Comedian Russell Brand, once one of Britain’s most high-profile broadcasters and star of several Hollywood movies, faces a lengthy jail term after being convicted in a London court on Thursday of raping a woman and sexually assaulting three more.
Prosecutors said Brand, the former husband of US pop singer Katy Perry, was obsessed with sex and used women to satisfy his own desires. One victim said he treated her “like an animal”.
Funny and charming when he wanted to be, but also ruthless, calculating and manipulative, the 51-year-old was interested only in getting what he wanted from women, prosecutors told jurors at Southwark Crown Court.
“The evidence showed Brand to be a calculated sexual predator, using his growing fame and power to create situations in which he could pursue women sexually, regardless of what they wanted,” senior Crown prosecutor David Roberts said outside court.
Brand now faces jail and potentially further action as police said he was still under investigation for two other alleged rapes, one involving a then 16-year-old girl.
Brand denied the charges
Brand, known for his loquacious manner and flamboyant appearance, had denied all the charges and ever having non-consensual sex, saying the incidents, which dated back more than 20 years, had either been consensual, reinvented or re-imagined.
He acknowledged in evidence he had dedicated a lot of his life to “reckless philandering and idiocy” but said sexual consent was fundamental.
But, following a four-week trial, the jury found him guilty of rape and three sexual assaults committed between 2004 and 2009. He was acquitted of two other rape charges and an attempted indecent assault.
Judge Joel Bennathan said Brand, who was refused bail, would be sentenced on Monday and faced a lengthy prison term.
Brand is one of the most prominent celebrities in Britain convicted of sex offences in recent times, after BBC newsreader Huw Edwards admitted making indecent pictures of children two years ago, and entertainer Rolf Harris was found guilty of assaulting young girls in 2014.
The case has again raised questions about how the entertainment industry deals with complaints about its stars, and Detective Inspector Laura Nelson, who headed the investigation, said she expected other women to come forward.
“I think there are other victims out there and if they want to report that to us, then we’ll of course take it seriously,” she told Reuters.
Complainants described maniacal demeanour
Prosecutors had said Brand’s offending spanned the years in which he rose from performing stand-up comedy in small venues to becoming a television presenter and Hollywood film star.
The court heard tearful and forceful testimony from the six complainants, who are all entitled to lifelong anonymity.
None of the women knew one another but all came forward to police in the wake of a TV documentary and press reports in 2023 in which other women made separate allegations against Brand. Those women were not involved in this criminal trial.
Giving evidence, the complainants described a sudden change in Brand’s demeanour during their encounters, saying he became wide-eyed and maniacal.
One woman said that less than a minute after she met him at a party in a bar, he had grabbed her breasts.
Another victim, a self-described fan of Brand, said she had gone to his home for consensual sex, but he had then removed a condom and anally raped her. Afterwards, he had ordered her to clean up the bloody mess on the sheets.
Throughout his career, Brand has been open about his battles with drugs and sex addiction, writing about both in his 2007 autobiography My Booky Wook.
One witness, a former friend with whom Brand later lived, told the court Brand had bragged that he wanted to sleep with 5,000 women.
Brand’s former personal assistant, Helen Berger, who worked for him from 2006 to 2007, said he had “an insane sexual appetite”.
“He never seemed happy after sex, more so depressed,” she said in a witness statement.
Police say conviction sends clear message
Brand rose to prominence in Britain by hosting a spin-off show to ‘Big Brother’ on Channel 4.
During the 2000s, he became a regular fixture on television and radio, and went on to star in a number of films. In 2010, he married Perry, a relationship that, he told the court, brought him “staggering fame”. The marriage ended after 14 months.
Nelson said Perry had not been approached as a potential witness, but said she could always come to the police if she had any information.
In subsequent years, Brand moved away from mainstream TV and film work, and built a large social media following as an anti-establishment commentator, discussing politics, spirituality and religion. He was baptised as a Christian in 2024, after the allegations first became public.
“I hope this conviction sends a clear message that no one is above the law, no matter how famous or powerful they may be,” Detective Superintendent Andy Furphy from London police said.
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