Michael Jackson’s father says he never beat his son but admits in a TV interview to be broadcast Sunday that he whipped him.

Joe Jackson told the British Broadcasting Corp. that he whipped Michael with a switch and a belt but says he never dealt out a beating.

“You beat someone with a stick,” the BBC quoted him as saying in a story on its Web site Friday.

The pop singer has consistently accused his father of beating him as a child.

The interview was conducted by Louis Theroux in a hotel room in an unspecified location in the United States and overseen by a man, Majestik Magnificent, who described himself as Michael Jackson’s personal magician.

Magnificent is frequently heard interrupting the interview, at one point threatening to call it off when Jackson is asked several questions about his son’s alleged facial plastic surgery.

Jackson says Michael can do what he likes with his nose, which is alleged to have been repeatedly rebuilt through plastic surgery, claims which the pop singer has consistently denied.

When asked about Michael’s comments that he was so nervous seeing his father that he regurgitates, Joe Jackson’s comment is, “He regurgitates all the way to the bank.”

The television program follows unsuccessful attempts by Theroux, who is known in Britain for his often tongue-in-cheek interviews with celebrities, to gain an interview with the 45-year-old pop superstar himself.

Credit: Associated Press