The Sharon Osbourne Show

Format

The Sharon Osbourne Show is an hour-long daytime talk show that was hosted by television personality Sharon Osbourne. Set in front of a studio audience, the show's stage was built to resemble Osbourne's Beverly Hills mansion. The multi-topic show primarily featured interviews with celebrities and everyday people. Osbourne would sometimes conduct follow-up interviews with guests at their own homes. A segment titled "Under the Covers" featured interviews with male celebrities that were conducted while on a bed on-stage. In addition to interviews, the show featured slice-of-life segments, music, and reports on current pop culture events. In December 2003, the show featured a series of guest hosts—including Jack Osbourne, Lance Bass, and Dan Cortese—after Osbourne took a leave of absence to attend to her husband, Ozzy Osbourne, who was injured in an ATV accident.

Production

In 2002, Osbourne starred in the reality television series The Osbournes, which documented the domestic life of her husband, Ozzy Osbourne. The series introduced Osbourne to a wider audience and she credited its success as the reason she was offered her own talk show. In November 2002, Osbourne signed a deal with Telepictures Productions to host a talk show set to debut in the fall of 2003. According to Jim Paratore, president of Telepictures Productions, the production company chose to work with Osbourne as it believed that audiences would find her interesting. Paratore further stated that the goal of the show "was to attract a younger audience with an advertiser friendly show, that was good for the overall image of the [television] stations". Osbourne cited Oprah Winfrey, Barbara Walters, and Rosie O'Donnell as inspirations; however, she opined that she was "not very well-read" and "a layman" in comparison.

The show was produced by SO Divine Productions in association with Telepictures Productions. It recruited producers of The Jenny Jones Show, including executive producer Kerrie Moriarity, and repurposed some of its materials. Despite this, Osbourne expressed her disdain for tabloid talk shows, stating: "I detest Jerry Springer. I detest Sally Jessy’s and Jenny Jones’s shows. They’re demeaning to people, just degrading and humiliating." Mary Duffy, a former staffer for Sally, was initially reported as the show's executive producer; however, she was replaced by Corin Nelson before the show premiered. Difficulties with the show's production became a popular topic in the media, with Paratore acknowledging that it was challenging to find producers that connected with Osbourne. Osbourne believed that she was relatable to many women viewers and she hoped that audiences would "connect with her working-class sensibility".

Broadcast history

The Sharon Osbourne Show was placed in first-run syndication in the United States, in which it was distributed by Warner Bros. Domestic Television Distribution. The show premiered on September 15, 2003, in which it was cleared in over 90 percent of the country. It served as a replacement to The Jenny Jones Show in most markets. In many television markets, specifically those under The WB 100+ Station Group, the show was broadcast as part of a programming block with Ricki Lake and The Ellen DeGeneres Show. However, several markets used the show to replace The Caroline Rhea Show, for example, there were a few ABC O&Os without a Tribune outlet that did not want to replace Caroline Rhea with Ellen, the recommended replacement and that is why Sharon Osbourne was used as an alternative replacement for Rosie and Caroline. The Sharon Osbourne Show was also carried by New York’s secondary carrier WLNY overnights but instead of WABC, the show was instead picked up by WPIX but this show is also a third generation replacement for The Rosie O'Donnell Show as Caroline Rhea’s show was replaced by Sharon’s in those few markets.

In January 2004, at the National Association of Television Program Executives conference, Tribune Broadcasting indicated that it was looking for replacements for the show but was unable to find one. The show was formally canceled shortly after on January 30, 2004, in which its low ratings were cited. Its final episode was broadcast on May 21st, 2004. Osbourne expressed disappointment over its cancelation; however, she indicated her willingness to host another talk show. Two years later, Osbourne hosted a daytime talk show on ITV1 under the same title.

In July 2025, a resurfaced interview from the show circulated online, in which guest host Anthony Anderson asked Lindsay Lohan about her dating habits.

Reception

Television viewership and ratings

The show premiered with a 1.8/5 rating share, which was a 29 percent increase from the time period average the previous year. The show maintained a 1.5 household rating for its first two weeks, in which it beat out contemporaries like The Ellen DeGeneres Show. However, the show's viewership then began to decline in which it averaged a 1.4 rating in October and a 1.3 rating in December.

The show overall averaged a 1.2 rating, which made it the second most viewed show among all new first-run syndicated talk shows.

Critical response

The show received a negative reception from television critics. Ray Richmond of Today described its premiere as close to a "full-on train wreck"; he claimed that Osbourne "tends to swallow her words and isn’t a natural talker by any stretch". The New York Timess Virginia Heffernan similarly criticized Osbourne's hosting, stating that she often "let her speech lapse into thoughtless redundancy". Mark Sachs of the Los Angeles Times described some of Osbourne's celebrity interviews as "almost unwatchable"; however, he saw potential in her coverage of heavier topics. USA Todays Robert Bianco described the show as a "soon-to-be-discarded cultural oddity", further stating that "the only reasons to watch Sharon are if you are insatiably drawn to failure or if you have some medical need to have your nerves jangled." The Globe and Mail listed it as one of 2003's worst television programs and Fox News labeled it as one of the worst talk shows in television history.

