Boy George barred from appearing on Big Brother
Singer Boy George will not be appearing on Celebrity Big Brother after a High Court judge dismissed his appeal.
The star, real name George O’Dowd, was barred from going on the show when the Probation Service said his appearance would undermine public confidence in the justice system.
George, 48, appealed to the High Court to quash the decision but this was turned down by a judge, Press Association reports.
He is on probation after being released from jail in May. He had been found guilty of falsely imprisoning and assaulting male prostitute Audun Carlsen, 29, and served four months of his 15 month sentence.
The star was set to earn £200,000 for his appearance on the Channel 4 show and his lawyer argued he wanted to rebuild his career and reputation.
But Richard Clayton QC, representing the Probation Service, said that allowing George on the show could undermine public confidence in the criminal justice system and threaten the reputation of the Probation Service.
Judge Bean has said he will give his reasons for the refusal later.
When George was sentenced for the attack on Carlson, the judge said he had used “gratuitous violence” and left his victim “shocked, degraded and traumatised”.
The singer had said he met Carlsen previously but had asked him back to his Shoreditch flat because he believed Carlsen had tampered with his computer.
Carlsen said he was attacked, dragged across the floor by George, handcuffed to a wall by the bed at the Culture Club singer’s east London flat and beaten with a chain, until he managed to flee.
George denied the charges but chose not to give evidence in his own defence.
He has since spoken of his regret over the incident and said he “wholly deserved” to go to prison.
Celebrity Big Brother begins on January 3rd. Rumoured housemates include Jordan’s cross-dressing former boyfriend Alex Reid, Pamela Anderson and rapper MC Hammer.
He claimed he had been robbed, but when police arrived to investigate they found a large quantity of cocaine in his flat.
He also has a 1977 juvenile conviction for going equipped for theft.
