Entertainmentupdated 1h ago2 min read
MapRussell Brand Tells Southwark Crown Court Documentary Allegations Devastated Him
“he did not call Channel 4’s Russell Brand: In Plain Sight a ‘documentary.’”
“Asked by Winter what impact the documentary had had on his friends”
Map: © OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL · Cropped for layout
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The indecent assault charge was withdrawn and replaced with attempted sexual assault. Brand testified that a documentary alleging his behaviour had a devastating impact on him.
Brand calls documentary devastating
Russell Brand told Southwark Crown Court in London that a documentary making allegations about his behaviour had a "devastating" effect on him, and he said it made friends and colleagues turn against him. Brand, 51, denied all charges as his defence case got under way, and he replied "no" loudly towards the jury after each question from defence barrister Ian Winter KC. Brand said he had "devoted myself to these matters" and told the court, "My entire life has been consumed by these allegations."
Brand also said he was told he could not stay with his son at Great Ormond Street hospital in London when the child was having open heart surgery, following the documentary and a newspaper investigation. Brand told the court, "Consent is fundamental, essential, necessary and indeed many ways more important that sex itself," as the trial continued.
No witnesses, bargepole
Brand said he had not been able to persuade any friend or acquaintance who might have been able to give evidence on his behalf to appear in court. Ian Winter KC asked whether those people would "touch you with a bargepole," and Brand replied "No." Brand told the court he was not allowed to visit his son at Great Ormond Street hospital in London, and he said the reason given to his wife Laura and him was that "due to the material that had been published in the public eye they had to bar my attendance and presence."
Brand also told the court that he had "devoted myself to these matters" and that his "entire life has been consumed by these allegations," as he continued to deny the accusations. The trial continued at Southwark Crown Court as Brand gave evidence on Wednesday morning.
Charges, courtroom details
Brand faced three counts of rape, three counts of sexual assault, and one charge of attempted indecent assault, and he denied all the charges as allegations made by six female complainants spanned a 10-year period between 1999 and 2009. The BBC said Brand was asked about a documentary that aired in 2023, and Brand said it was "devastating" as Winter questioned whether he could persuade potential witnesses to appear. Sky News described Winter asking Brand about what he might have said to the third complainant, and Sky News said Brand described her as "Lithe, elfin, pixieish, energetic" and "wide-eyed, enthusiastic, flirty."
Sky News also said Winter asked whether grabbing a woman’s breasts was intended to turn her on, and Brand replied, "Of course not, it's disgusting behaviour," as he continued to deny the allegations. The Guardian said Winter asked Brand about a woman who alleged he grabbed her breasts before pulling her into a toilet at a bar in Soho and orally raped her in 2004, as the trial continued.