Music Blogs

It's the news that few can surely have expected. Michael Jackson is to end his exile from the pop frontline with a residency at the O2 Arena in London this summer, according to breaking news emerging today. This revelation comes after months of speculation linking the faded superstar with a live return, with Sky claiming that Jacko will confirm his comeback later this week and may even be in attendance in the UK capital to make the dramatic announcement of his first tour in 12 years.

Sky are calling it "one of the biggest comebacks in pop history" and this is no overstatement. Apparently contracts have been exchanged with the venue and a press conference is scheduled for Thursday, where a small number of initial shows will be outlined. However, more are anticipated, as the 50-year-old singer looks to imitate Prince, who played 21 concerts in 2007, and Britney Spears, who has scheduled eight for this June. Promoters will confirm the full raft of dates if, as expected, ticket demand goes through the roof.

The news comes amid reports that the self-styled King Of Pop has also agreed to play a private party for Russian billionaire Oleg Derispaska, at a cost of almost $3 million. "The concert would be his first in years and is being seen as a test to see if he could perform in London but a lot depends on his health", said biographer Ian Halperin recently. Fears for his physical condition are said to be so severe, in fact, that Jackson plans to have nine top doctors on-hand at the warm-up gig, alongside 11 gourmet chefs, 1,200 bottles of the world's finest bottled water and six massage therapists. Could this really be true, wonders Famethrowa, or is it just another promotional scam from music's greatest self-publicist?