Latest news with #SpinalTap
The Guardian
34 minutes ago
- Entertainment
- The Guardian
Spinal Tap II: The End Continues
The first trailer for the long-awaited sequel to This Is Spinal Tap has been released, showcasing the venerable rockers' supposed last hurrah in a film called Spinal Tap II: The End Continues. Spinal Tap II reunites Nigel Tufnel, David St Hubbins and Derek Smalls (played by Christopher Guest, Michael McKean and Harry Shearer) as they get together for a final concert, more than 40 years after the 1984 mockumentary that made their name. In between, Spinal Tap released the album Break Like the Wind in 1992, appeared on The Simpsons, played the Live Earth charity concert in 2007 and Glastonbury in 2009. The trailer shows Marty DiBergi (director Rob Reiner's totally on-point mickey-take of Martin Scorsese) is on hand to record the band's doings, and megastars including Elton John, Questlove and Paul McCartney drop in to add their two-penn'orth to the Tap mythos. Filling in for An Evening with Stormy Daniels has to be the high point of anyone's career, right? Spinal Tap II: The End Continues is out on 12 September in the US and UK, and on 25 September in Australia.
The Guardian
5 hours ago
- Entertainment
- The Guardian
‘Laughing and out of breath, he thanked us for the snowball fight': fans on the magic of Ozzy Osbourne
I interviewed Ozzy in 1997, for Kerrang! magazine. We met in a hotel on the Champs-Élysées in Paris, where he proceeded to drink gallons of Diet Coke, and take the piss out of himself. He was the least pretentious rock star I ever met, and during my decade in the industry, I met hundreds. By the time I met Ozzy, I'd had enough of music journalism. I decided he should be my final interview because how do you beat that? I'd interviewed everyone I'd ever wanted to, including Nirvana, so it made sense to end my music journalism career by chatting with Ozzy. Ozzy was so self-effacing and hilarious. He told me about becoming partially deaf while working in a factory testing car horns, how he'd thought Spinal Tap was a documentary about Black Sabbath, and how the band named themselves after a horror movie for a joke. He was already shaking back then, and seemed very small and frail, but he had this gorgeous twinkling quality, which I certainly hadn't expected to encounter in the Prince of Darkness. And he clearly couldn't do a thing without Sharon, which he was more than happy to admit. Liz Evans, Tasmania, Australia My first ever gig was Ozzfest 2002 at Donington. I was so excited, I dyed my hair black and carried a wallet chain thick enough to tie up a ship. When I arrived, a guy in a top hat with a voice like the devil said I'd be 'lucky if I made it out alive'. I'd largely wanted to go because of System of a Down. But Ozzy was the show stealer. I'd become familiar with him due to the The Osbournes, then got into Black Sabbath. There was no other performer like him over the weekend. This – what I thought at the time – old guy had more energy than the younger bands put together. Needless to say, I was hooked on metal from that point onwards. Because of that festival so many bands got their big breaks. He not only invented metal with Sabbath but continued to support the genre the rest of his days. James, Cambridge I was a fairly obsessive heavy rock fan in my teens, and first saw Ozzy live when I was 16 at a one-day heavy metal festival at Port Vale's football ground in Stoke-on-Trent in 1981, alongside a few other bands including Motörhead. A couple of years later I was at university in Sheffield, and saw him for a second time at the City Hall. Afterwards, a friend and I got tipped off about which hotel the band were staying in, so we gatecrashed the residents-only bar and ended up spending an hour or two in the company of Ozzy, Sharon, and the rest of the band. He was an absolute gentleman, happily putting up with a bunch of geeky 18-year-old fans asking him loads of questions, and he insisted on buying multiple rounds of drinks for everyone in the bar. Before we departed he also decided to sign our foreheads 'Ozzy was here' with a Sharpie, as per the photo – earning us a huge amount of credibility when we finally got back to our hall of residence. What an absolute legend of a man – definitely one of a kind. Nick Payne, St Albans As teenagers in the early 