At the height of his fame seven years ago, comedian and actor Russell Brand was accused of rape, sexual assault, and emotional abuse.
The claims were made in a collaborative investigation by Channel 4’s Dispatches, the Sunday Times, and the Times.
Between 2006 and 2013, four women have made sexual assault allegations.
In response, Brand maintained his relationships had “always been consensual” and refuted the accusations.
Brand held a number of high-profile positions throughout the time period covered by the allegations, including those at BBC Radio 2 and Channel 4, as well as acting roles in Hollywood productions.
Russell Brand, who is he?
Other allegations submitted as part of the probe concern Brand’s alleged predatory, domineering, and abusive behavior.
The inquiry is reported in the Sunday Times, and on Saturday, Channel 4 aired the Dispatches documentary Russell Brand – In Plain Sight.
As part of his current tour, Brand had a scheduled comedy show at the 2,000-seat Troubadour Wembley Park Theatre in north-west London only hours before the claims were made public.
Brand hinted to the charges but did not specifically address them during the hour-long show. He admitted to the audience that there were several topics he wanted to discuss but was unable to.
As part of the probe, a number of women have leveled accusations against Brand. Assault claims were made by four of the women.
According to one woman, Brand sexually assaulted her against a wall at his Los Angeles home. On the same day, she received treatment at a rape crisis center. The Times claims to have examined medical records to substantiate this.
A second woman claims that Brand raped her when she was 16 and still in school, while he was in his early 30s. He allegedly referred to her as “the child” during their controlling and emotionally abusive relationship, she claims.
A third woman claims that while she was working with Brand in Los Angeles, he sexually attacked her, and that he threatened legal action if she told anyone else about her accusation.
The fourth lady said that Brand had sexually attacked her and had physically and verbally abused her.
Russell Brand published a video on Friday in which he refuted the “serious criminal allegations” he said will soon be brought against him.
The comedic actor claimed to have received letters from a newspaper and a TV network that had “a litany” of “aggressive attacks.”
Brand stated in the film, which was shared on YouTube and X, the platform that replaced Twitter, that “amidst this litany of stunning, somewhat baroque insults are some very serious claims that I unequivocally dispute.
“These accusations relate to the time when I worked in the mainstream, when I frequently appeared in newspapers and movies, and when I was very, very promiscuous, as I’ve extensively discussed in my books.
The relationships I had during that period of promiscuity were 100% consensual.
Brand claimed he thought he was the target of a “coordinated attack” and that the situation was “very, very serious.” He was going to look into it.
The Metropolitan Police stated that, although it did not specifically mention the comedian, it was “aware of media reporting of a series of allegations of sexual assault” but had not yet received any reports.
“We would encourage anyone who believes they have been the victim of a sexual assault to contact police, regardless of when it occurred,” the statement continued.
The Sunday Times said that only after being approached by reporters did each woman feel prepared to talk. According to the publication, some people felt driven to do so in light of Brand’s rising notoriety as an online wellness influencer.
Most of the women, who according to the Times do not know one another, have opted to maintain their anonymity.
According to The Sunday Times, Brand was given eight days to react to specific claims. When given another chance to respond, Brand posted a video on his YouTube page.
In an interview with the Sunday Times, the lady who claimed to have known Brand since she was 16 said: “Russell engaged in groomer behaviors, looking back, but I didn’t even know what that was or what that looked like then.”
Another woman allegedly told the newspaper that during one sexual attack, she constantly urged Brand to get off her and that when he finally complied, he “flipped” and became “super angry.”
Another lady alleged that Brand sexually assaulted her without using a condom by pushing her up against the wall. She claimed Brand attempted to stop her from leaving until she informed him that she needed to use the restroom.
“I ran out and I jumped in my car – thank God I didn’t park in his driveway – and booked it out of there,” she recalled.
For networks like Channel 4, MTV, Radio X, and the BBC, Brand has presented a number of radio and TV shows.
His big break came when he was hired to host Big Brother’s Big Mouth on E4 a few years after beginning his career as a stand-up comedian in the early 2000s.
Brand received Hollywood film roles in movies including Forgetting Sarah Marshall, Get Him to the Greek, and Arthur once his fame rose.
The Times reported that the woman who claimed to have been 16 when she first met Brand submitted her accusations to Angharad Wood, the co-founder of Tavistock Wood, which is owned by Curtis Brown, in 2020.
Tavistock Wood stated to the BBC: “We now believe we were terribly deceived by Russell Brand, who explicitly and angrily disputed the claim made in 2020. Tavistock Wood has cut all business relations with Brand.
“Channel 4 is appalled to learn of these deeply troubling allegations, including behavior alleged to have occurred on programs made for Channel 4 between 2004 and 2007,” a Channel 4 spokeswoman told BBC News.
“We are committed to fully comprehending what occurred. No proof that the claimed instances were brought to Channel 4’s attention has been found despite our thorough document searches.
“We will keep reviewing this in light of any new information we learn, including those affected individuals’ accounts. We will request that the production company that worked on the Channel 4 shows look into these claims and get back to us with accurate and complete information.
It stated that Channel 4’s management had undergone significant transformation in recent years and that it was committed to maintaining the safety and inclusivity of the TV industry.
The alleged contact with the 16-year-old allegedly occurred while Brand was employed as a presenter on BBC Radio 6 Music.
While filming the show, it is said that Brand would get naked in the studio. Dispatches also claimed that Brand made a number of sexual statements about a newsreader live on air, for which he later claimed that BBC production staff had instructed him to apologize.
A complaint about Brand’s “alarming display of aggression and disrespect” was sent to BBC management, according to sources cited by The Times.
The BBC was one of the organizations Russell Brand worked for, according to a BBC representative. Russell Brand and the then-controller of Radio 2 both departed the BBC in 2008 following a significant editorial breach, as is widely documented.
“A detailed investigation of the breach’s circumstances was done at the time. We think that proves the BBC is willing to take action and that it takes matters seriously.
In fact, the BBC has improved over the years in how it handles talent and responds to complaints or other difficulties.
We have unambiguous standards for workplace behavior. The BBC Values, the BBC Code of Conduct, and the anti-bullying and harassment policy all outline these.
If somebody comes forward with concerns about any individual working at the BBC, past or present, we will always listen to them.
