The People

Inside THE PEOPLE

FILMS Quirky black comedy is set to clean up - Page 35

SHAME OF THE FATHER ; Joe clowns as son lies dead

LESS than 24 hours after Michael Jackson died, his father Joe LAUGHS and JOKES for the cameras. Joe, 79, shocked onlookers as he clowned around outside the family home in Los Angeles.

And rest of the world mourns

WHILE Jacko's dad was laughing, the rest of the world was weeping in a massive outpouring of grief. One of the most amazing scenes was at Cebu prison in the Philippines where 1,500 inmates staged a version of his Thriller dance routine.

Hits solve cash crisis

MICHAEL Jackson tops the charts today - and the cash that pours in will rescue the disastrous finances he left behind. As his CDs and downloads are bought all over the world - a NEW album of brand new tunes is in the pipeline.

Funeral to be biggest

THE King of Pop's funeral is likely to be the biggest of its kind in showbiz history. It is expected to eclipse that of Elvis Presley in 1977, at which 75,000 fans lined the streets of Memphis, and could top Princess Diana's 12 years ago when 250,000 gathered in Hyde Park alone.

Kids: Let us go to our gran

JACKSON'S three children have asked to live with their grandma - as a bitter fight for their custody looms. The star's mum Katherine, 79, has been looking after Prince Michael Jnr, 12, Paris, 11, and seven-year-old Prince Michael II since his death.

I NEED A JAB OF HEALTH TONIC ; ..just hours later Jacko was lying dead in his bed

JACKO begged to be given a jab of the drug he called his "health tonic" - and just hours later he was dead. The megastar deluded himself that the Demerol that he regularly craved was harmless.

IN PRAISE OF POISON

MICHAEL Jackson wrote about his deadly addiction to prescription drugs in a song released 12 years ago. The star details how he felt taking Demerol - the drug feared to have killed the star - on the track Morphine from his 1997 album Blood on the Dance Floor. On the track Jacko sings:

I want you back

Jermaine's kidnap plot to get his brother off drugs

MICHAEL'S brother Jermaine and the superstar's British minder planned to "kidnap" him to wean him off the drugs ravaging his body. Jacko's 54-year-old sibling met kickboxing expert Matt Fiddes in a Birmingham hotel last year to discuss the plan.

Give me a Kab ride mum ; Madge shows off Mercy for 1st time

DOTING Madonna gives Mercy a piggyback as they leave the Kabbalah HQ in London. In the first full picture of the pair, Madonna carried her from a meeting at the religious centre. An onlooker said: "There is no doubt that Madonna wanted everyone to see her."

GRAN'S FIGHT TO KEEP HER

THE gran of Madonna's adopted tot Mercy has told for the first time of her heartbreak at losing her. Lucy Checkechiwa said: "I did not want her to go but as a family we had to reach an agreement."

Cash brag Ronaldo is roasted

MULTI-millionaire soccer star Cristiano Ronaldo has scored a spectacular own goal in Spain - by bragging about his incredible wealth. Newspaper adverts for a Spanish bank show the footballer - who earns pounds 12million a year - grinning next to six huge suitcases stuffed with cash under the headline: "Here's my cash."

Dad killed in hit-run

POLICE are hunting two hit-and-run drivers who killed a British dad as he crossed a road in Spain. Minutes earlier, Simon Telford, 42, had left hospital with both wrists in plaster after falling off his bike.

Bolt strike hits teens

A BOY of 16 had a heart attack after a lightning strike yesterday which also left him seriously burned. The lad was one of six teenage victims of the same strike. A member of the public gave him emergency aid before medics took over.

Jamie's Moss ; ViP

Hasn't anyone ; ViP

ViSPY ; ViP

BEATLES legend SIR PAUL ; ViP

Pete clinchy with Clancy ; ViP