1980s we all used to go to venues early and hang around the loading areas and back-stage entrances, on the off-chance of picking up an autograph or seeing a rock star. We did so during the Blizzard of Ozz tour, which were his first UK appearances since being sacked from Sabbath. We got there very early, around 2pm, and turned the corner to find guitarist Randy Rhoads and Ozzy himself, sat quietly having a cup of tea. We gathered tentatively and joined him. Rhoads and Ozzy gave off an air of openness and gentle bonhomie. This wasn't the Prince of Darkness, but a slightly apprehensive man who was hoping that the fans would accept his new musical incarnation. He was humble, communicative and very patient. It was like sitting with a mate's older brother, shooting the breeze for 20 minutes. After he and Randy went back in to sound check, we all remained stunned for a few moments. We'd had a cup of tea with the Prince of Darkness, and it turned out he was a really nice bloke. It's a real shame that successive generations only know him as the sometimes incoherent, grumpy old man of the TV show, The Osbournes. As in his heyday, he was the funniest and most disarming of all of the 1980s rock gods. Van Norris, Hampshire I was lucky enough to see Black Sabbath at Download festival in 2012. Ozzy was already a huge legend but hadn't done a show in a while and we went genuinely thinking that it may be the last chance to see him. When he wobbled out on to the stage, clearly a bit frail, I was worried. Oh no, I thought, this is a cash grab and he's really not up to it anymore ... but then he opened his mouth, and wow. His voice was still all there – it was like listening to him in his heyday. I'm still agog at how good he was. And he was clearly enjoying himself immensely. We've lost a great. Coral Pearce-Mariner, Norfolk In February 1972, during the Master of Reality tour, my father was due to pick me and my mates up after the gig at De Montfort Hall in Leicester, but was delayed by the bad weather. We hung round the back stage door and eventually the band came out. We spoke to all of them but it was Ozzy and Bill who gave us the most time. Ozzy threw the first snowball at us. We then had an amazing snowball fight with Ozzy and Bill which seemed to go on for ages. Ozzy, laughing and out of breath, thanked us for the fight and left with Bill covered in snow. For four kids from a small rural town it was magical. The gig was incredible. Gazza, Leicester I saw Ozzy when I was 17, at one of the very first gigs they played as Black Sabbath, at a mini festival organised by the Midlands Arts Centre for Young People in Cannon Hill Park, Birmingham, on bank holiday Monday, 1 September 1969. They'd originally been billed as Earth, but by the time they went on stage, they had become Black Sabbath. Rumours abounded that they had played at a school dance at the Convent of the Holy Child Jesus school in Edgbaston, where they had performed with a huge inverted crucifix on the stage behind them, much to the outrage of the nuns who ran the school. Because we knew most of the security crew at the festival, we watched them from backstage. Though they didn't have top billing, it was clear even then that they were the best band on stage that day, and that Ozzy had incredible charisma. That autumn, before they became nationally famous, I remember they occasionally used to turn up in the coffee bar at the arts centre where I and my friends hung out. Did I ever dare to speak to the Prince of Darkness? I doubt it, but he might once have asked me for a light ... When their first album came out the following year, I decided to model my own look on the spooky proto-Goth lady, dressed all in black, on the front cover. To my mind, that's still their best album, and I have it still; it sums up for me the cusp between the 60s and the 70s, and the awkward but euphoric liminal space between my adolescence and adulthood. Jenni Mills, Wiltshire The importance and significance of both Ozzy and Sabbath only truly sunk into my brain during the Back to the Beginning gig on 5 July, which I saw on live stream. It was a wonderful day seeing so many of my favourite bands pay tribute. The nail was finally hit on the head seeing Ozzy at the end. Some members of the crowd were in tears to see him performing well despite his physical deterioration. I wasn't sad for him at all – he looked like he was having the time of his life. I've also seen plenty of Ozzy live and am blown away by his stage persona. Thanks for everything, oh Prince of Darkness! George Heron, Liverpool
