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MIJAC AGREES TO TESTIFY IN LONDON: Singer had tried to appear via video claiming he was too sick to fly.
*Michael Jackson now says he will appear in person at his $7 million breach-of-contract trial in London after first claiming that an undisclosed illness may have prevented him making the flight.
Jackson had asked to testify by a video link from the U.S. because of the unspecified illness. But his lawyer, Robert Englehart, informed the court Thursday that Jackson "has been cleared by his medical advisers to travel in two days' time," reports the Associated Press.
The King of Pop is scheduled to give evidence at the High Court on Monday. Sheik Abdulla bin Hamad Al Khalifa, the second son of the king of Bahrain, says Jackson reneged on a contract for an album, a candid autobiography and a stage play after accepting millions in advances.
Jackson's camp claims the money was a gift. The singer's lawyers are also arguing that Jackson wasn't bound by the deal because the contract was signed on behalf of 2 Seas Records, a venture which never got off the ground.
The sheik took the witness stand Thursday, agreeing when Jackson's lawyer described him as a "devoted fan of Western pop music" and an extremely wealthy man. "I would see myself as somebody who is very fortunate, yes," said Al Khalifa, 33.
He rejected Englehart's suggestion that Jackson was emotionally and financially fragile. Part of Jackson's defense is that the sheik took advantage of his vulnerability and lack of business acumen.
"Michael is an individual who is very switched-on," Al Khalifa said. "He is a fantastic intellectual."
"There's nothing unusual about him?" asked Englehart.
"No," Al Khalifa said.
The money at issue includes $1 million paid by Al Khalifa into the account of Jackson's personal assistant, Grace Rwaramba, who is due to give evidence later.
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