"I just love making ****": Boy George on getting beaten up, spats with Madonna and the madness of fame

“Ask me anything you want,” Boy George invitingly tells the Manchester Evening News with a cheeky laugh. “I’ll be making it all up anyway.”

The legendary singer is perched in the corner of a sofa in the basement of a Manchester art gallery, his artwork covering the walls around him.

And he's as charismatic and charming as ever.

Known for his flamboyant outfits, today he's wearing more subdued attire. He's sporting a black beanie hat, paired with a black suit with colourful patterns stitched in, and cradling a cup of coffee in his hand.

And, as he springs into action, any pre-assumptions of the artist are immediately thrown out the window. This is George O’Dowd in his element - ready to volley through topics as vast as Margaret Thatcher and star signs. But there’s one thing he’s particularly excited to talk about.

In the city following a triumphant show at Co-op Live the night before, George, 63, walks around the Castle Fine Art gallery, on King Street in Deansgate, with an air of giddiness. He's keen to showcase every element of his latest Fame collection - a celebration of iconic figures like David Bowie and Prince, as well as a self-portrait from his Culture Club era for good measure too.

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“That’s me when I was very grumpy, when I went through my Bette Davis days,” he says as he shows off his self-portrait. “When I was younger, I used to think being arch was quite humorous as I grew up in a time with a lot of heckling and a lot of people chasing me to beat me up in the 70s.

“People didn’t like the fact that I seemed to be walking down the road dressed as a nun - it seemed to bother them. I spent a lot of my childhood running, I