LONDON, England – This should have been it. The night Michael Jackson returned triumphantly to the stage in London for the opening night of an epic farewell residency and his first concerts in a decade.

Michael Jackson fans write messages to the star on a whiteboard erected outside the O2 Arena.

The tragic pop star may not have made it back to the O2 Arena, the scene of his final public appearance to announce the “This Is It” dates back in February, but plenty of his fans turned up all the same to mark the moment, celebrate their hero and seek solace and comfort in the company of their fellow devotees.

During his life, Jackson's fans were notorious for - and took a certain pride in - their cultish loyalty to the performer. Perhaps it is no surprise therefore that to some Jackson has now become a kind of quasi-religious figure: martyred, misunderstood and mercilessly hounded to his sudden, shocking death.

“To me, because this was where he did the press conference, it was almost like his final performance was here,” said Morganna Bramah. “His final public speech was in this area, so it's a very spiritual place for us to come and pay our respects to the man.”

The 29-year-old Bramah had just returned to London from Los Angeles where she had hoped to attend last week's official memorial to Jackson at the Staples Center. Tearfully, she said the past two weeks had been a “spiritual pilgrimage.”

“I felt like I needed to do it because he has given to us so much and it's the least we can do to show the world how much he was loved, how much he was respected and how much we are going to miss him.”

Gemma White and Terry Shaw, from Kent in southern England, admitted they were both “still in denial” about Jackson's death.

“You can't explain the feeling of seeing Michael Jackson in person, even if it was for one brief second of him walking out of a building,” said Shaw, also just back from Los Angeles. “We came down here for Michael. It was the last thing we could do for him. It had to be done.”

Among the crowds leaving flowers, memorabilia and messages at a makeshift shrine outside the venue were many fans who, with tickets, flights and hotels already booked, had decided to come to London anyway.

“It's like coming to a family reunion where you meet your long lost relatives,” said Jessica Prater, 28, of Harlem, New York. “I'm really feeling the love and I know Michael is here in spirit. I can feel it.”

Italian pair Martin Russo and Enrico Ardifo said they had decided to come at the last minute when they heard about plans for a London tribute via Facebook. “He had a special bond with his fans. Michael cared truly for his fans,” Ardifo said.

Holding a handmade banner saying, “You will never be forgotten,” Sophie Bradley, 25, said she came to say thank you to Jackson. “I've flown in from the Middle East but I had to be here,” she said.

A Jackson fan since she was eight, Bradley said she collapsed when she heard the news of the performer's death.

“He was a father figure and a role model,” she said. “To some fans, it's just about the songs - but to the real fans he was about so much more than the music.”

(CNN) – He has all the hallmarks of the real Michael: The slim frame, well-powdered face hidden under a cocked hat, dark glasses, and the delicate swagger. He's a little shy too. 

WJ performs his MJ routine to members of the public.

"I'm grateful that my parents gave me this face," he says quietly.

29-year-old Wang Jie is China's most famous Michael Jackson impersonator. He told us to just call him "WJ."

WJ says he discovered MJ when he was a teenager and fell in love with his dance moves.

"I realized I looked like my idol by accident," says Wang. "So step by step, with a lot of hard work and study, I made it on stage. Now he's a part of my life."

Wang had no idea he would someday make a living from his looks. He has since appeared on Chinese TV shows and won contests.

I first saw Wang as he sauntered in with his "agent" to meet our crew. WJ quickly drew perplexed but fascinated Chinese crowds. If the real Michael Jackson hadn't just passed away, they might have thought it was really him.

It's when he started dancing that I really had to do a double take. Wang strutted and snapped his hips as if he'd learned from Jackson himself.

The real Michael Jackson never performed in China, but he's loved here nonetheless. Members of the official Michael Jackson Fan Club (yes, there is one in China) even rented a hotel room so they can watch his funeral broadcast live on CNN.

