City to honour Osbourne with cortege procession

Fans will be given a chance to pay their respects to heavy metal legend Ozzy Osbourne when his cortege travels through his home city of Birmingham.

The Black Sabbath singers body will be brought back for a procession that will travel along Broad Street in the city centre from 13:00 BST on Wednesday.

The news was revealed by BBC WM presenter Ed James who said a hearse will make its way to the Black Sabbath Bridge and bench where thousands of fans have left messages and floral tributes.

The Lord Mayor of Birmingham Zafar Iqbal said: "Were going to pay our last respects and homage to one of the greatest living legends of Birmingham." Osbourne died aged 76 on 22 July.

His death came less than three weeks since he took part, along with his band mates, in Black Sabbaths farewell gig, Back to the Beginning. Dozens of musicians, including members of Metallica and Aerosmith, performed at the Villa Park concert.

The event, which takes place ahead of a private funeral, will allow his family a chance to see the many memories his loyal fans have left alongside flowers and tributes, the council said.

Local musicians Bostin Brass will accompany the procession.

Describing him as a "son of Birmingham", Iqbal said: "He put Birmingham on the map. He put Aston on the map."

He said he had stood in a queue to sign a book of condolence, where he had spoken to fans, and said: "The love they showed for Ozzy and his family was immense."

The city was proud to host the event, he said, and added he was grateful the family had offered to pay to enable it to happen.

People from as far away as Mexico, the USA and Poland have since travelled to the city to add to a sea of flowers and messages at the Black Sabbath Bridge.

One letter from Greece said: "To our king of metal, you were a light in the darkness, the most beautiful, humble, glorious madman. We were all so lucky. Thank you for the music. Without it, Im not sure who Id be."

Broad Street will be closed to traffic from 07:00 BST on Wednesday with trams and buses diverted throughout the day and will reopen as soon as possible after the event, a city council spokesperson said.

The city council said it had worked "at pace" to coordinate the event in collaboration with the family, who had funded all of the associated costs.

People are encouraged to turn up early and the council said for those not able to make the event, the live stream of the Black Sabbath bench would continue to operate and could be viewed online.

Fans and members of the public who wish to pay their respects can also visit Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery, where a book of condolence is open, alongside the Ozzy Osbourne Working Class Hero exhibition, which was opened by Sharon Osbourne last month.

Rachel Tomlinson, from Birmingham, told BBC Midlands Today that having the procession in Osbournes home city was "amazing" because it was "where he should rightly be".

"He was always proud to be a Brummie," she added. "He makes me proud to be a Brummie. It will be good to have him back one last time."

Ms Tomlinson described Osbourne and Black Sabbath as "the founders of heavy metal" and that her life would not have been the same without their influence.

"I go to a lot of gigs and festivals, Ive got a huge lifestyle community that surrounds that," she added.

"Without what theyve started, I wouldnt have any of that and my friends wouldnt have any of that.

"It was so important in shaping the way a lot of bands took off. They were inspired by Black Sabbath and what they provided to them. It was like an outlet for everybody, it was so inspiring."

Other tributes in the city include the Black Sabbath Mural on Navigation Street; Ozzy the Bull at New Street Station, and The Crown pub - a recently-listed building that is globally recognised as the birthplace of heavy metal, where Black Sabbath first played in 1968.

Ali Zaman, who lives in Osbournes former childhood home in Lodge Road, Aston, has created a dedicated email address for fans to send messages and said he had been "inundated".

His parents bought the property from Osbournes father, he said, adding: "As he got famous, all these fans were coming down, and they realised theyve got a problem."

Now Mr Zaman is gathering tributes to the rock icon and said the pictures and memories would be placed on a website and free for everybody to see.

Meanwhile, a petition to rename Birmingham Airport as Ozzy Osbourne International has gathered more than 46,000 signatures.

A spokesman for the airport said it would look at how it could celebrate Osbournes heritage and contribution to the region.

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