Bridegroom-to-be Uri Geller says he hopes to visit York for the opening of his new museum of the supernatural, following his forthcoming wedding in March.

Spoon bender Uri hit the headlines this weekend when it was revealed that his good friend, the pop star Michael Jackson, is to be best man at his wedding.

Uri and astrologer Jonathan Cainer plan to open a museum in Stonegate later this year, and Uri said he hoped to come to York to open it.

"Jonathan and I are great friends and we have got this magnificent old building in York."

He said they were still considering names, and the museum could be called the Museum of Parascience.

Another of Uri's friends is billionaire artiste Jackson, famous for hits including Thriller and Billy Jean, who will be acting as his best man in March.

Uri was married to his wife, Hanna, ten years ago, in a civil ceremony in Budapest, but they are to exchange their vows again in a traditional Jewish ceremony at their home in Sonning, near Reading, in March.

He said he and his wife had hoped to get married in a synagogue in Budapest ten years ago, but when they got there it had shut down for repairs.

Spookily, the civil ceremony which took place instead was held in a road called Uri Street.

He said Michael was coming to England to give a talk at the Oxford Union and was being brought over by another friend, Rabbi Shmuley Boteach, who was going to conduct the wedding ceremony.

"I know Michael well and I have drawn a page of his new CD. I paint and he asked me to design something for his new record," he said.

"I have also written an Internet novel called Nobody's Child and I almost predicted the Internet adoption scandal that has been in the news.

"The novel is about a TV game show and there are three contestants and the audience vote for who is the winner and the winner wins a baby.

"I have patented the idea of giving a baby away on a TV programme so anyone who wants to do such a thing will have to approach me so no-one will be able to do it."

Updated: 08:47 Tuesday, January 23, 2001