Trigger warning: rape and sexual assault.
Last week, speculation mounted over the identity of a celebrity at the centre of serious allegations. Russell Brand has now been unveiled as that celebrity. The controversial comedian, actor and presenter-turned wellness guru has been accused of rape, sexual assault and emotional abuse over a seven-year period at the height of his fame.
The shocking allegations by four women, which are said to have taken place between 2006 and 2013, are the result of an in-depth, three-year joint investigation by Channel 4 Dispatches and The Times and Sunday Times. Brand, 48, who is now married also faces allegations of controlling, bullying and predatory behaviour.
They were vehemently denied by Brand in a video released on Friday evening, ahead of Channel 4's Dispatches broadcast and ahead of the Sunday Times publication in which he referred to his ‘consensual, promiscuous’ behaviour in the past and claimed the ‘very serious criminal allegations’ were part of a ‘coordinated attack’ by the ‘mainstream media.’
He also issued a written statement, published in The Sunday Times alongside the allegations, in which he further denied any wrongdoing and said: “Amidst this litany of astonishing, rather baroque attacks are some very serious allegations that I absolutely refute. These allegations pertain to the time when I was working in the mainstream, when I was in the newspapers all the time, when I was in the movies, and as I've written about extensively in my books, I was very promiscuous. Now during that time of promiscuity, the relationships I had were absolutely consensual. I was always transparent about that then, almost too transparent, and I'm being transparent about it now as well, and to see that transparency metastasized into something criminal, that I absolutely deny, makes me question, is there another agenda at play?”
Here are 7 allegations made in Russell Brand: In Plain Sight: Dispatches and The Sunday Times investigation:
One woman alleges Brand raped her against the wall in his LA home
One woman alleges Brand raped her against the wall in his LA home
‘Nadia’, a businesswoman then in her thirties, met Brand at a party in 2012, swapping numbers and later having consensual sex with him – although she said she was unsettled by his ‘glazed-over look’.
She said that on another occasion, she returned to his house after he pleaded with her to come over, finding him naked. She claimed he told her that ‘a friend’ was already in the bedroom and he wanted her to join them. After she said no, he pinned her up against a wall: ‘He’s a lot taller than me. And he has that glazed look in his eye again. And I can’t move. And I told him, “Get off, get off.”’ She claimed he then raped her without a condom.
There allegedly followed a text exchange by the pair, in which he allegedly wrote: ‘I’m sorry. That was crazy and selfish. I hope you can forgive me, I know that you’re a lovely person. X’ and she responded: ‘When a girl say[s] NO it means no’. Records show she was treated by a rape crisis centre on the same day, but she said she was ‘too scared’ to go to the police.
Another woman alleges Brand groomed then assaulted her when she was 16 and still at school
After meeting him in London’s Leicester Square in 2006, ‘Alice’ claimed she had a three-month relationship with Brand, then a presenter on Big Brother’s Big Mouth and BBC radio – despite the fact she was 16 and he was 30. On their first date, she claims he asked her to confirm she was definitely 16, saying: ‘I don’t give a f*** if you’re 12… I need to know where I stand legally.’
She said he referred to her as ‘the child’ throughout their relationship and alleges he was delighted when he learned she was a virgin. ‘He was like, “Oh my God, my baby, my baby’ and picked me up and cradled me in his arms like a child’, she said, adding that when she lost her virginity to him, he raised his arm above his head ‘like he was conquering something’.
She said Brand ‘engaged in the behaviours of a groomer’, including encouraging her to lie to her parents and friends about seeing him, and was also controlling, on one occasion going out and demanding she stay in the bath until he returned. She alleges that towards the end of their relationship, he assaulted her by forcing ‘his penis down my throat’ so she couldn’t breathe, only backing off when she punched him in the stomach. She said he then spat in her mouth and made her swallow it.
A third woman claims he attacked her in 2013
A third woman claims he attacked her in 2013
‘Phoebe’, then in her twenties, and who worked for him at the time, said she witnessed him having sex with up to ‘five women a day’, often plucked from the audiences of his shows. She also had a brief sexual relationship with him. It had ended by the time of the alleged incident, which she says took place at his house in West Hollywood.
