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Black Sabbath guitarist Tony Iommi says he expects audiences will be “shouting and singing” when Carlos Acosta’s Birmingham Royal Ballet takes to the stage in a work based on the band’s back catalogue.

Speaking at a special rehearsal session which Sky News was invited along to film, he said: “I love Carlos’ approach, he’ll go out there and do something he believes in… and it’s the same approach Sabbath has had.”

Carlos Acosta (L), director of Birmingham Royal Ballet and Black Sabbath guitarist Tommy Iommi (R)
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Carlos Acosta (L), director of Birmingham Royal Ballet and Black Sabbath guitarist Tommy Iommi (R)

“People don’t step out the box enough,” he added.

“In the early days it was very difficult to do what we were doing, coming out at the same time as music like soul, but you keep on believing in it.”

Dances for the sold-out show, which begins in September, are still being choreographed but more is known of the music – the three-act ballet will feature eight re-orchestrated songs by the Birmingham rockers.

Classic tracks in the show include Paranoid, Iron Man, War Pigs and Sabbath Bloody Sabbath.

New compositions inspired by the band will also be played live by the orchestra with guitars and drums to be integrated into the performance.

Black Sabbath formed in 1969 with lead singer Ozzy Osbourne, guitarist Iommi, bassist Geezer Butler and drummer Bill Ward.

Birmingham Royal Ballet’s Artistic director, Cuban ballet star Carlos Acosta, says he wishes he was in the cast of the new ballet himself.

He says: “I don’t think there has ever been something like this.

“I am very jealous that I’m not in the cast – I’m the director so maybe I can change that – but it’s very contagious.”

Pic: Birmingham Royal Ballet
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Pic: Birmingham Royal Ballet

According to Acosta, around 68% of tickets have been sold to metal fans who aren’t exactly known for being well-behaved.

The band’s frontman Osbourne himself infamously bit the head off of a bat and snorted a line of ants.

Sabbath fans’ reputation for letting loose is something Iommi has already forewarned about, saying: “I did say to Carlos they’re liable to start getting up singing the words because that’s what they do and he said, ‘that’s great man,’ so we’ll see!”

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Black Sabbath – The Ballet runs at the Birmingham Hippodrome from 23 September to 30 September, and in London’s Sadler’s Wells between the 18 and 21 October – tickets for which go on sale on 22 May.

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McIlroy wins Masters to complete career Grand Slam – follow latest reaction

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Rory McIlroy claims career Grand Slam with US Masters win

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Rory McIlroy claims career Grand Slam with US Masters win

Rory McIlroy has completed a career Grand Slam in golf with his win at the US Masters tournament.

The Masters was the last major tournament left for McIlroy to complete the modern golf Grand Slam – a feat only five others have managed before him.

McIlroy, who was making his 11th attempt at completing the Grand Slam, faced off Justin Rose in a sudden-death playoff to decide the Masters champion, after they finished tied on 11 under at the end of regulation on Sunday.

Rory McIlroy, of Northern Ireland, reacts after winning in a playoff against Justin Rose after the final round at the Masters golf tournament, Sunday, April 13, 2025, in Augusta, Ga. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)
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McIlroy reacts as he wins. Pic: AP

Rory McIlroy, of Northern Ireland, reacts after winning in a playoff against Justin Rose after the final round at the Masters golf tournament, Sunday, April 13, 2025, in Augusta, Ga. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)
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McIlroy reacts after winning against Justin Rose at the Masters. Pic: AP

“It’s my 17th time here and I started to wonder if it would ever be my time,” McIlroy said just before slipping on the Green Jacket during the presentation ceremony.

“I’m just absolutely honoured and thrilled and just so proud to be able to call myself a Masters champion.”

McIlroy had missed his six-foot putt for par, a bogey which dropped him back to 11 under, where he joined Rose – leading to a dramatic play-off between the two.

Only five other golfers have been able to complete a career Grand Slam, including Tiger Woods, Jack Nicklaus, Gary Player, Ben Hogan and Gene Sarazen.

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Pic: AP
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Pic: AP

McIlroy is a two-time winner of the PGA Championship, claiming the prize in 2012 and 2014.

The 35-year-old also won his first major title, the US Open, in 2011, and won The Open Championship in 2014.

How did McIlroy get to the victory?

McIlroy recovered from losing his overnight two-shot advantage with an opening-hole double bogey to initially take control at Augusta National, only to blow a four-shot lead over his closing six holes.

The world No 2 bogeyed the last to close a one-over 73 and slip back to 11 under alongside Rose, who overturned a seven-stroke deficit and posted a stunning final-round 66 to force a play-off.

The players returned to the 18th for the play-off, where McIlroy made amends for his 72nd-hole blunder by firing a stunning approach to within three feet of the pin and making the birdie putt required for a life-changing win.

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Race to keep British Steel furnaces running with last-minute efforts to secure raw materials under way

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Race to keep British Steel furnaces running with last-minute efforts to secure raw materials under way

Last-minute efforts to keep British Steel operating are to be carried out today, as the plant races to secure a supply of raw materials.

The Department for Business and Trade said officials are working to secure supplies of materials, including coking coal, to keep British Steel operational, as well as to ensure all staff will be paid.

It added that setting up new supply chains was “crucial” as a fall in blast furnace temperature could risk “irreparable damage to the site, with the steel setting and scarring the machinery”.

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British Steel: What happens next?

Companies including Tata – which ran the now-closed Port Talbot steelworks – and Rainham Steel have offered managerial support and materials to keep the Lincolnshire site running.

Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds said in a statement that “when I said steelmaking has a future in the UK, I meant it”.

“Steel is vital for our national security and our ambitious plans for the housing, infrastructure and manufacturing sectors in the UK,” he added.

“We will set out a long-term plan to co-invest with the private sector to ensure steel in the UK has a bright and sustainable future.”

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British Steel Ltd steelworks in Scunthorpe, North Lincolnshire
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Unions said Jingye decided to cancel orders of key materials for the steelworks

Earlier this month, unions said the steelwork’s owner, Chinese company Jingye, decided to cancel future orders for the iron ore, coal and other raw materials needed to keep the furnaces running.

It meant the Scunthorpe plant had been on course to close down by May, bit it sparked urgent calls for government intervention.

Emergency legislation was passed on Saturday bringing the steelworks into effective government control, and officials were on site as soon as the new legislation came into force.

However, the business secretary has warned that does not mean the plant is guaranteed to survive.

Appearing on Sky News’ Sunday Morning With Trevor Phillips, Mr Reynolds also said he would not bring a Chinese company into the “sensitive” steel sector again.

“I don’t know… the Boris Johnson government when they did this, what exactly the situation was,” he added. “But I think it’s a sensitive area.”

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‘I wouldn’t bring a Chinese company into our steel sector’

Jingye stepped in with a deal to buy British Steel’s Scunthorpe plant out of insolvency in 2020, when Mr Johnson was prime minister.

The minister added that while The Steel Industry (Special Measures) Bill stops short of the full nationalisation of British Steel, “to be frank, as I said to parliament yesterday, it is perhaps at this stage the likely option”.

The Conservatives accused the government of acting “too late” and implementing a “botched nationalisation” after ignoring warnings about the risk to the steelworks.

Read more:
A sticking plaster, not a solution: What next for British Steel?
How Trump, China and Reform all played their part

Shadow business secretary Andrew Griffith said: “The Labour Government have landed themselves in a steel crisis entirely of their own making.

“They’ve made poor decisions and let the unions dictate their actions.”

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