Several comedians publicly flagged Russell Brand's behaviour long before he was convicted of rape and sexual assault. The former stand-up comedian and Hollywood actor now faces 10 years and six months in prison.
During the trial, his victims told the court how he had forced them into sexual activity, sometimes within seconds of first meeting, using his fame to pursue a goal of sex with 5,000 women.
Comedians Who Spoke Out Early
In 2008, comedian Stewart Lee roasted Brand in a parody show, mocking his habit of giving his penis childish names. Lee said: "The way Russell Brand thinks up cutesy, diminutive Mr Men names for his own penis, makes him sound like a child molester, trying to convince himself, to allow himself, to molest himself."
Lee also joked about Brand's reaction to racism on Big Brother, though lawyers for the DVD reportedly said the parody was so close to Brand's actual speech it might be accused of misrepresentation rather than satire.
Katherine Ryan told Louis Theroux in 2018 that she had informed Brand to his face that he was a predator. She described him as a "perpetrator of a sexual assault" and called the conversation a "litigious minefield", adding that it was an "open secret" that Brand was a sexual predator.
On-Air Comments and Later Regret
A 2007 clip from the Big Fat Quiz of the Year resurfaced after Brand's convictions. In it, Jonathan Ross joked about placing singer Lily Allen, then 21, near "two of the best-known cocksmen in the business" - Noel Fielding and Brand. Fielding responded: "How dare you? We're not rapists."
Allen later told Grazia in 2023: "I laugh along with it. In retrospect, that's really horrendous. It makes me uncomfortable, but I don't think I felt that at the time, because it was the culture."
Scottish comedian Daniel Sloss went on the record in 2023, becoming the only comic to publicly support Brand's accusers by name in a Channel 4 documentary. He later said the rumours surrounding Brand were nothing compared to what survivors went through.
Early Career Concerns
Shappi Khorsandi, who worked with Brand early in his career, questioned his behaviour immediately. She told Channel 4 about an occasion at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe when Brand initially said a room would cost her nothing, then mentioned it would be £500 each. When she declined, he "had a go" at her.
Khorsandi also told the Russell Brand on Trial podcast about a woman who said Brand had raped her. She said: "What he regards as consent isn't consent in the law."