"I miss Michael Jackson even more. I adore him even more," said one die-hard fan.

"There are impersonators of Michael Jackson everywhere but I think they can only try to imitate him, never overtake him."

Jackson's music was some of the first Western music widely available in China. His rise to stardom coincided with China's opening up to the world. So, to the Chinese, he symbolized what was out there.

To this day, he still has a huge Chinese following. Clearly, through WJ and MJ fans throughout China, Jackson's music lives on.

NEW DELHI, India - It was a concert backed to the hilt by Indian politicians otherwise opposed to "Western culture."

It was Michael Jackson's first and only show in India in its commercial capital of Mumbai.

Jackson performing in Mumbai.

Amid a row about tax concessions the pop icon landed in the home of Bollywood cinema on October 30, 1996.

It was around 9 a.m. local time and some 10,000 fans had crowded outside the airport, recalled Sabbas Joseph, director of Wizcraft, the company that organized the concert.

Bollywood actor Sonali Bendre, clad in a saree, gave a traditional Indian welcome to him, as a group of artists danced to drumbeats.

The excitement was such that most airport staff abandoned their posts to have a glimpse of the “King of Pop” as he walked out to the cheers of the thousands assembled at the main entrance, Joseph recalled.

He addressed them with the Hindu greeting of "Namaste" from a makeshift podium, before he got into his open-top car and traveled along a route lined with thousands more fans.

Among them were Mumbai's slum kids and the singer would often jump out to cuddle them, Joseph said.

Jackson spent the evening of his first day in India meeting the who's who of Mumbai - from Bollywood stars to captains of industry and politicians - at a banquet.

On his second day he met the slum children again.

This time at poolside in his hotel for a photo shoot that Joseph remembers was for a calendar the entertainer was making in honor of the children of the world.

Jackson also sought blessings from Mother Teresa as he spoke with her on phone, his show organizer said.

But all these activities didn't exhaust him for his big night in Mumbai.

On November 1, 1996, he chose to drive down to the concert venue. No matter, if it meant spending an hour on the congested roads of Mumbai.

Around 20,000 fans packed the stadium as the singer made a spectacular appearance on stage - a touchdown from a specially-designed rocket capsule.

"It was incredible," recalled Joseph. Thousands chanted his name while some fans even fainted. The two-hour show created history in India's entertainment world. Revenues for the sold-out concert were staggering - $1 million.

But organizers say the money is still with the court where a petition was filed against the then state government for exempting the show from entertainment tax.

"Michael Jackson had come to India ahead of India's time," remarked Joseph. "India was a different country 13 years ago."

LONDON, England – The call came at 10:30 p.m. Thankfully (for our editor), a bunch of us were chatting in a bar nearby work. We rushed back to the newsroom, the whispered rumour snapping at our heels as we raced through the backstreets of Soho. “Is it true? Is it true?”

Yep, it was true. We hit the news desk as Michael Jackson was confirmed dead.

The team got on the phones and the social networks for immediate reactions. Did they know at Glastonbury? Did they know on Twitter?

I headed out to the central London streets. At Oxford Circus underground station, the workmen were nonplussed. “Didn’t like his music.” “He was a pedophile,” they told me.

On London’s Regent Street, fans were kinder. While Samuel told me it was a stunt - “I heard he got bankrupt and all that so I thought he’d done a Tupac [Shakur].”  His girlfriend, Amber, said, “I was so upset it was unbelievable. I had tears in my eyes.”

Outside the Lyric Theatre on Shaftesbury Avenue, the home of “Thriller Live,” Jackson fan Asmara told me the American singer’s music had meant a lot to her family. “Our parents listened to it, our parents’ parents and us, so it’s a tragedy,” she said.

Heading toward Leicester Square, London’s late-night hub, we met Jenny, a Jackson fan from Houston, Texas, and her friend, Julie, from Michigan. Jenny was keen to defend Jackson against the allegations that had slurred his career. “I think he had a horrible life and people wanted to twist it around. I think Michael Jackson’s innocent.”

