Britney: 'I support gay marriage'

Britney Spears has come out in support of gay marriage.

The 'Circus' singer told followers on Twitter that people should be able to find happiness irrespective of their sexual orientation.

"Love is love! People should be able to do whatever makes them happy!" she wrote.

Spears's statement comes amid a row about controversial comments made by Miss California contestant Carrie Prejean, who was booed for saying that "a marriage should be between a man and a woman".

Celebrity blogger Perez Hilton later branded Prejan a "dumb bitch".

Meanwhile, Miley Cyrus has also used Twitter to voice her support for same-sex marriage.

"Jesus loves you AND your partner and wants you to know how much he cares! That's like a Daddy not loving his lil boy cuz he's gay and that is WRONG and very sad! Like I said everyone deserves to be happy," she wrote.

Stephen Fry recently claimed that the word "marriage" is not important in a same-sex union.