Boy George, the love of his life and a night dressed as Boadicea

Boy George, the DJ and former singer in Culture Club, said yesterday that Kirk Brandon, the frontman of Spear of Destiny and Theatre of Hate, had been "the great love" of his life in the early Eighties.

George told the High Court that he and Brandon had shared a bed more than 100 times and, although they never had intercourse, had enjoyed mutual masturbation and other sexual activities .

Brandon, 40, from East Dulwich, south London, who is now married with a baby daughter admits sharing a bed with George "once in a while", but denies that any homosexual activity took place.

He is suing George in his real name of George O'Dowd, the book publishers Sidgwick and Jackson, Virgin Records and the music publishers EMI Virgin Musicfor malicious falsehood over his 1995 autobiography, Take It Like A Man, and a song entitled Unfinished Business.

George stated in his autobiography: "Sleeping with Kirk wasn't sex, it was absolute love."

Yesterday he accused Brandon of being homophobic in bringing the court action. "I said in my book that you were very talented and I loved you," he said. "Where is the damage in that? I am much more brutal about myself in the book than anybody else."

Challenged that he was lying about their sexual relationship and had not produced any evidence to substantiate it, he continued: "I've never seen my father and mother having sex, but I know they did because I'm here. But I've never seen them have sex so I can't prove it. I've got plenty of friends and relatives I've never seen copulating but it doesn't mean they haven't had sex."

Their relationship, he added, had been obvious to everybody. "We were inseparable," he said. "We held hands in public. At the time I was walking around in high-heeled shoes and very outrageous clothes. I was very well- known in London, being around me was obvious to everybody."

George described how the relationship faltered on one of his more colourful days. Brandon's sister was up from Devon. George was dressed as Boadicea at a gig. "It's right to say we didn't really hit it off," he said.

Earlier yesterday, a number of witnesses said they had seen the two men in bed together or behaving affectionately in public and presumed they were having a relationship. At one stage in the hearing the pair argued in court over which of them was obsessed with the other. George denied that he was obsessed with Brandon.

"You know we had a relationship and I think the obsession is more on your part than mine. If you thought I was insane, why take this action? Why not just shrug and say: 'He's mad'?"

George did, however, admit that he was sad when Brandon got married two years ago.

"I don't know why, but that's why I wrote the song Unfinished Business. I was expressing my true feelings about Kirk.

"He has denied our relationship for 20 years. If there was no relationship, then why are we in court 20 years later fighting about it?"

When asked by Brandon whether he considered himself "a self-publicising homosexual", George replied: "I would say I am proud of my sexual orientation. I don't think it's anything to be ashamed of - do you?"

Brandon answered that he was not ashamed of his sexual orientation "at all".

"My wife is quite happy with me. My daughter is quite happy with me. That's quite good enough for me," he said.

The hearing continues.