Julie told me, “Michael Jackson was a great person … he was the ‘80s. It’s sad that he’s gone. He’ll be missed.”

Then my cameraman’s ears pricked up: Someone was playing “Billie Jean” nearby. We headed to Lisle Street, where Luis Carlos Ameida and friends were playing Jackson tunes from their car, in tribute to the fallen star. Luis had tickets to see Jackson at his sold-out run at the O2 stadium in London. Sending his condolences to Jackson’s family, he told us how much he’d been looking forward to seeing the pop superstar in the flesh.

“That would be the first time I ever met Michael Jackson, you know. I was going to scream,” he said. “But he will always be in our hearts. Every music he played. It will be remembered by us.”

BLACKBURN, Scotland - Hearts collectively dropped in Blackburn Saturday night. The town's shining star Susan Boyle did not win the contest “Britain's Got Talent.” That prize went to a dance group called Diversity - a group of young men from East London and Essex.

Susan Boyle remains at the top of the charts for people in Blackburn, Scotland.

It was a nail biter, though. You could almost hear hearts thumping in the community centre where the town gathered to watch and wait for the final result. And when that result came, Susan Boyle could be seen looking almost relieved that she didn't win the big prize. After hearing the announcement she said graciously "the best act won." But in Blackburn it was a devastating disappointment. For many in this small town just outside of Edinburgh, the excitement Susan Boyle has generated has been more than many have seen and felt in a long time.

For all intents and purposes, Boyle put Blackburn on the map. From the moment she stepped onto the stage six weeks ago, she had everyone's attention. In the beginning, though, Boyle was subjected to looks of scorn and disdain … simply because of the way she looked. But as soon as she started to sing, everything changed. From that moment on, life for Susan Boyle would take a dramatic turn. Celebrities supported her and media from around the world camped outside her home to catch a glimpse of the woman who defied stereotypes.

But for Blackburn, it's a dramatic end to a rollercoaster ride. A neighbor said "I'm disappointed for Susan, but this is just the beginning of her career.” In July, Susan Boyle is scheduled to record an album with the Czech National Symphony Orchestra and there's even talk of some performances in London's West End. And while she didn't win the opportunity to perform in front of the Queen, she did make her and her late-mother's dream come true, to sing in front of the world.

But perhaps more than that, Susan Boyle showed the world that just because one doesn't look like a stereotypical star, doesn't mean they can't shine.

LONDON, England – The people behind the 1980s phenomenon the Rubik's Cube have a new brain teaser in the pipeline.

Called the Rubik's 360, it's due to hit the shops later this year.

The original, fiendish plastic puzzle was launched on an unsuspecting public just in time for Christmas 1980.

Professor Erno Rubik, an architect and university lecturer in what was then communist Hungary had spent six years struggling to get his prototype – originally designed as a teaching aid for his students – into commercial production.

Once he did the Rubik's Cube quickly became the fastest selling toy of all time.

While sales inevitably declined over time, the Cube has enjoyed a renaissance in popularity of late, with sales of 15 million units achieved worldwide last year.

Whether his new puzzle will be as huge as its predecessor only time will tell, but according to Professor Rubik, the 360 takes the puzzle concept into another dimension. Literally.

As with the Cube gameplay is easy to grasp, but not so easy to execute. It's also not very easy to describe, but as I'm game for anything I'll give it a go...

The Rubik's 360 is 10 centimeters or so in diameter and consists of a transparent plastic sphere housing two additional transparent spheres, both independently suspended on a rotating axis, with six colored balls at its centre.

Er, are you still with me?

The object of the puzzle is to steer the colored balls through holes in the spheres and into their respective colored 'home slot' domes on the outside.

Sounds easy, right?

Wrong. Along the way you have to contend with some tricky problems thrown up by the force that keeps us all from flying off into space.

