Four women have publicly accused British comedian and actor Russell Brand of rape, sexual assault and emotional abuse between 2006 and 2013 — during the height of his fame.
The allegations were first published over the weekend in an exclusive investigation by The Sunday Times. Hours later, the allegations was broadcast in a joint television documentary, Russell Brand – In Plain Sight, which aired on Channel 4 in the UK.
The accusers
Among the several women who’ve come forward to make allegations against Brand, four went on the record — only one has so far chosen to identify herself, while the others remained anonymous. According to the Times, the women do not know each other, though all of them felt ready to speak out after reporters approached them individually.
Chronologically charting the allegations – the first alleged assault took place in 2006, when Brand, who was then 30, engaged in an emotionally abusive and controlling relationship with a school student, who was at the time, 16.
The woman claimed that Brand referred to her as “the child” and in hindsight, realised that what he did to her during their three-month long relationship constituted grooming.
The woman said that Brand, who was at the time a radio presenter for BBC Radio 6 Music and host of Big Brother’s Big Mouth — approached her while she was shopping and asked her out on a date, insisting she wear the dress she’d just purchased to the date.
During the date, the woman claims that Brand asked her to confirm her age. Over the next three months, the woman said that Brand sent a car to her school to take her out of class, told her what to tell her parents to keep the relationship a secret, and asked her to save his name as “Carly” in her phone.
“Russell engaged in the behaviours of a groomer, looking back, but I didn’t even know what that was then, or what that looked like,” she told the Times.
During his time as a presenter on BBC Radio 6 Music, Brand allegedly undressed in the studio while working on the show.
In 2020, the woman reached out to Brand’s literary agent at the time, Tavistock Wood, and said a lawyer representing the comedian denied the allegations and accused her of seeking money.
In the last few days, Tavistock Wood has terminated all dealings with Brand. Wood released a statement through the PA news agency, saying “Russell Brand categorically and vehemently denied the allegation made in 2020, but we now believe we were horribly misled by him. TW has terminated all professional ties to Brand.”
The second accuser, Jordan Martin, said that Brand was sexually and emotionally abusive during their six-month relationship in 2007.
Martin self-published a book, “Knot: Entanglement with a Celebrity: a memoir by a woman” in 2014, where she recounted an incident where Brand assaulted her at the Lowry hotel in Manchester. Though she declined to be interviewed by the Sunday Times reporters, she told them she stood by her account.
A third woman alleges that she was raped by Brand at his Los Angeles home in July 2012.
She went to the Rape Treatment Centre to be treated after the assault, and received therapy treatment for five months.
Medical records have been cited by the Sunday Times, showing the woman had considered taking legal action against Brand, but eventually decided against it.
A fourth woman, who had worked with Brand in a professional capacity, said that she was assaulted at his home in LA in 2013.
The woman claims that Brand threatened her with legal action if she told anyone about the incident, and said she feared retribution if she spoke out.
Brand’s denial
The night before these allegations were published, Brand, who has spent the last few years expanding his influence as a political commentator and wellness guru, posted a video on his socials, denying all the allegations and calling them a “coordinated attack”.
“Amidst this litany of astonishing, rather baroque attacks are some very serious allegations that I absolutely refute,” he told his fans.
He said that his relationships have been “always consensual” and that he has been receiving letters from the media containing “a litany” of “aggressive attacks”.
“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,” he said.
Brand was given eight days to respond to the allegations before they were published, according to the Times. On the day before the news broke, he posted his response video.
The Metropolitan Police released a statement saying it was “aware of media reporting of a series of allegations of sexual assault”, though failed to identity the 48-year old celebrity by name.
“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,” a spokesperson said.
On the same day the allegations were published, Brand performed a comedy show at the Troubadour Wembley Park Theatre in north-west London.
During the hour-long set, Brand told audiences, “There are obviously some things that I absolutely cannot talk about and I appreciate that you will understand.”
A spokesman from Channel 4 told BBC News: “Channel 4 is appalled to learn of these deeply troubling allegations, including behaviour alleged to have taken place on programmes made for Channel 4 between 2004 and 2007.”
“We are determined to understand the full nature of what went on. We have carried out extensive document searches and have found no evidence to suggest the alleged incidents were brought to the attention of Channel 4.”
“We will continue to review this in light of any further information we receive, including the accounts of those affected individuals. We will be asking the production company who produced the programmes for Channel 4 to investigate these allegations and report their findings properly and satisfactorily to us.”
A BBC spokesman has also come out to say it has, “…over successive years, evolved its approach to how it manages talent and how it deals with complaints or issues raised.”
“We have clear expectations around conduct at work. These are set out in employment contracts, the BBC Values, the BBC code of conduct and the anti-bullying and harassment policy.”
“We will always listen to people if they come forward with any concerns, on any issue related to any individual working at the BBC, past or present.”
Brand kicked off his career as a stand-up comedian in the early 2000s before hosting television programs such as Big Brother’s Big Mouth and other shows across multiple networks including Channel 4, MTV, Radio X and the BBC.
His Hollywood profile escalated after he starred in films including Forgetting Sarah Marshall, Get Him To The Greek and Arthur. He has had relationships with several A-list celebrities, including Teresa Palmer, Jemima Goldsmith and was formerly married to pop star, Katy Perry.
Since 2017, he has been married to actor Laura Brand. The pair share two children.