Russell Brand is facing a total of seven charges including rape and sexual assault after being accused by six women of alleged crimes spanning ten years. The 51-year-old stands accused of groping women and forcing them into sexual acts, in allegations from 1999 to 2009.
Brand faces three allegations of rape, three counts of sexual assault and one allegation of indecent assault. He denies all the charges.
Background and career
The Essex-born entertainer began his career as a stand-up comedian, and his rise to fame accelerated when he was chosen to present Big Brother spin-off shows on Channel 4.
He became one of Britain's most recognisable comedians during the 2000s, presenting the 2007 Brit Awards, Comic Relief and the MTV Music Video Awards, as well as hosting his own programme on BBC Radio 2.
He subsequently made the transition into Hollywood films, taking on roles including an Arthur remake, comedy Get Him To The Greek, and the 2012 musical comedy Rock Of Ages. In recent years, he has transitioned into podcasting and online content creation, and currently lives in Florida.
Court proceedings
A jury was selected at Southwark Crown Court over two days on Monday and Tuesday this week, and prosecutor Riel Karmy-Jones KC has now opened the case against Brand.
She told the court: "He was ruthless, he was calculating, he was manipulative, and the prosecution say he was a sexual predator."
Previous court hearings have revealed that Brand stands accused of raping a woman in a hotel room at the Labour Party conference in Bournemouth in 1999. It is alleged he grabbed a TV worker's breasts and forced her into a sex act in a toilet, and is further accused of kissing and groping a radio station worker.
The allegations
The first alleged rape is said to have taken place in Bournemouth in 1999. A woman allegedly emerged from the bathroom in her hotel room to discover Brand 'partially undressed' and 'prancing' around the room, before he is alleged to have raped her.
The second alleged offence, which relates to indecent assault, concerns an MTV worker in 2001. Brand is alleged to have grabbed the woman before attempting to persuade her to join him in the toilets.
A third woman alleged oral rape against Brand in a toilet in Soho in 2004. The woman also claims Brand sexually assaulted her by squeezing her breasts.
The fourth alleged victim says an incident took place in 2004 or 2005 at a radio station. Ms Karmy-Jones told the court Brand is claimed to have pushed the woman against a wall before kissing her 'sloppily and aggressively'.
A fifth alleged victim was a former fan who met Brand after attending his comedy show at the Hammersmith Apollo in London with a friend in 2009. She was invited backstage for drinks where she performed oral sex on Brand during a threesome with another woman. The following day Brand invited her to his home address where they had consensual sex. It is alleged that afterwards he raped her.
The sixth and final alleged victim claims she was assaulted in 2009 while Brand was filming for a Channel 4 project.
Brand has had the support of his wife Laura Gallacher throughout the court proceedings.
