A man who was chained to a wall by Boy George has said he is not happy that the star has been paid a huge amount of money to appear in I’m a Celebrity… Get Me Out of Here.
Audun Carlsen claims that he is still traumatised by his experience with Boy George, who attacked him and handcuffed him.
Describing him as a ‘monster’, the 43-year-old also argued that if he was a woman, the celebrity wouldn’t be pocketing a load of cash to appear on the show.
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George, real name George O’Dowd, was jailed for his part in the assault in 2009.
Now, the 61-year-old is reportedly set to earn £800,000 for his work on the show, who have asked him to appear several times in the past.
Audun said: “Had I been a woman and he did what he did, he would never have been given the platform. It’s hurtful that big organisations like ITV give him that platform.
“I think giving him this sort of platform and a record fee sends the wrong message to survivors of violence and abuse and is plain wrong.”
George claimed that he was high on cocaine and having a psychotic episode at the time of the incident, stating that he received treatment afterwards and has stopped taking drugs since then.
He also pleaded not guilty to false imprisonment and denied that he beat Audun with a chain, as was claimed in court.
However, he still picked up a 15 month jail sentence after being convicted of assault and false imprisonment.
After his sentence, he made a comeback that has included time on BBC’s The Voice before this period in the jungle for I’m a Celebrity.
Speaking in 2017 about his version of events that night with Carlsen, he said: “I sent myself to prison.
“I told police why I did what I did.
“I was having a psychotic episode.
“I was a drug addict so I can’t say my reasons for doing it were founded in any way.
“But I told the truth. I have always denied beating the guy.”
Despite George claiming that he was beaten in prison for being gay, Audun has little sympathy.
He said: “I still see the monster that he is every time I see him. He hasn’t changed.
“I’m not going to watch I’m A Celeb, and I love that show.
“I might watch him doing a Bushtucker Trial. But I won’t vote for him, I won’t participate. “Being in there is too easy for him. When it gets scary, he can say, ‘I’m A Celebrity... Get Me Out Of Here’.
“I couldn’t do that when I was chained to his wall.”
Recalling the incident, which took place at George’s flat in London, he explained: “He said he wanted to get milk. I heard him talking, I thought it was a neighbour.
“Then he asked me to come to the bedroom and there he was with another man.
“They jumped on me, kicked, dragged me along the floor. He handcuffed me to the wall and told the man to go, saying he’d deal with me from now on.
“The guy was there for 20 minutes. I was hooked to the wall for about half an hour. I was s*** scared.
“Every time I see him, I feel it all over again. I have a permanent back injury. Two or three times a year I get a slipped disc. I’ve not used dating sites since.
“I can’t meet anyone because I get too anxious. I get sceptical about people because I don’t know what their intentions are.”
George did issue an apology in 2017, but Audun wants something a bit more personal from him.
“I can always forgive, but it has to come from a truthful place,” he said.
ITV have defending hiring George in a statement that reads: “This is a historic, spent conviction and George has appeared on major TV networks globally on numerous occasions since over the last decade.”
A spokesperson for George said: “George went to jail for four months willingly after openly confessing to false imprisonment during a psychotic break 15 years ago whilst in the midst of a well documented drug problem.
“Not only has he been a pillar of society ever since, but he also remains sober to this day.
“He apologised publicly on Piers Morgan’s Life Stories and we are very proud of him for his rehabilitation.
“Everyone is entitled to a second chance and George has certainly earned it.”
Topics: Celebrity, Crime, TV and Film, Im A Celebrity, ITV, Money
Tom Wood