President Trump has spoken to journalists as he left Washington DC to head for Arizona.

"We're going to celebrate the life of a great man today," he says. "That something like this could have happened is not even believable. So we'll have a very interesting day, very tough day."

"We want to look at it as a time of healing."

Trump sends his love to Kirk's family, and says the conservative activist did a "great job".

The president also says Kirk focused much of his movement's attention on putting forward conservative ideas on college campuses, and before that, they were "dangerous places for conservatives".

"Now they're hot. They're very hot, just like this country is hot. This country is doing so well. We're the hottest country anywhere in the world now," he says.

Regan Morris
Reporting from outside the memorial

Barney Carrigan, 80, had never heard of Charlie Kirk until a week ago. But he’s been waiting in traffic for more than two hours to get in to his memorial.

Sitting in his red pickup truck with several Ireland bumper stickers, Carrigan says the United States is in a transitional period and he wants to witness today.

“I’m a student of government and politics - I’m 20 years to a 100,” he says. “You have to be smart to get that old.”

Carrigan says he refuses to fly and only travels by car these days, so he takes any local chance he can get to witness history.

“I had no idea who this Charlie Kirk was until a week ago,” he says. “There’s a lot of people I want to see here. But I left my binoculars on the kitchen table.”

As we've been reporting, President Trump is one of the speakers listed for today's event.

We've just seen an image of him boarding Air Force One a short time ago.

Image source, Reuters

Image source, Reuters

Image source, Reuters

As part of Kirk's memorial service, held at Arizona's State Farm Stadium, organisers have asked attendees to wear red, white or blue - reflecting the colours of the American flag.

The conservative activist has been regarded as a country-loving figure in US politics, with Donald Trump describing Kirk as a "young patriot" last year.

Regan Morris
Reporting from outside the memorial

It’s just after sunrise and Charlie Kirk’s memorial isn’t due to start for hours - but thousands of people are stuck in traffic heading to the stadium.

Many are jumping out of cars and walking towards the venue.

We’re told each car is undergoing security sweeps at the entrance, which is why the traffic is moving so slowly.

Image source, Reuters

We've just received an image of Donald Trump leaving the White House this morning.

Hi is heading to Glendale, Arizona for the memorial later today.

Today's event is taking place at State Farm Stadium in Arizona.

It's just past 06:30 local time there, with the event due to begin at 11:00 - but people started arriving before sunrise this morning.

The event organisers say people will be allowed entry to the stadium - which has a capacity of up to 73,000 - on a first come, first served basis.

Here are some of the images we've had from outside the stadium so far.

Image source, Reuters

Image source, Reuters

We’ve also seen images of memorial banners that have been put up on the side of the stadium ahead of today.

Image source, Getty Images

Image source, Reuters

We’ve been telling you that figures including US President Donald Trump are due to speak - and here’s the full speaker list announced on the Kirk memorial website:

• Charlie Kirk’s wife, Erika Kirk
• President Donald Trump
• Vice-President JD Vance
• White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles
• Secretary of State Marco Rubio
• Health Secretary Robert F Kennedy Jr
• Secretary of War Pete Hegseth
• Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard
• Former Fox News host Tucker Carlson
• White House Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller
• Director of the White House Presidential Personnel Office Sergio Gor

In addition to those above, the website also says more names are to be announced.

Image source, Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images

The doors of the venue for today’s memorial service are expected to open at 08:00 local time (16:00 BST).

The programme is set to begin at 11:00 local time.

The memorial is being held at the home of the American football league NFL’s Arizona Cardinals in State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Arizona, which can seat more than 63,000 people - expanding up to 73,000 for major events like today.

The organisation says those paying tribute to Kirk on stage will include his wife, Erika, as well as members of the Trump administration, including US President Donald Trump and Vice-President JD Vance.

Guests have been required to register with Turning Point USA, with attendance on a first come, first served basis.

For those unable to attend in person, the memorial is also being live-streamed via Kirk’s social media account.

A memorial for conservative activist Charlie Kirk will be held today in Arizona after he was fatally shot earlier this month.

A well-known figure in America's right-wing political sphere, Kirk's death prompted widespread reaction from the current administration.

President Donald Trump said he was "filled with grief and anger", while Vice-President JD Vance accompanied Kirk's casket from Salt Lake City, Utah to Phoenix, Arizona.

Both are due to speak today.

We'll bring you all the latest once the memorial begins, but before that, we'll catch you up to speed on what happened.

Stay with us.