Rita Ora puts on a leggy display in a chic black mini dress as she begins rehearsals ahead of hosting the MTV EMAs in Manchester

Rita Ora kickstarted rehearsals for the MTV European Music Awards on Saturday, as she prepares to host the ceremony in Manchester this weekend.

Heading backstage to practice the gig, the singer, 33, opted for a fun black mini dress as she posed for snaps at the Co-op Live Arena.

Rita cut a stylish figure in the black blazer dress with a matching blouse, teamed with thigh-high boots.

Posing for snaps with Becca Dudley, the star began her preparations for the ceremony, which will take place on Sunday.

It was previously reported that Rita will pay tribute to her pal Liam Payne during the ceremony, following his death last month.  

Heading backstage to practice the gig, the singer opted for a fun black mini dress as she posed for snaps at the Co-op Live Arena

The One Direction singer fell 45ft from the third floor into the courtyard of the Casa Sur Hotel in Buenos Aires.

A source claimed the tribute could range from a musical perfomance of Liam’s hits to a video looking back at his time in showbiz.

Telling The Sun: ‘In the coming days they will start drawing up official plans. Officially Rita is yet to be announced, but she is hosting this year’s awards and will be involved in whatever MTV decides to do’.

‘She and Liam have been close for years and grew in the industry together. Obviously she is devastated by his passing’.

Rita and Liam duetted together on the 2018 song For You, and following news of his death she said: ‘He had the kindest soul, I will never forget. I loved working with him so much – he was just such a joy to be around on and off stage.’

‘This tragic news breaks my heart. Sending all my love and prayers to his family and loved ones. Our song For You takes on a whole new meaning for me now. R.I.P.’ 

It comes after Rita and her husband Taika Waititi joined a host of famous faces as they rode a mechanical bull at Vas J Morgan and Michael Braun’s star-studded Halloween party in West Hollywood last week.

Posing for snaps with Becca Dudley, the star began her preparations for the ceremony, which will take place on Sunday

The evening saw A-listers including Paris Hilton, 43, Rebel Wilson, 44, and her wife Ramona Agruma descend on the swanky private residence for the Country and Western themed bash.

Rita channelled Catherine Zeta-Jones’ character Elena from the Mask of Zorro movie and brandished a sword in a white corset top and flowing skirt.

Meanwhile, Taika, 49, looked great as he got into character as the masked avenger created by American pulp writer Johnston McCulley. 

The guest list also included the likes of Kaia Gerber, Hailey Bieber and Cara Delevingne with organisers Vas and Michael pulling out all the stops.