Black Sabbath inspires police puppy names

The dogs were named in honour of the heavy metal band

Ozzy, Toni, Geezer and Billie are the latest recruits for West Midlands Police - but do not worry Black Sabbath fans, they are merely the force's latest puppy recruits.

Ahead of the band's big gig at the weekend, the litter of seven Sprocker puppies have been named in their honour.

The other three names, on the same theme, are Sabbath, Wizard and Sharon.

Over the coming weeks, the dogs will be settling into their new surroundings with the help of volunteer puppy walkers, a spokesperson added.

Thousands of metal fans are due to descend on Birmingham's Villa Park with the gig featuring dozens of huge names from the industry across the day.

Earlier this year, Sharon Osbourne told the BBC that Birmingham was the "home of metal" - after all, it was where the band was formed in 1968.

Ozzy Osbourne, Tony Iommi, Geezer Butler and Bill Ward all grew up within a few streets of each other, a stone's throw from the Aston stadium.