Hundreds of thousands of Michael Jackson's fans are expected to mourn and celebrate the singer as a star-studded memorial service gets under way in Los Angeles.

The singer's concert organisers AEG Live are yet to confirm the final run-through for the event, but the likes of Stevie Wonder, Diana Ross and Justin Timberlake are expected to feature in the tribute, according to reports.

CNN.com predicted that the event "could be one of the most-viewed events of all time".

California has braced itself for an invasion of British fans seeking to share in the farewell to the star.

Officials have warned fans without tickets to stay away from the Staples Centre, where the service is taking place, but believe as many as 700,000 people may try to reach the arena.

The city of Los Angeles has asked Jackson's family for financial help with the cost of coping with the memorial.

Councillor Jan Perry said she would "love it" if the Jacksons helped with some of the city's expected costs, but that officials had not had a reply.

Family friend the Rev Al Sharpton said: "The city is trying to do what it should do to secure people. That's what cities do. Clearly, no one in the family is happy that the city is incurring any expense at all.

"You're talking about an historic figure that will have an historic celebration, probably one that we would not see similar in this generation."

Airlines reported a surge in bookings to Los Angeles. British Airways spokesman Philip Allport said: "From the beginning of this week, flights are looking very busy."

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