AceShowbiz - A man who claimed to be Michael Jackson's former bodyguard has dropped a lawsuit against TV bosses in Britain over a 2008 documentary about the famous family - just a day before the case was due to go to trial. Several of the "Thriller" hitmaker's brothers signed up to appear in "The Jacksons Are Coming", a show chronicling their attempts to find a home in Devon, England.

Martial arts expert Matt Fiddes, who appeared alongside the singing siblings in the program, subsequently filed a lawsuit against bosses at U.K. TV network Channel 4, claiming several scenes in the show were staged. The lawsuit, which also targeted production company Studio Lambert, and the program's narrator, Jane Preston, further alleged the documentary falsely implied Fiddes had betrayed Tito Jackson by leaking stories to the press.

The case was due to be heard at London's High Court on Tuesday, June 22, but Fiddes has now dropped his legal action after acknowledging "the program was not faked". Channel 4 boss Julian Bellamy has confirmed Fiddes will not receive any money for damages or legal costs, and the TV network will not be issuing an apology.

Michael Jackson's mother, Katherine, has also issued a statement, insisting Fiddes was no pal of her late son. The statement reads, "Fiddes, who said he was a friend, let us down badly. He tried to use us to his own advantage, and when things didn't go his way, he behaved badly."

"Fiddes tried to pretend that he was a close friend of my son Michael, but when I spoke to Michael about him, he could not remember who he was. The whole family was deeply upset by interviews he gave shortly after Michael's death which no friend would have done. You have to stand up to people like this."