Awards and nominations

Notes

References

References

1. (July 11, 2003). "Sharon Osbourne Gearing Up for Talk Show". [[Billboard (magazine).
2. Littleton, Cynthia. (November 8, 2002). "Sharon Osbourne Eyeing Talk Show?".
3. Petrozzello, Donna. (July 14, 2003). "An Everyday Woman: Meet Sharon Osbourne, Talk Show Host". [[New York Daily News]].
4. Boedeker, Hal. (July 17, 2003). "Don't Expect a Bleeping Word Out of Host Sharon Osbourne". [[Orlando Sentinel]].
5. Blumenstock, Kathy. (September 20, 2003). "Ellen and Sharon, 'Starting Over'". [[The Washington Post]].
6. (December 10, 2003). "Jack Osbourne to Address Ozzy Situation During TV Guest-Host Stint". [[Blabbermouth.net]].
7. Beaujour, Tom. (November 24, 2002). "You Don't Know Jack". [[The New York Times]].
8. Nason, Pat. (November 12, 2003). "Sharon Osbourne, wave of talk TV future?". [[United Press International]].
9. Grego, Melissa. (November 7, 2002). "Iron woman Osbourne inks for talker". [[Variety (magazine).
10. Grego, Melissa. (January 19, 2003). "Can 'Sharon' withstand daily rigors?". [[Variety (magazine).
11. Friedman, Roger. (July 31, 2003). "Sharon Osbourne: 'Jenny Jones' Reincarnated?". [[Fox News]].
12. Silverman, Stephen M.. (July 8, 2003). "Passages: Britney Admits She's Had Sex". [[People (magazine).
13. Friedman, Roger. (June 12, 2003). "Sharon Osbourne's Show Already a Target". [[Fox News]].
14. Heffernan, Virginia. (September 16, 2003). "The Perils of Pleasant, or Spacey, on Talk Shows". [[The New York Times]].
15. Flint, Joe. (September 8, 2003). "Kinder, Gentler TV Talk". [[The Wall Street Journal]].
16. (January 8, 2003). "Tribune Agrees to Buy Osbourne Talk Show". [[Los Angeles Times]].
17. Martin, Denise. (September 11, 2003). "Ladies rule the yakker roost". [[Variety (magazine).
18. Maynard, John. (September 15, 2003). "Highlights". [[The Washington Post]].
19. (September 22, 2003). "Small Markets Add Up". [[TelevisionWeek]].
20. (January 6, 2003). "Ellen takes another shot". Broadcasting & Cable.
21. Silverman, Stephen. (January 21, 2004). "'Sharon Osbourne Show' Faces the Ax". [[People (magazine).
22. Toto, Christian. (February 17, 2004). "Sharon wants Ozzy". [[The Washington Times]].
23. (February 6, 2004). "Sharon Osbourne: Talk-Show Cancellation Was 'Blessing in Disguise'".
24. Deans, Jason. (August 30, 2006). "'Mrs O' sees off Richard and Judy". [[The Guardian]].
25. Sharf, Zack. (July 25, 2025). "Anthony Anderson Tells 17-Year-Old Lindsay Lohan That 'Men Like Them Young' in Resurfaced Interview; Actor Now Says It Was 'Clearly Intended as Comedy'". [[Variety (magazine).
26. Nolfi, Joey. (July 25, 2025). "Anthony Anderson addresses resurfaced video of him telling teen Lindsay Lohan he likes 'them young'". [[Entertainment Weekly]].
27. (September 16, 2003). "'Sharon Osbourne' leads crowded field of syndie rookies". [[TelevisionWeek]].
28. (October 13, 2003). "'Sharon' Holds on to Solid Ratings". [[TelevisionWeek]].
29. Dempsey, John. (October 19, 2003). "Syndie warms up to 'Ellen,' but she's no 'Dr.Paul'". [[Variety (magazine).
30. Oei, Lily. (December 23, 2003). "Syndie strips retain aud". [[Variety (magazine).
31. (September 8, 2004). "'Wheel' rolls again as 'Winfrey' surges". [[Variety (magazine).
32. Albiniak, Paige. (September 8, 2004). "Syndie Powers Way to Season's End". [[Broadcasting & Cable]].
33. Richmond, Ray. (September 16, 2003). "'Sharon Osbourne' decidedly surreal". [[Today (American TV program).
34. Sachs, Mark. (September 19, 2003). "There's much more to talk about than Ozzy". [[Los Angeles Times]].
35. Bianco, Robert. (September 17, 2003). "Ellen' shines, 'Sharon' shrieks". [[USA Today]].
36. Ryan, Andrew. (October 4, 2003). "Ten Worst Things on TV". [[The Globe and Mail]].
37. Harrington, Amy. (November 6, 2009). "Worst Talk Shows in TV History". [[Fox News]].
38. Maldonado, Ryan. (December 7, 2003). "GLAAD unveils '04 noms". [[Variety (magazine).
39. Morfoot, Addie. (March 8, 2004). "Vice-depiction Prism noms announced". [[Variety (magazine).