‘I’m not down’ – How Kris Kristofferson supported Sinéad O’Connor as she was booed on stage after ripping up Pope picture

Kris Kristofferson supports Sineád O’Connor at Madison Square Garden as she is met with boos from a hostile crowd after she ripped up a picture of the Pope on SNL two weeks’ earlier. Photo: AP

Kris Kristofferson played a pivotal role in the controversy that followed Sinéad O’Connor ripping up a picture of the Pope.

US country music singer and actor Kristofferson died surrounded by his family at the age of 88 at the weekend. It was he who came out on stage to try to comfort the late Irish firebrand singer as she was booed by the crowd at a Bob Dylan tribute concert, telling her: “Don’t let the bastards get you down.”