Boy George's criminal past gets called out by J.K. Rowling after picking fight on transgender rights
By Rachel del Guidice
Published June 19, 2025
Singer Boy George got called out in a particularly sharp way by Harry Potter author J.K. Rowling after he picked a fight with the author this week on transgender rights.
In an X post from June 11, Rowling asked, "Which rights have been taken away from trans people?"
The singer, whose full name is George O'Dowd, and was convicted of falsely imprisoning and assaulting a male escort in 2007 and served four months in prison in 2009, responded to Rowling's post, saying, "The right to be left alone by a rich bored bully!"
'HARRY POTTER' ACTOR STANDS BY JK ROWLING AT TONY AWARDS AMID CRITICISM OF HER TRANSGENDER VIEWS
Rowling posted a reply of her own, calling out the differences between the author and singer, citing gender, fame, O'Dowd's crime and freedom of speech.
In her lengthy reply, she addressed why she believes it is critical to keep biological men out of women's spaces.
"For more than half my life I was a regular anonymous person," Rowling said. "Some of those years were spent in poverty. That's why I understand the importance of single-sex spaces for women who're reliant on state-funded services. That's why I understand why mixed public changing rooms are a problem for women. That's why I have a problem with men 'identifying' into women's rape crisis centres, domestic abuse and homeless shelters that are supposed to be single-sex. I don't stand against gender identity ideology because I personally still need those services, but because my life has taught me exactly how vulnerable women are when they don't have the money/influence I have now."
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The world-famous author and advocate for women also brought up Boy George's assault and prison time.
"You yourself have been convicted of violent assault," Rowling said in the post. "The overwhelming number of people who commit crimes of violence are male, just like you. That's why I don't want to see men identifying into women's prison cells or any of the spaces mentioned above. Not all men are violent or predatory, but enough are to make safeguarding necessary."
She ended her reply by saying she thinks that the singer no longer values "non-conformity."
"Lastly, I'm a writer who believes in freedom of speech and belief," Rowling said. "As we both know, the safe, fashionable thing in the arts world right now is to do exactly what you're doing: parrot TWAW [Trans Women Are Women] and sneer at the unenlightened plebs who think sex is important and matters. For a man who was once all about non-conformity, George, you couldn't have become more predictably or more tediously conformist."
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In a Monday reply on X about the feud with Rowling, Boy George addressed her personal appearance.
"The demolition of her filler face is more laughable! The dragon has been slayed!" he stated in the post.
In a subsequent post on Tuesday, he said, "I do not hate women. I cannot be clearer than that. I don't hate men either. I'm just not anti trans. We have [lived] together for centuries without having to be separated. Some men need to be taught to respect women more and some women need [to] stop blaming all men for the bad deeds of the few."
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