She said he was naked and pinning her down on the bed, ‘aggressively trying to f*** me’. She described his eyes as turning ‘black, like the devil, like a different person literally entered his body’. She continued: ‘I was screaming, and I was like, “What are you doing, stop, please, you’re my friend, I love you, please don’t do this”… I think he had his hands down by trousers’. Eventually, he got off her, but she said he ‘flipped’ and became ‘super angry’. She said he later threatened her with legal action if she told people her allegation.
His former PA said she saw him showing intimate pictures of women to friends
In 2006, personal assistant Helen Berger began working for Brand, who was a rising star at the time. She described him as a ‘narcissist’ who would often only wear underwear while she worked.
Once, at the Edinburgh Festival, she said she witnessed him showing his friends naked photographs of women, including one she knew. ‘It did something to me,’ she said. ‘It made me feel sick to my stomach. These are women who aren’t expecting to be shown to the dude’s friends.’
Colleagues from his years as a Channel 4 presenter said they felt like ‘pimps’ for Brand
TV researchers and runners working on Channel 4 shows allege Brand would get staff to approach young female audience members so he could meet them for sex after filming. Two separate former crew members working on Big Brother’s EFourum (a debate show presented by Brand which would become Big Brother’s Little Brother) claimed this made them feel they were working as a ‘pimp’ for Brand.
One female TV worker said she remembered getting calls from ‘distressed young women’ the day after, complaining about their treatment by Brand.
Endemol, the company behind shows Brand appeared on in the mid-noughties such as Big Brother's Big Mouth, was bought by Banijay UK in 2020. It said it was aware of the ‘very serious allegations’ relating to the ‘alleged serious misconduct of Russell Brand while presenting shows produced by Endemol." It said it had launched an ‘urgent’ internal investigation.
He allegedly flashed his penis at a female runner
‘Rachel’ was a runner on Big Brother’s Little Brother when she went to his dressing room one day to see what he wanted for lunch. She said he turned around and she realised ‘his penis was out of his shorts and in his hands… he insinuated that I might like to suck his dick.’ She said she was ‘incredibly shocked’ and ‘very anxious’ not to rock the boat, so did not tell anybody about her alleged experience. She later began a relationship with him but said she now believes she was ‘groomed for sex’ by Brand.
Brand’s alleged behaviour is well known among female comedians
Comedian Daniel Sloss said he had been hearing rumours about Brand’s behaviour for more than a decade. He said female comedians have set up online groups that they use to warn each other of comedians they’ve had unpleasant experiences with, including predatory ones. ‘I know for many, many years that women have been warning each other about Russell,’ he said.
He also said: ‘I know there are comedians who have made references in jokes to Russell’s alleged crimes and have either been asked or told not to do those jokes any more.’
Endemol, the company behind shows Brand appeared on in the mid-noughties such as Big Brother's Big Mouth, was bought by Banijay UK in 2020. It said it was aware of the ‘very serious allegations’ relating to the ‘alleged serious misconduct of Russell Brand while presenting shows produced by Endemol." It said it had launched an ‘urgent’ internal investigation.
Channel 4 said it had ‘asked the production company who produced the programmes for Channel 4 to investigate these allegations and report their findings properly and satisfactorily to us.' The broadcaster added it was conducting its own internal investigation, and encouraged ‘anyone who is aware of such behaviour to contact us directly.’ Later the broadcaster confirmed to The Telegraph it had 'taken down all content featuring Russell Brand" while it looked into the matter.
The BBC has announced it is launching a new inquiry on Brand's time at the BBC. A spokesman said the weekend's investigation ‘contained some serious allegations, spanning a number of years,’ adding: 'Russell Brand worked on BBC radio programmes between 2006 and 2008 and we are urgently looking into the issues raised."
On Sunday, the Metropolitan Police said it had begun its inquiries into Brand's alleged mistreatment of women and called on anyone with relevant information to speak to officers.
For information or support regarding rape and sexual abuse, contact Rape Crisis on 0808 500 2222.