Yahoo
a day ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
‘Spinal Tap II: The End Continues': Everything to know about the mockumentary sequel as first-look images revealed
As the gentlemen of Spinal Tap surely know, it can take a while to find your back to the stage. In the case of their long-awaited sequel, it's been more than 40 years since Michael McKean, Christopher Guest, and Harry Shearer starred as "one of England's loudest bands." But that wait will soon be over. More from Gold Derby 2025 Emmys: These are the episodes every Best Drama Guest Actress/Actor submitted Selena Gomez, Martin Short, and Steve Martin in first look at Season 5 of 'Only Murders in the Building': Everything to know Hot off a rerelease earlier this month, the band is gearing up for Spinal Tap II: The End Continues, and now first-look images have debuted, teasing the band's big reunion and at least one of the special guests joining them. For everything you need to know about Spinal Tap II, as well as the first images, rock read on! Who's in it? The End Continues brings the core trio of McKean, Guest, and Shearer back together as David St. Hubbins, Nigel Tufnel, and Derek Smalls, respectively. Also returning from This Is Spinal Tap is Fran Drescher as Bobbi Flekman and Rob Reiner as Marty DiBergi. Spinal Tap II will also have a handful of major music cameos from stars such as Elton John (seen in one of the unveiled photos), Paul McCartney, and Garth Brooks. Who's directing? Speaking of Reiner, in addition to reprising his on-screen role, he's also back behind the camera as director. The film will be Reiner's first narrative feature as director since 2017's Shock and Awe, starring Woody Harrelson, Tommy Lee Jones, and James Marsden. What's it about? The sequel will see the band forced back together for one last epic rock show. Whether the size of the on-stage Stonehenge has changed at all is TBD. When does it come out? Spinal Tap II: The End Continues will release in theaters on Sept. 12. Is the original available to watch? Thankfully, yes, and that hasn't always been the case. As a movie with a notoriously complicated rights history, This Is Spinal Tap is finally readily available to buy digitally. But fans of physical media will want to mark Sept. 16 on their calendars. That's when the Criterion Collection's new UHD 4K and Blu-ray hits shelves, replete with special features. Best of Gold Derby Everything to know about 'The Batman 2': Returning cast, script finalized Tom Cruise movies: 17 greatest films ranked worst to best 'It was wonderful to be on that ride': Christian Slater talks his beloved roles, from cult classics ('Heathers,' 'True Romance') to TV hits ('Mr. Robot,' 'Dexter: Original Sin') Click here to read the full article. Solve the daily Crossword
UPI
a day ago
- Entertainment
- UPI
Look: Spinal Tap rocks with Elton John in 'Spinal Tap 2' pics
1 of 5 | From left, Michael McKean, Harry Shearer, Christopher Guest and Rob Reiner return in "Spinal Tap 2: The End Continues," in theaters Sept. 12. Photo courtesy of Bleecker Street & Authorized Spinal Tap LLC July 23 (UPI) -- Bleecker Street released three photos from the upcoming Spinal Tap 2: The End Continues on Wednesday. The film opens September 12. Christopher Guest, Michael McKean and Harry Shearer return as the heavy metal band from the 1984 comedy This Is Spinal Tap. Fictional filmmaker Marty DiBergi (Rob Reiner) chronicles their final performance. In real life, Reiner directed both Spinal Tap movies. One photo for the sequel shows Elton John joining the band at the piano. John performed his own farewell tour in 2023. The sequel also features a cameo from Paul McCartney. The group announced the follow-up movie in 2022 and released a teaser in March. The original This Is Spinal Tap re-released in theaters this month. UPI revisited This Is Spinal Tap upon its re-release and found it still relevant to the history of music. Also, there were a lot more jokes than the memorable amp that goes up to 11. The running joke about Spinal Tap's drummers dying continues as they have their 12th drummer in the sequel.
