There will never be another Michael Jackson

The death of Michael Jackson was one of those moments in history when everyone remembers where they were when they heard the news. I suspect that the conviction of his former doctor Conrad Murray, will not be remembered in quite the same way.

The trial of Dr. Murray lasted just over six weeks and during that time the world learnt of Michael Jackson's drug problems, his insomnia but also his determination to produce the best live show ever at London's O2 arena.

During the trial it was desperately sad to hear the slurred audio recording of the singer, speaking about his grand plans for his London shows and his dream to open a children's hospital under his name. Of course, both of these dreams never came to fruition because Michael Jackson died at his rented Los Angeles home after taking a deadly cocktail of drugs.

Ever since Michael Jackson's death, his family have seemed determined to look for someone to blame, and that man turned out to be Dr. Conrad Murray. There is no doubt that Dr. Murray should have done more to ensure his client was properly monitored and he should not have been administering propofol to him at home, but it is perhaps naive to lay the blame of the singer's death squarely at his door.

One of Michael's previous doctors Dr. Arnold Klein, was mentioned many times during Conrad Murray's trial, as someone who administered painkillers to the star. If this is true, Michael's drug habit may have already been well established, long before the appointment of Conrad Murray as Michael's personal doctor.

One could ask then - why didn't Doctor Murray do something about this and try to wean Michael off the drugs? He may well have tried to and in interviews with police he does indeed testify to this, but weaning his client off drugs was not what Dr. Murray was employed to do.

It seems highly likely that Michael Jackson employed Conrad Murray as an enabler, as someone who would do as he was told in return for a substantial fee. If this was the case, then killing Michael Jackson would simply have been bad business and nonsensical. It is therefore much more likely that Conrad Murray was simply out of his depth and not up to the challenge of dealing with an addicted, demanding, celebrity client. For this negligence Dr. Murray deserves to go to jail, but he cannot be blamed entirely for the disintegration of Michael Jackson's life.

From start to finish Michael Jackson's life was a performance. Everything he did was sensational, and sensationalised further by the ravenous media, desperate for the next mad episode in the Michael Jackson reality TV show.

This way of life was all the star knew, having been a performer from a young age alongside his brothers in the Jackson Five. He never knew what a normal life was and someone with as much talent as Michael Jackson was never destined to be normal.

Michael was extraordinary in every way. The most obvious example was his appearance, radically altered by plastic surgery and affected by the skin disease vitiligo, but he was different in other ways too. He did not think like other people and this was what made him a genius.

Great artists usually lead exceptionally eccentric lives and Michael Jackson was no different. Not many people would build a personal theme park and live there permanently, but this was par for the course for a man who lived in a world of his own making. Michael Jackson's fame meant he could never enjoy a normal life, so he created a life where he could be who he wanted to be.

One of the downsides to this bizarre existence was that it provoked gossip and rumour, particularly regarding his relationships with children. The star was dogged by child abuse accusations for years and whilst we will never know the truth, it is worth remembering that he was never convicted of any wrongdoing. With his death it is surely time for these rumours to be put to bed and for Michael to be remembered for his music.

Michael Jackson's relationship with Conrad Murray was a tiny chapter in his extraordinary life, and although this chapter ended in his death, it will never eclipse what he achieved during his life. Love him or hate him, there will never be anyone quite like Michael Jackson again, and we were lucky to have experienced his talent for the short time he was with us.

Michael Jackson dies at 50

Last night Michael Jackson died from a heart attack at his rented Los Angeles mansion. A sad end to a tragic life.

Jackson had an incredible career selling over 750 million records, more than any other artist in history. Not since the Beatles has a music act been so successful on the world stage.

For many people in their twenties and thirties, Michael Jackson has been a constant, always in the news and often for the wrong reasons. The allegations of child abuse were particularly damaging to the star, although he was cleared of any wrongdoing.

Flawed genius

Another fascination was Jackson's changing face. Over the years Jackson changed from a good-looking black boy to a frail white husk. His apparent wish to change himself so drastically proved that fame and wealth do not always bring happiness.

What ever you think about Michael Jackson, he changed the world of pop music. You only have to listen to any music in the charts today to hear his enduring influence. Jackson was truly a genius, but as with many geniuses he was flawed.

When he annaounced his comeback at London's O2 arena, many people were unsure if at fifty he would still be able to be the Michael Jackson people loved, but no one could have predicted his premature death last night.

One step too far

Jackson had faced endless lawsuits over recent years and looked an exhausted man. The aim of the comeback looked like an attempt to get some of the fortune he lost back, and what his performances would have been like we will never know.

Not surprisingly the Paparazzi were obsessed with Michael Jackson, and even at his moment of death they huddled around the ambulance trying to see the star's dead body.

The coverage of Jackson's corpse being wheeled from a helicopter was in my opinion a step too far and it is a shame that news editors did not resist showing this.

Fickle media

News agencies are now waxing lyrical about Michael Jackson's many virtues but it was not long ago that many of them were condemning him for baseless charges. The media have always been fickle, but this does appear a bit rich.

Michael Jackson should be remembered for what he was, a musical genius who's music will outlast all of us. Through music he brought people together across the world, and whatever you think of him he was certainly one of a kind.