Osbourne in intensive care after bike crash

The singer Ozzy Osbourne, the self-confessed "wild man of rock", was on a ventilator in intensive care yesterday after undergoing emergency surgery following a quad bike accident.

Osbourne, 55, former lead singer of Black Sabbath and more recently the unlikely star of The Osbournes, the fly-on-the-wall television series about his family, suffered multiple injuries in the accident on his 10-acre Buckinghamshire estate on Monday afternoon.

He suffered a cracked vertebra in his neck, eight broken ribs, a broken collarbone and a damaged blood vessel. As well as being on a ventilator, he was also wearing a hard collar because of the injuries to his neck. Although the injuries are not life threatening, he is expected to remain in hospital for some time and may take many months to recover.

Dr Dick Jack, medical director of Wexham Park Hospital in Slough said yesterday that doctors were "very satisfied". "His progress is steady, he is stable, he is comfortable and satisfactory, but it's going to be slow and I don't expect any major changes, certainly for 24 hours," he said.

A statement from the family said Osbourne had undergone surgery to prevent the broken collarbone impeding a major artery, which had interrupted blood flow to his arm.

Osbourne was staying at his 18th century Gothic manor house while on a trip to Britain to promote his latest single, "Changes", a duet with his daughter, Kelly, 19.

The accident is the second trauma for the family in the past 18 months. Sharon Osbourne, 49, his wife and manager, was diagnosed with colon cancer but is said to be in complete remission. She arrived at the hospital yesterday with Kelly after flying from the family's other base in Los Angeles.