The man who has confessed to the twin terror attacks in Norway which killed 93 people will appear in court today and has requested an open hearing so he can explain his massacre to the public.

But prosecutors have asked that the court be closed to the public and media.

They have also requested eight weeks to prepare their case, said Oslo District Court spokeswoman Irene Ramm.

Anders Behring Breivik, 32, has confessed he was behind the bombing in Oslo and gun massacre at a youth camp outside the capital, but denies criminal responsibility.

His lawyer, Geir Lippestad, told Norwegian broadcaster NRK that Breivik wants to wear a uniform for the hearing, but he did not know what kind.

Meanwhile, the search for victims continues.

Police have not yet released any names but Norway's royal court said today that those killed on Utoya island included Crown Princess Mette-Marit's stepbrother, an off-duty police officer, who was working there as a security guard.

Court spokeswoman Marianne Hagen said his name was Trond Berntsen, the son of Mette-Marit's stepfather, who died in 2008.

In France, police were searching Breivik's father's home today.

About a dozen officers surrounded the property in Couranel in southern France, which had been cordoned off, entering and leaving at irregular intervals.

The regional gendarme service confirmed the house was that of Breivik's father but would not comment on the search operation. News reports said Jens Breivik has not been in touch with his son for many years.

Friday's bomb and gun attacks rattled Norway, a small and wealthy country unused to political violence, and known internationally as a peace mediator, prominent foreign aid donor and as home of the Nobel Peace Prize.

Survivors of the camp shooting on Utoya island described how a gunman dressed in a police uniform urged people to come closer and then opened fire, sending panicked youths fleeing into the water.

Police said 86 people were killed.