’s niece Georgina Maszlin and her assistant, Melinda Varga, joined the filing. The reason for their bid remains unknown, and it is unclear whether Newman is contesting the application.
Newman’s ties to the family stretch back decades. He first met Sharon while working as a junior accountant for her father, music manager Don Arden, before the couple’s 1982 marriage. He later served as a director of Ozzy’s main UK firm, Monowise Ltd, stepping down only in April. Following his departure, Sharon was appointed director. Newman also acted as Sharon’s literary agent and received credits on several Black Sabbath albums.
The legal maneuver arrives just after the first anniversary of the rocker’s death. Ozzy, born John Michael Osbourne, died July 22, at age 76 following a heart attack. The couple had been married for 43 years and share three children: Aimee, Kelly and Jack. The “Crazy Train” singer also had three older children — Elliot, Jessica, and Louis — with his first wife, Thelma Riley.
Sharon marked the anniversary with an interview in which she reflected on her husband’s unvarnished persona. “As Ozzy would say, ‘When you want to remember me, just yank up the music really loud, as loud as you can get it, and just head bang,'” she recalled.
She emphasized his authenticity in the same conversation. “He was authentic,” she said. “Never tried to be anything other than what he was.”
Their bond weathered friction through humor, she added. “He was just genuine, so genuine and funny,” the former reality star continued. “I mean, we could have the worst arguments in the world but we would end up laughing because he would say something so ridiculous that we would just crack up.”
The estate filing represents a significant shift in the posthumous management of Ozzy’s affairs, given Newman’s entrenched position across the family’s business and creative endeavors for more than four decades.
The outlet has reached out to Sharon’s representative for comment.