New York Post
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- New York Post
Metal never would have existed without Black Sabbath and Ozzy Osbourne
Heavy metal is the musical genre most prone to hyperbole — 'This one goes to 11,' as Spinal Tap said — but it's no exaggeration to say metal would never have existed without Black Sabbath, and rock in general would have had much less roll without its singer, co-founder and indelible character Ozzy Osbourne. Ozzy died on Tuesday at age 76, a little more than two weeks after he joined the other three original members of Sabbath onstage in their native Birmingham for a farewell concert to benefit local children's charities and Cure Parkinson's, a disease he was diagnosed with in 2019. Dressed as usual from head to toe in black, wild eyes shrouded with heavy liner, the self-proclaimed 'Prince of Darkness' sang four of the band's iconic songs while sitting on a throne, unable to prowl the stage as he did for decades. And afterward, his mates presented him with a cake. Advertisement 5 Ozzy Osbourne performs with Black Sabbath at the Ozzfest concert in East Rutherford, N.J., on June 15, 1997. AP As fans overwhelmed Ozzy with waves of gratitude for more than half a century of sturm und drang, the incongruous but touching Hallmark moment contrasted with a band that eschewed sentiment in its music and lyrics, preferring to mine more sinister and ominous turf. When Sabbath formed in 1968, the group took its name from a Boris Karloff horror movie. The members looked like Everymen who would have been bricklayers if they hadn't stumbled on a unique formula that brought them stardom. And crazy/goofy Ozzy was far from the superstar front-man mold of a Robert Plant or Roger Daltrey. Sabbath's sound and aesthetic provided a stark contrast to the still-prevailing peace-and-love vibe, and every heavy band since that's worn black and avoided love songs like the plague owes the group and Ozzy a debt. Advertisement 5 Black Sabbath's Geezer Butler, Tony Iommi, Bill Ward and Ozzy Osbourne. WireImage Though vilified by censorious types who portrayed him as the devil incarnate, Ozzy's was always a brand of what writer Nick Tosches called 'bubblegum Satanism.' To be sure, the music was undeniably heavy and cheerless, and the singer's high-pitched yelp of a voice seemed to come from someone badly in need of an exorcism. And, yeah, Ozzy did bite the head off a bat when he split from Sabbath and went solo, influencing a whole new generation of fans. But as evidenced by his third career as a reality TV star on 'The Osbournes,' Ozzy always gave us a wink so we'd know he was never taking the comic-book horror or himself too seriously. As for the bat, well, the excesses were something he admitted. Advertisement 5 Ozzy Osbourne's final show with Black Sabbath in Birmingham, England on July 5, 2025. Ozzy Osbourne/Instagram 5 Ozzy Osbourne's final Instagram post on July 21, 2025, one day before his death. Ozzy Osbourne/Instagram 'People say to me, if you could do it all again, knowing what you know now, would you change anything?,' he wrote in 'Last Rites,' his second memoir, due for publication in October. 'I'm like, f–k no. If I'd been clean and sober, I wouldn't be Ozzy. If I'd done normal, sensible things, I wouldn't be Ozzy.' Advertisement In the end, as with every singular talent, it's not the antics we should remember and celebrate, but the work. In particular, the first five Sabbath albums and Ozzy's first two solo efforts are masterpieces as timeless and essential as any in rock history. 5 Ozzy Osbourne performs with Black Sabbath at the PNC Bank Arts Center in Holmdel, N.J., on August 4, 2013. Chad Rachman/New York Post The music is also a hell of a lot of fun. That may not be a word you associate with Ozzy, but if you doubt it, try to listen to 'Sweet Leaf,' 'Fairies Wear Boots,' or 'Crazy Train' without smiling, Turn 'em up loud, and if you indulge, lift a pint to rock's first and forever Dark Prince. Long may he yelp at us from the great beyond. Jim DeRogatis spent 15 years as music critic for the Chicago Sun-Times and is author of 'Soulless: The Case Against R. Kelly.'
