MICHAEL: The HIStory exhibition unveils more relics as Budapest run extended – photos

In light of strong public interest, MICHAEL: The HIStory Exhibition in Budapest will remain open until 10 May 2026. Following January’s call to the public, relics connected to Budapest have come to light, including one of Michael Jackson’s most personal memories in Hungary, a gift to a liver‑sick little boy. The newly added items will be on view from mid‑February, and the organisers continue to welcome private collectors’ most closely guarded pieces.

New, never before seen relics of Michael Jackson in Budapest

Thanks to the film MICHAEL, the pop king has again found himself centre stage. With the world premiere in April in view, the exhibition organisers have decided to extend the show documenting Jackson’s life and career until 10 May.

Among the most moving items in the expanded display is a cuddly bear that Michael Jackson gave to a Hungarian boy treated at Bethesda Children’s Hospital. The child’s life‑saving liver transplant was funded by Heal the World Foundation. The relic remained with the family, then, when the boy grew up, he sold it to a Hungarian fan for financial reasons. The item now appears publicly for the first time, offering the public one of Michael Jackson’s most intimate Hungarian mementoes alongside many new relics.

The Budapest exhibition is anchored by Balázs Nagy’s private collection, regarded as among the world’s top five Michael Jackson collections. The collection is notable even by international standards: decades of collecting across auction houses, film archives, and personal sources. Its special character lies not only in the rarity of individual objects but in the curator’s deliberate approach: presenting not only iconic stage pieces but also personal belongings and documented relics that render the man behind the icon visible. The Budapest show includes several items never before shown in Hungary.

Bear gifted to former liver‑ill child

During the extended period, the exhibition places particular emphasis on Michael Jackson’s ties to Budapest: objects, stories, and city locations linked to visits in 1994 and 1996. This includes the cuddly bear gifted to the former liver‑ill child.

• Michael Jackson’s Hungarian son: he survived thanks to Jacko, now struggling to make a living…

Few realise that Jackson had multiple links to Hungary: he shot the HIStory era’s iconic promotional video here, for six years was protected by a Hungarian bodyguard, Attila Farkas, and he enjoyed a friendship with the Hungarian‑born, diminutive artist and actor Mihály Mészáros, known as “Michu”, who also appeared in the Dangerous era’s international advertising campaigns.

You may visit the exhibition until May

In mid‑January, a community appeal was launched to showcase, on the exhibition floor, unknown relics, photos, and personal memories kept by fans, collectors, and institutions. The focus is on artefacts connected with Budapest, the HIStory era, or Michael Jackson’s presence in Hungary. Several items submitted will be shown intermittently—among them the shirt Jackson wore when meeting Muhammad Ali.

Every other week, the collector, Balázs Nagy, leads thematic, exclusive gallery tours, and on 20 February, Prince Majesty (Károly Darvai), a globally renowned Michael Jackson tribute performer, will guide the public through a special programme featuring show elements.

MICHAEL: The HIStory Exhibition in Budapest, at 5 Kecskeméti Street, near Kálvin Square, is open daily from 10:00 to 19:00, until 10 May 2026.

More Michael Jackson-related articles of ours:

• Sensational: Michael Jackson’s original handprint now on display in Budapest!
• Is that Michael Jackson? No, just a Hungarian impersonator who blew up TikTok!