John Lennon had an airport named after him in Liverpool, the United Kingdom’s fourth-largest city.
Now, there’s an effort underway to rename the UK’s Birmingham International Airport after Black Sabbath front man Ozzy Osbourne.
The man behind the effort is Big Bean Music boss Jim Simpson, who discovered the heavy metal band.
If he has his way, travelers will be flying in and out of Ozzy Osbourne International Airport.
These won’t be the kind of trips Osbourne was once known for.
Osbourne, who recounted his battle with alcohol and drugs in his 2012 memoir “I am Ozzy,” hails from Britain’s second city, Birmingham, as do Duran Duran, UB40 and other famous rock bands.
“Ozzy might not always have been a paragon of virtue, but he is a genuine, flesh and blood Brummie,” Simpson told the Daily Mirror, using a term that residents of Birmingham have adopted to identify themselves.
The Birmingham Mail reports that the idea came after efforts to start a Black Sabbath Day in the city were shelved.
But some county officials like the idea of naming the airport after Osbourne as a way to boost music tourism, the Mail says.
The Daily Mirror quotes Councillor Philip Parkin as saying the proposal is “an interesting idea and I’ve got an open mind.”
“We need to be making the most of the talent we have got and did have in this city,” he said.
It’s not unusual for airports around the world to be named after stars.
Burbank, Calif., has Bob Hope Airport. And Belfast has George Best Belfast City Airport in honor of the famous soccer player from Northern Ireland.
Source: www.usatoday.com
