A truly wacky encounter with Michael Jackson

Mar 8 2009 by Paul Cole, Sunday Mercury

Jacko took the salute as the Band of the Corps of Royal Engineers beat the retreat, walking up and down a line of liveried Life Guard troops as if he were a general inspecting them.

He bopped lightly on his heels as the band played military marches and grinned wildly when they launched into a version of his hit Billie Jean.

It was then that a clatter of hooves announced the arrival of the knight who would bear Excalibur into his hands. Jackson was blissfully unaware of the historical significance of the moment.

He handed the sword to a 7ft minder wearing a top hat. It was at that moment that I became one of the very few guests to get a word with him.

“Do you realise,” I said, “that you’ve just become the King of England? That’s supposed to be the sword King Arthur pulled from the stone before he recruited the knights of the Round Table.”

His response was utter delight. “Gee,” he said. “A King? I never knew. I love your traditions. You have so much history here in England!”

And with that, he was whisked away to a waiting stretch limo to take him back to a top Mayfair hotel, and a meeting with Steven Spielberg and Harrison Ford to discuss a new movie version of Peter Pan.

It was very different to Jackson’s brief encounter with the fans at London’s O2 Arena last week, at which he announced a string of comeback concerts which will be the last he ever plays in the capital.

Time and trouble have taken their toll on the man who would be King.