Russell Brand's former partner Jemima Goldsmith has said she once had to call police to have him removed from her house during what she describes as a "violent incident" in 2014.
In a post on X on Monday, the television producer said she had her own experience of Brand's "violence, coercive control and abuse". She said she was "in awe of the courageous women who came forward at Brand's trial" and confirmed she had assisted journalists who exposed him.
Statement after sentencing
Goldsmith, 52, wrote that she was "glad and relieved" Brand had "finally faced justice" after he was imprisoned for raping a fan and sexually assaulting three television and radio workers.
She said: "I am and have always been strongly and unequivocally on the side of all of Brand's victims. I am in awe of the courageous women who came forward at Brand's trial, told their stories, testified and ensured justice was done. I have had my own personal experience of his violence, coercive control and abuse. I had to call the police to have him removed from my house in 2014 during a violent incident."
Reasons for not pressing charges
Goldsmith said she decided against pressing charges or going public because of concerns over the effect of media scrutiny on her children. She added: "I have neither seen nor spoken to Brand since that period in 2014. Whilst my pain in relation to this, pales in comparison to what the women have testified in court have suffered, this was a difficult period in my life which has had a lasting impact."
She said she assisted journalists Ros Urwin, Louisa Compton and Dorothy Byrne over several years, and would have testified in court about Brand's abusiveness if the newspaper that published the victims' accounts were sued.
Relationship and legal history
Brand and Goldsmith are understood to have been in a relationship for a year in 2014. Goldsmith referenced a 2015 High Court harassment case involving a masseuse, Szilvia Berki, who claimed Brand and Goldsmith treated her "like a prostitute" and alleged she was assaulted by Brand.
Police examined the alleged incident but found insufficient evidence to proceed. Goldsmith said she was present throughout Brand and Berki's time together and saw nothing untoward, noting that Brand was later found guilty of sexually assaulting other women and later physically assaulted her.
Goldsmith said she had no further contact with Brand after 2014 but agreed to his lawyer's proposal for a harassment order.
