Boy George loses 'Big Brother' court appeal

George failed Wednesday in a High Court bid to overturn a probation order preventing him from taking part in the reality television show.

LONDON (AFP) – British 1980s pop star Boy George failed Wednesday in a High Court bid to overturn a probation order preventing him from taking part in the reality television show "Celebrity Big Brother".

The former Culture Club frontman, real name George O'Dowd, is currently out of jail on probation after serving four months of a 15-month prison sentence for imprisoning a Norwegian male escort after a nude photoshoot.

O'Dowd was challenging a probation service decision to revoke the permission granted by his supervising officer for him to star in the show, in which famous faces are locked in a house together under 24-hour television scrutiny.

Judge David Bean, who is to give reasons for rejecting the appeal later, ignored the pleas of O'Dowd, who blamed drug abuse for his past behaviour and the assault on 29-year-old Norwegian Audun Carlsen in 2007.

"I became addicted to cocaine many years ago," the 48-year-old singer said. "This caused serious damage to my personal and professional life and got me into trouble with the police in the UK and elsewhere.

"When under the influence of drugs I behaved in an appalling way towards Audun Carlsen. I deeply regret my conduct on that occasion."

The singer and disc jockey was set to earn a reported 200,000 pounds (320,000 dollars, 225,000 euros) for his appearance in Channel Four's reality show which starts on January 3.

Other celebrities tipped to share the "Big Brother" house include former Baywatch actress Pamela Anderson, 1990s rapper MC Hammer and Hollywood madam Heidi Fleiss.