Ozzy vs. Bat

Ozzy Osbourne orally decapitated a bat live on stage in Des Moines, Iowa on 20th January, 1982; an act that quickly went down as one of the most outrageous moments in rock n roll history. Concertgoer Mark Neal, 17, said the bat was dead long before he threw it on stage. But this was not Osbourne’s first offence: he had previously shocked attendees at a CBS press launch by biting the head away from a live dove. In this episode, Arion, Rebecca and Olly trace the origins of Osbourne’s bizarre bird-and-bat-beheading behaviour; applaud the ingenuity of his long-suffering wife Sharon; and debate whether Alice Cooper intentionally threw a chicken to a braying mob to be mutilated… CONTENT WARNING: animal cruelty, offensive language beeped. Further Reading: • ‘Everything you need to know about Ozzy Osbourne biting the head off a bat in Des Moines’ (desmoinesregister.com): https://eu.desmoinesregister.com/story/news/local/kyle-munson/2016/01/20/everything-you-need-know-ozzy-osbourne-biting-head-off-bat-des-moines/79055858/ • ‘When Ozzy Osbourne Bit Off the Heads of Two Doves (ultimateclassicrock.com)’: https://ultimateclassicrock.com/ozzy-osbourne-dove-bite-head/ • ‘Ozzy Osbourne talking to David Letterman about the bat incident’ (NBC, 1982): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uxn2_sO5los Love the show? Support us! Join 🌴CLUB RETROSPECTORS🌴to DITCH THE ADS and get an additional full-length episode each SUNDAY… … Plus, get weekly bonus bits, and unlock over 100 bits of extra content. Join now with a free trial on Apple Podcasts or Patreon and support our show ❤️ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices