(LIVERPOOL) - Liverpool launches its year as European Capital of Culture this weekend with events including a musical about its past and future starring ex-Beatle Ringo Starr.

A free, open-air extravaganza Friday featuring special effects and fireworks marks the start of more than 300 events planned for 2008 -- but the highlight comes Saturday with "Liverpool -- The Musical".

"A revolutionary variation of the musical form, based on a re-invention of classic songs that have helped to make the city the centre of the musical universe," is how its organisers modestly describe it.

The show's line-up includes illustrious Liverpudlian musicians including drummer Starr, Dave Stewart, of 1980s electronic duo Eurythmics, and another big name from that decade, Echo And The Bunnymen.

The event at the city's Echo Arena will use poets, singers, construction workers and sailors to tell stories from the city's people, nicknamed Scousers.

Officials in the north-western English port city, which marked its 800th anniversary in 2007, are aiming to put its often unglamorous history behind it with both the musical and the year's programme as a whole.

Liverpool struggled with unemployment and poverty in the 1970s and 1980s after the decline of traditional manufacturing industries but vast funds have since been poured into the city's coffers and it has undergone a renaissance.

The organisers of the 2008 programme have drawn on Liverpool's long and rich cultural history, attracting local luminaries from fields including music, sport and literature.

As well as Starr's appearance Saturday, fellow former Beatle Sir Paul McCartney will take part in a concert at Liverpool Football Club's Anfield stadium on June 1.

Conductor Sir Simon Rattle brings the Berliner Philharmoniker orchestra to the Philharmonic Hall on September 4.

Liverpool, the waterfront of which is a UNESCO world heritage site, has the biggest number of museums in Britain outside London, and visitors can take in shows featuring artists such as Gustav Klimt, Claude Monet, Camille Pissarro and architect Le Corbusier.

Thanks to the culture capital link, a series of internationally-known events are also taking place in Liverpool in 2008 including the MTV Europe music awards, the Turner Prize for modern art and the BBC Electric Proms music festival.

Other events in the city ranging from theatre to parades, musicals to ballets, concerts to sporting events are detailed at the www.liverpool08.com website.

Some two-thirds of the events taking place will be free. Around 1.7 million extra visitors are expected to attend the city -- which already attracts 20 million people a year -- and are likely to spend around 1.5 billion pounds (three billion dollars, two billion euros).

"We never saw the capital of culture as a one-year event but as a long term platform for the city and its strong artist community," said tourism boss Pam Wilsher, from The Mersey Partnership development group.

Prime Minister Gordon Brown has wished Liverpool well for the 2008 festivities.

"I think people in Liverpool and people all over the country are looking forward to a great success for Liverpool in this year of culture," he told parliament on Wednesday.

"It is one of the greatest cities in the world already for music and for sport and for arts."

Liverpool is sharing the title of European Capital of Culture this year with Stavanger in Norway. The initiative was set up by the European Union in 1985.

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