Big Welcome Back For 'Osbournes'

"The Osbournes," the reality series about rocker Ozzy Osbourne's unorthodox family and home life, drew 6.6 million viewers in its second-season premiere, MTV said Wednesday.

Tuesday's ratings were up 84 percent compared to the first season's premiere, and viewership rivaled that of the highest-rated episode last season, the music channel said. [MTV, like CBS, is owned by Viacom].

"'The Osbournes' juggernaut shows little signs of slowing down," MTV programming president Brian Graden said in a statement.

Last year, the show became an unexpected hit and the highest-rated show in MTV's 21-year history.

This season's content is decidedly different, as the family copes with its newfound celebrity and Ozzy's wife, Sharon, battles colon cancer.

As Sharon Osbourne recently told Lifetime Television, the very success of the show's first season created the stress that will be evident in Season Two.

"I never realized how powerful TV was, or is. And it totally changed our lives around," she said.