Black Sabbath begin a North American leg of their "The End" tour later this month, and. will play concerts in South America and Europe before their final show next February in Birmingham, UK. Contrary to some reports, drummer Bill Ward will not be part of any "The End" shows in the UK or elsewhere.

A statement on Ward's official website says, "We have seen it reported in the news that Bill will be playing with Black Sabbath on 'The End' tour in the UK. This is incorrect, and we wanted to make sure you heard it from us directly: Bill is not playing with Black Sabbath in the UK or on any other dates of 'The End' tour. As always, we thank you for all your support and understanding. Rock forever."

Earlier this year, Ward responded to Geezer Butler's comments about turning down an opportunity to play Black Sabbath's final show. A statement on Ward's Facebook page said his management reached out to Sabbath's management to inquire about whether they would like to discuss his participation in the tour, and were told there was no interest.

Ward did not appear on Sabbath's last studio album 13. In an interview, drummer Brad Wilk (Rage Against the Machine, Prophets of Rage), who played on the record, said it was a dream come true: “However, even though it was just the most amazing experience for me, I wish that it could have been Bill Ward instead of me, as amazing as it was for me.”

Ward recently announced he has formed the new band Day of Errors. The three piece band is accompanied by two guest musicians including his son Aron Ward on keyboards.

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