Moonwalk to Newbridge, people. The light-up jacket Michael Jackson wore on his Bad world tour and the single sparkling white glove from his legendary Billie Jean performance have landed in Co Kildare, and for the next week anyone can walk in and see them for free.
A Thriller of an Exhibition: Michael Jackson, A Fashion Legacy opened at the Museum of Style Icons at Newbridge Silverware on Friday 30 October and runs until Sunday 8 November. RTÉ reports that fans turned out in force for the launch, and the Kildare Nationalist describes it as the only European showing of these pieces before they head for auction.
What is on display
The headline act is the illuminated Thriller jacket Jackson wore on stage during the Bad World Tour of 1987 to 1989, made by his long-time costume designers Michael Bush and Dennis Tompkins. Beside it sits arguably the most famous single glove in pop history: the rhinestone-covered white glove from his 1983 Motown 25 television special, the night he first moonwalked for a mass TV audience.
According to the Kildare Nationalist, that glove sold for a then-record US$430,000 at Julien’s Auctions in 2009 and now carries a pre-auction estimate of $600,000 to $800,000. Also on show is a pair of black Florsheim loafers worn during Motown 25 rehearsals, estimated at $60,000 to $80,000, plus memorabilia tied to the albums Bad, Dangerous and HIStory, RTÉ reports.
A Thriller of an opening night
The exhibition was officially opened by Michael Bush himself, the designer who spent more than 25 years dressing Jackson, and who signed copies of his book The King of Style: Dressing Michael Jackson for fans. Dancers from KNC Performing Arts performed the Thriller routine, and a tribute performer took on the moonwalk and other signature moves, according to RTÉ.
The show is presented in association with Julien’s Auctions, the Los Angeles auction house that specialises in celebrity memorabilia. Many of the items are bound for its Michael Jackson: The Fashion Legacy sale at Rosewood Abu Dhabi on 7 December, so this may be the last time they are on public view on this side of the world.
Jackson and Ireland
Irish fans of a certain vintage will need no reminding of Jackson’s two big Irish concerts. He played Páirc Uí Chaoimh in Cork in July 1988 on the very Bad tour the jacket comes from, and returned to Lansdowne Road in Dublin in July 1992 on the Dangerous tour, playing to a capacity crowd of 40,000, RTÉ notes. For anyone who was there, seeing the costumes up close is likely to be a serious trip down memory lane.
Jackson remains a complicated figure: as RTÉ points out, he faced child sexual abuse allegations for more than three decades, which his estate has always denied. The exhibition focuses on his costumes and stagecraft.
How to go: what it means for you
Admission is free. The exhibition is at the Museum of Style Icons, Newbridge Silverware, Newbridge, Co Kildare, which is a short walk from Newbridge train station on the Dublin to Kildare commuter line and handy off the M7. Opening hours and any booking requirements were not listed in the coverage we saw, so check with Newbridge Silverware before travelling, especially at the weekend when crowds are likely to be biggest.
What happens next
The doors close on Sunday 8 November, after which the pieces go to Abu Dhabi for Julien’s auction on 7 December. If the glove beats its estimate, expect another round of headlines about the most expensive glove ever sold. If you want to see it before a private collector does, you have one week.
Sources
- RTÉ: Fans gather in Kildare for new Michael Jackson exhibition (30 October 2026)
- Kildare Nationalist: Michael Jackson’s Thriller jacket, glove and moonwalk shoes come to Newbridge Silverware this Friday (October 2026)
Featured image: Newbridge Silverware – geograph.org.uk – 3652493 by Kenneth Allen, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
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