Jail was just like school, says boy george

London (ANI): British singer boy george has said that the time spent by him behind the bars was just like being at school. The 48-year-old star was given an early release Pentonville prison in May 2009 after he was sentenced to 15 months in prison for assaulting and falsely imprisoning a rent boy, reports The Daily Express. “There was a daunting moment as I was being led to my cell with everyone shouting my name or singing Karma Chameleon, it was surreal," George said.

“After six days, I was transferred to a category B prison in Suffolk. Somehow I found a way of coping. I was put to work as a cook in the kitchen, which I enjoyed, even though I had to wear a really dodgy white outfit, which was depressing. I was assuming that it would be a nightmare but people were fine. There were a few days when I thought: 'Oh God, what has happened to me," but generally people were very nice to me. I was surprised," he added.

“In many respects it was like being back at school. I made friends, I got bored, I read a lot of books and I had a lot of time to think and plan ahead," George said comparing his school life and the life in prison. The singer was given an early release for good behaviour just four months after he was sent to jail. But he admitted that he was doubtful about returning to normal life as a free man.

“I"d become institutionalised. I"d felt safe in prison. I have a profile, so I worried about the stuff I"d have to deal with when I came out. Everyone inside had told me I wouldn"t remember prison. I didn"t believe them but they were right," George said. George has finished his UK tour and has released his first new single in ten years named Amazing Grace.