Madonna could break Internet record

LONDON, England -- Invitations to Madonna's first live British gig for seven years are like gold dust.

No tickets are being sold, with the 3,500-strong audience drawn from invited guests and competition winners.

But fans of the 42-year-old British-based U.S. pop superstar need not be disappointed. The concert at London's Brixton Academy on November 28 will be broadcast live on the Internet.

MSN, part of Microsoft Corp, say the concert could challenge the world record for an Internet audience currently held for the webcast of Paul McCartney at The Cavern in Liverpool last year which drew three million viewers.

"We have done this kind of thing before and are becoming progressively better at it, so we hope to be able to avoid too much congestion," a spokeswoman for MSN said.

The show, on Internet address www.msn.co.uk/madonna, will be Madonna's first online concert.

She will be supported by Texas and former The Verve frontman Richard Ashcroft.

On stage: "A chance to thank my fans"

Liam Howlett -- who is signed to Madonna's Maverick record label with his band Prodigy -- will DJ at the event.

At the concert Madonna will perform tracks from her latest album, Music, including her forthcoming single Don't Tell Me.

The singer said: "This is a chance to get my feet wet on stage again and a way to say thank you to an intimate group of fans, for all their support over the years.

"It's a party that 3,500 people are invited to -- and I am going to sing a few songs at my party."

The UK show follows a gig at the Roseland Ballroom in New York at the weekend. Both shows are a return to more intimate venues than the arenas she has been used to on her world tours.

Reuters contributed to this report.

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