Russell Brand allegations: What is the star accused of and how has he responded?
- Everything you need to know about the allegations against Russell Brand
Russell Brand is facing allegations of sexual assaults during the height of his fame, as part of an investigation by The Sunday Times, The Times and Channel 4’s Dispatches programme.
The allegations date back between 2003 and 2013, but the actor and comedian has denied any wrongdoing, blaming the ‘mainstream media’ for a ‘litany of astonishing rather baroque attacks’.
Since the claims were published, more women have come forward with allegations about how he has treated them.
The latest allegations – which the newspaper says have not been investigated, but will now be ”rigorously checked’
Metropolitan Police have responded to the accusations, saying it encourages victims of sexual assault to contact the force. A spokesperson said: ‘We are aware of media reporting of a series of allegations of sexual assault. At this time, we have not received any reports in relation to this.
‘If anyone believes they have been the victim of a sexual assault, no matter how long ago it happened, we would encourage them to contact police.
But what has Russell Brand been accused of? Here is everything you need to know about the allegations against the actor and comedian.
What has Russell Brand been accused of? Here is everything you need to know about the allegations against the comedian
What is Russell Brand accused of?
Brand has been accused of rape, sexual assault and emotionally abusing four women, while others have accused him of predatory behaviour.
The alleged assaults took place between 2006 and 2013 and were made in a Channel 4 Dispatches documentary on Saturday and in The Sunday Times.
Most of the women in the investigation have not been named and their identities are protected
One woman has accused Brand of raping her without a condom against her wall in his Los Angeles home. She says Brand attempted to stop her from leaving until she told him she was going to the bathroom.
The woman is said to have been treated at a rape crisis centre on the same day, which The Times says it has confirmed via medical records.
Most women who have accused Russell Brand of assault have not been named, and their identities have been protected under law
The Times said she later texted him after the alleged attack to say ‘When a girl says NO it means no’, to which Brand sent an apology text back.
Another woman, in the UK, claimed that Brand assaulted her when he was 31 and she was aged just 16 and still at school.
On the first date, she claims he asked her to confirm if she was 16, adding: ‘I don’t give a f*** if you’re 12… I just need to know where I stand legally.’ She claims that he referred to her as a ‘child’ during the emotionally abusive relationship and said ‘he engaged in the behaviours of a groomer.’
A third woman claims that Brand sexually assaulted her while she was working with him in Los Angeles. She claimed that she repeatedly told Brand to get off her, and said he became ‘super angry’ after he gave in and threatened to take legal action if she told anyone about the encounter.
A fourth complainant alleged being sexually assaulted by Brand in the UK and accused him of being physically and emotionally abusive.
One woman who has been named by The Times is Brand’s former personal assistant in 2006.
Helen Berger claimed she saw Brand showing intimate photographs of women to his friends.
She said: ‘It made me feel really sick to my stomach… These are women who aren’t expecting to be shown to the dude’s friends
Brand has been accused of rape, sexual assault and emotionally abusing four women, while others have accused him of predatory behaviour
Russell Brand’s former personal assistant Helen Berger claimed she saw Brand showing intimate photographs of women to his friends
What other allegations has Russell Brand faced?
Since Brand was accused of rape and sexual assault, more women have come forward with allegations.
The Times and Sunday Times claim ‘several women’ have come forward with undisclosed allegations about Brand’s behaviour during the early 2000s in wake of their joint investigation.
Sources told The Sunday Times that his behaviour was an ‘open secret’ in radio and TV production.
The newspaper claimed that TV researchers and runners working on Channel 4 shows with Brand, alleged that he would get staff to approach young female audience members to try to meet up with them after filming.
One runner claimed that Brand flashed his penis to her as she walked into his dressing room and implied that she should give him oral sex.
The latest allegations – which the newspaper says have not been investigated, but will now be ‘rigorously checked’
Sources told The Sunday Times that Russell Brand’s behaviour was an ‘open secret’ in radio and TV production
The BBC is now also facing ‘urgent questions’ after it was claimed that Brand, 48, used his company-provided car service to pick the girl up from school.
It comes as both BBC and Channel 4 have launched internal investigations into separate accusations of predatory behaviour by Brand towards staff and audience members during the time of his employment.
Channel 4 has since removed all programmes linked to Brand from its website, including episodes of The Great British Bake Off and Big Brother’s Big Mouth in which he was featured, The Daily Telegraph reported.
Netflix has since been urged to remove his comedy special, titled Re:Birth, from its streaming catalogue.
How has Russell Brand responded to the allegations?
On Friday, the day before the investigation aired, Brand shared a two-minute long video denying all allegations, across his social media platforms.
He denied ‘serious criminal allegations’ and claimed his relationships were ‘absolutely, always consensual’.
He said: ‘Amidst this litany of astonishing, rather baroque attacks are some very serious allegations that I absolutely refute,’ he said in the video.
‘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, very promiscuous.
‘Now during that time of promiscuity, the relationships I had were absolutely, always consensual.’
The comedian then claimed that he was a victim of a ‘coordinated attack.’
Just hours after the allegations were published, Brand performed a comedy gig to 2,000 people at Troubadour Wembley Park Theatre in north-west London, as part of his Bipolarisation tour.
Brand did not directly address the allegations but told the audience he wanted to talk about things that he could not.
MailOnline has contacted Brand’s representatives for comment.
Where to watch Russell Brand: In Plain Sight: Dispatches
The Russell Brand investigation aired on Channel 4 on Saturday 16 September at 9pm.
The documentary was the final piece of an investigation which Channel 4 Dispatches, The Times and Sunday Times had been working on for over a year.
The Dispatches episode is 78 minutes long and is available to stream on Channel 4’s catch-up service.
Since the allegations were published, Channel 4 announced its own internal investigation and encouraged anyone ‘aware of such behaviour to contact us directly.’
Channel 4, in a statement released on Sunday, said it was ‘appalled’ to learn of the allegations ‘including behaviour alleged to have taken place on programmes made for Channel 4 between 2004 and 2007.
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