Boozers were decked with purple balloons and flags; murals were everywhere you looked; people donned Ozzy outfits, flooding the streets with battered T-shirts and denim jackets. It felt like a World Cup final for the metal fans who flooded in from every corner of the planet .

Heavy metal rocker Ozzy Osbourne brought down the curtain on his stellar career with Black Sabbath on Saturday, rattling through the band's most iconic songs in front of an adoring hometown crowd.When it comes to heavy metal music, Black Sabbath forming and his love of Aston Villa -– it all started here," said his wife, Sharon.

The epic 'Back to the Beginning' send-off was held at Villa Park in Birmingham, England, and streamed live globally.