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New & Noteworthy: Is Boy George a Plastic Paddy?

February 16, 2011

By Staff Reporter

But on the downside, we’d never have dared wear as much makeup as we did (trowel, anyone?) without the divine “Boy” George O’Dowd to lead the way. Now, Tipperary’s most famous crossdressing son has reinvented himself yet again, this time as the author of “Taboo,” a West End musical based loosely on his life.
The show, which features the music of Culture Club, is a huge hit in London, and will transfer to Broadway this year with Rosie O’Donnell as a major backer. (More on that later.) For now, we’re happy to listen to George — the closest thing we’ve seen to a latter-day Oscar Wilde — dish about his life and friends.
On appealing to club kids and their grandparents: “That’s because I’m not a twit. I may be a Plastic Paddy, but I’m not stupid. But I’ve never understood what I’ve done to earn the affection of older people.”
On gay being the new straight: “Nowadays, it’s considered normal to be gay, as if that’s a good thing. I never wanted to be normal . . . so I settled for being ambiguous.”
On Elton John dueting with homophobic rapper Eminem: “That was a huge betrayal. But I don’t think Elton did it out of malice. . . . When you live in the cultural bubble that Elton John does, you forget how hard it is to be gay in, say, Thurles.”

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