‘Boy George ruined my life and never said sorry.. The BBC should be ashamed’: Says man singer held hostage and beat
AN ex-model who was handcuffed, chained to a wall and then beaten by Boy
George has told of his anguish after seeing the star return to TV as a judge
on The Voice.
Despite spending time in jail for falsely imprisoning Audun Carlsen, the
Culture Club singer has landed a job on the BBC1 hit with a rumoured
£300,000 salary.
Talking about the ordeal for the first time, Audun said Boy George — who will
mentor young singing hopefuls — ruined his life.
He has been unable to hold down a job or a relationship since and has only
recently been able to quit counselling sessions.
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During the 2007 attack, George taunted him with a sex toy and said: “Now
you’re going to get it.”
Devastated Audun, 36, told The Sun on Sunday: “The BBC should be ashamed of
themselves for employing Boy George after everything he did to me. He
shouldn’t be allowed to be a mentor — they should axe him. He is a criminal
who has been to prison.
“If a male celebrity beat up a woman with a chain, handcuffed her to a wall
and threatened her with a sex toy, there would be a public outcry if he was
given a high-profile job at the BBC.
“But because I am a gay man they think it’s OK. It’s outrageous.”
Boy George will make his debut on The Voice next Saturday alongside fellow
judges Will.i.am, Kaiser Chiefs frontman Ricky Wilson and singer Paloma
Faith.
The 54-year-old — real name George O’Dowd — was jailed for 15 months in 2009
for putting Audun through the terrifying ordeal.
Audun told us: “My life was ruined by that attack. I spent eight years in
therapy. I only finally stopped three months ago.
“I thought I was moving on until I saw him on TV. I felt sick. It has put me
back again. TV presenters are supposed to be role models and he clearly
isn’t one. He has never once apologised or shown any hint of remorse.”
Audun, who is from Kristiansand in southern Norway but moved to London in
2004, went on: “I was a model but also did some escort work for some fun.
“It’s not something I’m particularly proud of but I have no regrets either.
But I certainly don’t live like that any more.”
In January 2007, Boy George contacted him via a gay dating website and asked
if he could book him for a modelling job for his clothing range.
The singer made his name in the 1980s with hits including Karma Chameleon but
fell from grace as he struggled with a heroin habit.
By the early 1990s, he cleaned up his act and established himself as a DJ. But
then he got caught with cocaine in the US and was ordered to clean the
streets of New York for community service, and attend a drug rehabilitation
programme.
Audun had no idea who he was when he contacted him years later.
He told us: “I went to his house in Shoreditch in East London as arranged for
a modelling session. We both drank red wine and took cocaine. We were both
quite high.
“He took some photographs of me in my underwear but then became aggressive
towards me.
“He wanted to do things to me, he tried to perform oral sex on me but I wasn’t
up for it at all and I told him that politely.
“Then he wanted me to lie over his knees and spank me. He wasn’t my type at
all.
“I was up for a good time but that was not part of the plan. I made that clear
to him.
“It made me uncomfortable and at 4 or 5am I told him I was going to leave. He
started to be rude. I left and went home.” George apologised that April and
asked Audun to do another photoshoot.
The Norwegian says: “I thought I would give him a second chance. It’s a
decision I very much regret.
“I went back to his flat, which was over two floors in a warehouse. I got
there at about 11.30pm. I did a shoot, some of the photos I had to have
chains around my neck. We took a small amount of cocaine.
“Then at about 4am he suddenly said he was popping out for a pint of milk. It
was strange. When he came back he called me into the bedroom. There was
another guy with him who I’d never seen before. The guy suddenly jumped on
me, grabbed me, dragged me down and held me on the floor.
“They forced some kind of weird medieval-type handcuffs on me, dragged me
along the floor and attached me with the handcuffs to a huge bolt on the
wall. “When I was attached they both hit me. Then George told his friend to
leave. I have never been so frightened in my life.
“I was sure I wouldn’t get out of there alive. George was completely crazy.
“His eyes were absolutely mad. He went out of the room and I could hear him
rummaging in a box. He was screaming and shouting. He came back in with
tools, leather straps and sex toys. He told me, ‘Now you’re going to get it’.
“I was terrified. I knew I had to get out. I summoned up some strength from
somewhere, ripped the bolt out of the wall and broke free. I ran and tried
to open the door but it was double locked.
“As I was trying to escape he was beating me with a metal chain, like a dog
chain.
“I couldn’t feel any pain because I was so scared. I finally opened the door
and ran downstairs into an off licence below. All I had on was underwear and
shoes.
“I was covered in bruises. The shop owner could see I was in trouble so he
called the police.
“They came and had to cut the handcuffs off me with a saw.” The singer put
Audun through the trauma of a crown court trial by pleading not guilty to
false imprisonment but was found guilty.
George’s lawyer said the star believed Audun had stolen photographs from his
computer.
But Audun, of Highgate, North London, added: “I never stole anything from him.
The only way I can understand it is that he hated me rejecting him and
wanted revenge. I often still think about what might have happened if I
didn’t manage to get away.”
Last night the BBC and The Voice declined to comment.
By DEIDRE SANDERS, Sun Agony Aunt
APPOINTING Boy George to a role like this makes you wonder if BBC bosses gave
away their commonsense for Christmas.
In public the star is a man of great talent and wit. But Audun is absolutely
right, it is inconceivable that the BBC would appoint someone who had beaten
and terrorised a woman to mentor young singing hopefuls.
This crime only happened a handful of years ago not decades.
It would be lovely to think Boy George was utterly transformed and
rehabilitated by his four months inside. But why hasn’t he asked to meet
Audun to apologise for the terrible impact his crime has had on his life?
Surely the BBC can find a genuinely inspiring role model for The Voice?