A court has heard that comedian Russell Brand turned into a "wide-eyed maniac" as he allegedly tried to drag a woman into an MTV toilet. The alleged victim claims Brand only let her go because he "realised I was stronger than he thought I was".
Brand is on trial at Southwark Crown Court accused of three counts of rape, three counts of sexual assault, and one charge of indecent assault. He has pleaded not guilty to all charges, which involve six women and are alleged to have taken place between 1999 and 2009.
Woman's account of the alleged incident
Brand's second accuser, who alleges she was indecently assaulted while working at MTV in 2001, told the court she had "never met him before" their first encounter but recognised him "straight away". She said: "He was quite a famous name, he was the flagship presenter on MTV at the time so pretty well known."
The woman told the jury she remembered the meeting because Brand was wearing a distinctive "I am Spartacus" T-shirt. "I noticed straight away he was wearing a distinctive T-shirt that I liked," she said. "It was white and it had red writing that said 'I am Spartacus'."
The alleged victim claimed things took a turn when Brand allegedly had a "forceful grip" as he tried to drag her into an MTV toilet. "He asked me if there were bathrooms on this floor," the court heard. "I said yes, and pointed him in the direction."
Alleged struggle and reaction
She continued: "I said I'm going that way, I could show you where they are. He was walking down and I pointed to the toilet and said 'there you go'. From there, his manner changed. He grabbed my forearm and he was leaning into the door. It was quite forceful, the grip. It took me unawares, I wasn't expecting that."
The woman claimed Brand was "pleading" for her to join him in the toilet. She told the court: "He grabbed me by the arm and started to pull me in, saying 'come on, come in with me'. It was a long time ago, but it was almost like pleading 'go on, come in'." Asked how hard she had been pulled, she replied: "Hard."
Describing the allegation further, the woman said: "He was trying to pull me into the bathroom and I was trying to pull myself away. I said to him 'what are you doing? Are you mad? Let me go.' Then he started to plead, almost 'go on, go on, come in'."
Aftermath and trial continues
She added: "He had what I would call a wild look in his eyes. I might have called him an idiot." The alleged victim said Brand turned into a "wide-eyed maniac trying to pull me into the toilet". The woman claimed the alleged incident lasted around 20 seconds, adding: "It was a very short exchange."
Asked how she felt after the alleged attack, she said: "Bewildered, confused, 'what the hell happened there?' I was confused that actually just happened – anyone would be."
The woman told the court she did not tell her employer because she was "scared" but decided to go to police in 2023 because it was "the right thing to do". She rejected suggestions that Brand had been seeking a consensual encounter and stopped when it was clear that she did not want it. She told the court: "You don't drag someone by the arm, not in my world anyway. You don't grip someone to drag them in, that's not consensual."
She claimed that she "wrenched" herself out of Brand's grip as he "realised I was stronger than he thought I was". The woman added that the "intent was there" and claimed the incident "could have been very different". The trial continues.