Just when you've got a ball where you want it, gravity kicks in and whips it away to the other side of the sphere. It's infuriating and great fun.

I was given one to play with at Hamleys toy store in London. After an hour or so of flipping, spinning and teeth gnashing I'd got no further than one or two colored balls locked in the wrong home slots and had to go lie in a darkened room to calm down.

I'm willing to bet that not long after its official launch there'll be eight-year-olds all over the world who'll be able to solve the 360 in under a minute.

And that thought is more annoying to this 40-something reporter than the puzzle itself!

Watch my report on Rubik's new toy.

HATFIELD HEATH, England - The arched entrance of Down Hall in Hatfield Heath is as far as we get to Jade Goody's wedding. Security in yellow jackets has made it clear we won't get any closer. So, we park the car and jump into the media scrum. There's a crowd of about 50 people huddled around the gate, mostly media brandishing microphones and video cameras, tripods and zoom lenses. One of the neighboring houses has pinned up a makeshift billboard with a big arrow pointing "Media Circus."

The couple's publicist Max Clifford, center, tells waiting media that the couple have married.

Among the crowd are a few Jade Goody fans and some curious locals. One family decided to take their three chocolate Labradors out for a walk and watch the media watching Jade Goody's guests arrive. Claire Taylor is there with her mother and 3-year old daughter. She's been a fan since Jade Goody first starred on reality TV show "Big Brother."

"She's such a big character. And she's made such an impact on people whether it's been on the telly or being a mum. I think we all understand where she's coming from. I'm a mum. So, I know how important her boys are to her and the whole situation she's going through."

Doctors have told Goody she has terminal cancer with just weeks to live. Rather than retreating into privacy, Goody has embraced the spotlight even as her body shows the ravages of cancer. She has lost her hair from chemotherapy and is rapidly losing weight. Cameras have followed her from hospital to wedding planning.

The spectacle of a reality TV star living out her final weeks in front of the cameras might strike some as bizarre. But it seems perfectly acceptable to many Britons. The tabloids are filled with news of her "secret vows" to her young sons before her death.

Goody has publicly stated that she intends to make the most of the media attention to earn money for her young sons. She sold the exclusive media rights to her wedding for an estimated $1.5 million. Her publicist says the money will be used to secure her children's future.

Goody fan Taylor approves: "She is a single mum with two children and she wants better for her children. I'm a mum and I want better for my kids than what we had. Good luck to her. If she can make as much money as she possibly can then good luck to her."

BANGKOK, Thailand - Well he's gone and my contact at one of the Western embassies here summed it up nicely - "Thank God for that."

Like the diplomats, I was beginning to wonder if Gary Glitter's limbo status in the transit lounge of the airport was going to turn into a farce for weeks or even months. I had visions of that film "Terminal," starring Tom Hanks, who ends up living at in the transit lounge of an airport.

This time, though, instead of sympathy for Hank's fictitious refugee character stuck in a bureaucratic hiatus, I have nothing but scorn for Glitter. Although he protests his innocence, he clearly appears to be doing his best to evade going back to Britain and signing the Sex Offender's Register.

Like the other 30,000 or so offenders on the register he will be forced to notify the police of his address and give them warning of any plans to travel. British Home Secretary Jacqui Smith has now, with typically convenient timing, unveiled plans to toughen up the rules, meaning perhaps sex offenders could have their passports confiscated.

In all the ridiculousness of the media chase surrounding Glitter - from Vietnam, to Bangkok, to Hong Kong and back to Bangkok and then finally to London - it's easy to forget that this man has saddled his victims with a legacy of suffering, guilt and untold psychological scars, that will reverberate throughout their adult lives. He appears to show no remorse and now seems to be living under the deluded impression that somehow he will be able to restart his singing career.

Clearly, Glitter needs treatment and supervision, and I sincerely hope he will never come back to Southeast Asia again.