On Monday, August 8, Ozzy Osbourne and Tony Iommi held a partial Black Sabbath reunion at the closing ceremony of the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games in their hometown of Birmingham, England. Osbourne and Iommi, along with drummer Tommy Clufetos and bassist Adam Wakeman, performed their classic song "Paranoid". This surprise performance marked the first time Osbourne and Iommi played onstage together since the last Black Sabbath show in 2017, which was also in Birmingham, England.
ITV is now reporting that a group of Birmingham MPs and senior councillors have written to the Queen requesting that Black Sabbath be honoured, following their surprise performance at the games.
The cross-bench selection of MPs have joined forces with the leader of Birmingham City Council, Ian Ward, and the deputy leader, Councillor Brigid Jones.
Khalid Mahmood, the MP for Birmingham Perry Barr, has also started a petition, in which he requests that a "royal honour is bestowed on the Black Sabbath rock group."
"They are often cited as pioneers of heavy metal music. The band helped define the genre with releases such as Black Sabbath (1970), Paranoid (1970), and Master of Reality (1971)."
In their letter to the Queen, the group write: "For all their global fame, they have kept strong links with Birmingham, demonstrated by their barnstorming surprise performance at the closing ceremony of the Commonwealth Games."
"We therefore seek direct intervention and support from Your Majesty to recognise the great contribution made by these fine and ground-breaking musicians, who were made in Birmingham and have once again not just entertained Birmingham, the United Kingdom and the whole of the Commonwealth but perhaps the world."
Read more at ITV.com.
