Michael Jackson has appeared out in public for the first time since leaving the courtroom following the dismissal of those child abuse charges back in Jun. The singer who, as previously reported, is recording a single for Katrina victims, went to see the Billy Elliot musical in the West End on Saturday.
A publicist confirmed that it was a first public outing for Jackson, who has been in Dubai since the trial in California. The singer arrived for the matinee performance fifteen minutes late accompanied by his children. "We knew at the interval that he was there and there was some clapping," said a theatre goer who sat a few rows in front of the singer, "Nobody really knew before that because the lights had gone down by the time he came in." Meanwhile, hundred of fans were waiting outside the venue, chanting his name and waving posters with messages of support. According to femalefirst, Jackson was knocked to the ground in the chaos outside; an onlooker said "It was absolute chaos. It turned into a real scrum. Michael was clearly trying to protect his children and in doing so lost his footing and fell over."
He's also been spotted meeting fan and posing for photos with them at the Dorchester Hotel. A hotel patron who saw Jackson in the reception area on Friday said "He was surrounded by a large group of people but it was unmistakably him. He spent several minutes meeting people and posing for photos. He kept trying to cover his face but from what I could see he looked well."
Footage has also been released by 2 Seas Records, owned jointly by Shaikh Abdullah bin Hamad Al Khalifa and Jermaine Jackson, of Jackson standing on the top of a car surrounded by fans in the car park of the recording studio where that charity single is being recorded, but it's not clear where that studio is, nor how the fans knew he was going to be there. Hmmm.