Ten Things About... George Michael

2010 wasn't the greatest of years for singing sensation George Michael after he was charged with driving under the influence of drink and drugs and was subsequently sentenced to eight weeks in prison. However, despite this and many other controversies George has been caught up in over the years, he remains one of the most legendary singing icons in British pop history. Millions of fans will be excited about the upcoming re-mastered release of his notorious album Faith and for those fans we have ten fast facts about George.

1. George was born on the 25th June 1963 to his English mother and Greek father who chose to name him Georgios Kyriacos Panayiotou. He grew up in North London and moved to Radlett in his teens, where he attended school with Andrew Ridgeley.

2. As a teenager, George worked in a movie theatre where he wrote many of the songs that would later go on to become pop staples.

3. George's first claim to fame in the music world was in the '80s pop duo Wham! alongside school friend Ridgeley. The band achieved numerous number one albums and singles, as well as sell-out tours but officially split in 1986 due to Michael's increasing solo fame. The pair released a farewell single entitled 'The Edge of Heaven' and produced yet another sell-out arena tour, leaving many broken teenage hearts.

4. His solo career skyrocketed and George won numerous awards including three Brits, two Grammys, four Ivor Novellos and a handful of MTV VMAs.

5. George is openly gay but has admitted to withholding his sexuality for some time during his youth over fears of upsetting his mother. He has been with his partner, Kenny Goss, since 1996 and the couple registered their relationship as a civil partnership in 2005. There have been several rumours of a split, but Goss was present at Michael's drug-driving sentencing last year.

6. Despite being involved in a number of sex scandals, George insists that this never affected his relationship with Goss. "I've got no issue with cruising, I've talked about it many times," he said. "It's never been an issue between us."

7. In 2005, a documentary was made about George's personal and professional life. It was called A Different Story and starred many of the singer's showbiz friends. Elton John, Mariah Carey, Sting and Simon Cowell all featured.

8. George is extremely involved in politics and campaigns for world peace. In 2007, he sent John Lennon’s $1.45 million piano, which he owns, around the world on a 'Peace Tour'.

9. As well as politics, George is a passionate charity worker. He sang as part of Band Aid in 1984 and subsequently donated all the royalties from his popular festive anthem 'Last Christmas' to Band Aid. He starred alongside Ronan Keating in a 2003 celebrity edition of Who Wants To Be A Millionaire and won £32,000, and also donated all proceedings made from his hit single 'Don't Let The Sun Go Down On Me' to ten different charities, including one for AIDS and education.

10. Despite all his charitable giving, George still tops multiple Rich Lists and it's not surprising: in 2006, a Russian billionaire is rumoured to have paid him over $3 million to perform a New Year's Eve concert to 300 guests.

Reporting by Emma Humphrey