Jacko tickets warning

Beware of spoof ticket sites for Michael Jackson's expected residency

04 March 2009 - Fans are being warned to avoid any websites that claim to be selling tickets for the expected Michael Jackson residency at London's 02 Arena.

A press conference is being held tomorrow (Thursday 5 March) at the venue in North Greenwich and it is thought the 50 year-old singer, who flew in to London on Tuesday (3 March) night, will make a personal appearance.

He's expected to confirm news of a run of up to 30 dates from July, with an estimated pay cheque to the singer of one and a half million pounds a night.

Since news of the announcement, in various search engines, websites have surfaced with links to Michael Jackson tickets.

While most of them are not directly selling tickets, the Association of Secondary Ticket Agents have put out a warning to fans, urging them to be careful of websites which offer tickets for the 02 dates before they officially go on sale. 

Graham Burns, the head of the company, told 6 Music: "We are warning people not to buy tickets that are not yet on sale because it is unlikely that they will receive those tickets.

"It’s impossible when the dates haven’t been announced to be selling tickets for something when there are no announced dates."

The last time the Thriller star performed in the UK was back in 2006, when he sang We Are The World during the World Music Awards ceremony at London's Earl’s Court.

His last tour took place 12 years ago, spanning 58 cities and saw the pop legend take in 82 dates.

Jackson follows in the footsteps of Prince, who played there for 21 nights in 2007 and Britney Spears who is coming to the UK in June for eight shows.

Georgie Rogers