Kelly Osbourne hit out at WWE star Becky Lynch after the wrestler cracked a joke about her late father, rock legend Ozzy Osbourne, during a live broadcast in his hometown.
The controversy erupted Monday night on WWE Raw in Birmingham, England, when Lynch dismissed a challenge from fellow wrestler Nikki Bella by mocking the city and its rock icon.
"I am not wrestling in Birmingham," Lynch, 38, told the crowd. "The only good thing that came out of here died a month ago." She added, "In fairness to Ozzy Osbourne, he had the good sense to move to L.A., a proper city. Because if I lived in Birmingham, I'd die too."
On Tuesday, Kelly Osbourne, 40, condemned the remark on social media.
"What a disrespectful dirtbag," she wrote on Instagram Stories. "Birmingham would not [expletive] on you if you were on fire. #BirminghamForever," she posted.
Kelly Osbourne also called out WWE directly.
"Shame on the @WWE for allowing such things to be said about my father and his home!!!!" she wrote.
Ozzy Osbourne, known to fans as the "Prince of Darkness," died on July 22 at age 76. According to his death certificate, the Black Sabbath frontman suffered cardiac arrest brought on by heart disease and complications from Parkinson’s, a death certificate filed by his daughter Aimee Osbourne at a London registry and obtained by The New York Times showed.
The rock icon was laid to rest on July 31 near the lake at his Buckinghamshire estate. About 110 mourners attended the private funeral, including family and music industry friends.
In the days following his death, Kelly Osbourne shared a heartfelt message with fans online on her Instagram Stories.
"Grief is a strange thing — it sneaks up on you in waves," she wrote. "I will not be OK for a while — but knowing my family are not alone in our pain makes a difference. I'm holding on tight to the love, the light, and the legacy left behind.
Zoe Papadakis ✉
Zoe Papadakis is a Newsmax writer based in South Africa with two decades of experience specializing in media and entertainment. She has been in the news industry as a reporter, writer and editor for newspapers, magazine and websites.