As the vocalist of the now defunct heavy metal band Black Sabbath, Ozzy Osbourne was never too far away from controversy – and if recent events are anything to go by, the drama looks set to follow Ozzy until the very end of his musical career. The 69-year-old rocker’s plan to take his final solo worldwide tour to London looks set to be compromised due a legal dispute with the O2 arena’s operator, Anchutz Entertainment Group (AEG), who insists that Osbourne will not be allowed to play at the London venue unless he also agrees to play at the Staples Center in Los Angeles.
AEG owns both the O2 Arena and the Staples Center and with Osbourne originally planning to play at the The Madison Square Garden Company-owned The Forum in Los Angeles, Osbourne has claimed that AEG is engaging in “blatant, anti-competitive conduct” which will stop him from playing which stops him playing at the company’s rival venues if he chooses to end his UK tour of his leg at the O2 arena. As arguably the premier music venue in London, Osbourne is desperate to play at the arena in order to give his UK fans the best possible experience in what is undoubtedly going to be the musician’s last tour before he hangs up the microphone for good.
Osbourne has recently revealed that he’s quitting music in order to spend more time with his family and has also hinted that after his final appearance on his “No More Tours 2” tour, his reality show, “The Osbournes”, could return to TV after a 13-year absence. Ozzy and co won multiple awards for their show (including a BAFTA nomination) and their popularity even spawned an online slot game from 32Red based on the family and their antics. For those wanting to see the family brought to life in a video game, there are welcome bonuses to help you on your way and you can learn the lingo here relating to other special offers, which can be handy when trying to find Mini, their beloved family dog.
Source: Ozzy Osbourne via Facebook
The Osbournes were arguably the first family of reality TV and helped pave the way for other similar shows including the controversial but highly successful Keeping Up With The Kardashians. However, ratings relating to the second series of the show were somewhat disappointing and Ozzy is still thankfully best known for his musical exploits as opposed to swearing over the fence at his neighbors (although that is every bit as entertaining as it sounds).
In any case, it will be interesting to see which party backs down first in the impending lawsuit, as The Osbournes remain one of the most wealthy and powerful families in the world and certainly hold a lot of sway within the entertainment industry. One thing for certain however is that Ozzy has never been one to take kindly to being told what to do and will undoubtedly fight tooth and nail to play at the O2 arena when he visits London for the final time.