Ozzy Osbourne on death and kicking drugs: I've told Sharon to turn the machine off

At the age of 65, Ozzy is both literally and metaphorically sobering up – and he claims he would rather die than battle a life-changing illness

Despite giving it his very best shot over the years, not a lot can keep Ozzy Osbourne down.

From drink and drug overdoses to a near-fatal quad-biking accident, the Black Sabbath front man has most definitely lived life to the limit.

But, at the age of 65, Ozzy is both literally and metaphorically sobering up – and he claims he would rather die than battle a life-changing illness.

Eleven years ago he nearly died in that freak quad-bike smash.

His heart stopped twice as paramedics struggled to save him and the doctor told him he was millimetres away from being paralysed from the neck down.

That’s the situation he says he would rather die than confront.

Sharon, his wife of 32 years, claimed in her 2007 autobiography that she and Ozzy had made a “suicide pact”.

They had agreed to go to Dignitas, the assisted dying organisation in Switzerland, should either of them be diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease.

This, explains Ozzy, has now been extended to include any life-threatening condition.

“The quad-bike accident was quite a wake-up call and the doctor said I had been very, very lucky.

“My ego had been running the show and for the first time I realised I wasn’t Superman.

“If I can’t live my life the way I’m living it now – and I don’t mean financially – then that’s it...[Switzerland].

“If I can’t get up and go to the bathroom myself and I’ve got tubes up my ass and an enema in my throat, then I’ve said to Sharon, ‘Just turn the machine off’.

“If I had a stroke and was paralysed I don’t want to be here. I’ve made a will and it’s all going to Sharon if I die before her, so ultimately it will all go to the kids.”