Archbishop ‘moved’ by Boy George gesture

THE 18TH century image of Jesus, purchased by pop star Boy George in the 1980s, is safely in the hands of the Church of Cyprus and will soon make the journey back home.

The icon was spotted by the Church’s representative in Brussels, Bishop Porfyrios of Neapolis while watching an interview on Dutch television with the former singer.

Having decided to investigate further, Porfyrios subsequently verified the icon was one of several stolen and sold in the north after the 1974 invasion. The cleric next contacted Boy George and told him about the icon’s provenance, and the singer returned it to its original owners without payment.

The relic comes from the church of St Charalambos in the occupied village of Neo Chorio Kithrea.

Boy George bought it from a London art dealer in 1985, unaware it came from occupied Cyprus.

The icon was returned during a ceremony held at the St. Anargyre Greek Orthodox Church in London. Boy George was not left empty-handed, however; as a token of its appreciation, the Church of Cyprus presented him with a modern-day religious painting of Jesus.

The 300-year-old icon is currently being stored at the Church’s offices in Brussels.

Asked to comment yesterday, Archbishop Chrysostomos expressed satisfaction for Boy George’s gesture.

“Although I do not know him personally, his act has moved us…from the moment he found out that the icon was stolen, I think he did well to return it.

“We thank him, and if at any time he wishes to visit Cyprus we would be glad to host him,” added Chrysostomos.



The Cyprus Mail is the only English-language daily newspaper published in Cyprus. It was established in 1945 and today, with its popular and widely-read website, the Cyprus Mail is among the most trusted news sites in Cyprus. The newspaper is not affiliated with any political parties and has always striven to maintain its independence. Over the past 70-plus years, the Cyprus Mail, with a small dedicated team, has covered momentous events in Cyprus’ modern history, chronicling the last gasps of British colonial rule, Cyprus’ truncated independence, the coup and Turkish invasion, and the decades of negotiations to stitch the divided island back together, plus a myriad of scandals, murders, and human interests stories that capture the island and its -people. Observers describe it as politically conservative.