Russell Brand is facing a "significant" custodial sentence, and prominent Labour figures who once championed him are now staying silent, according to a commentary in the Daily Express.
The article, written by Harvey Jones, recalls how the comedian was once celebrated by the Left, including Prime Minister Andy Burnham and Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband, who were "all too happy to act like his mate" in the past. Now, with Brand convicted, they are behaving "as if they'd barely heard of him."
Past Support From Labour Figures
The piece lists Labour Education Secretary Lucy Powell, former Labour adviser Alastair Campbell, and left-wing firebrand Owen Jones among those who got "far too close to Brand." It also mentions The Guardian, the New Statesman, and the BBC for giving him a "priceless public platform."
In 2014, Burnham, then shadow health secretary, defended Brand against allegations of hypocrisy over his tax arrangements, tweeting: "Keep going @rustyrockets." Burnham also praised a Brand article about Margaret Thatcher as the "best thing ever written by a West Ham fan."
Miliband Interview and Public Behaviour
In 2015, Miliband agreed to be interviewed by Brand at his London penthouse, with Powell helping to arrange it. Campbell declared: "I, for one, was glad when I heard Ed Miliband had said yes." Owen Jones also wrote that "Russell Brand matters," urging Miliband to embrace the comedian.
Jones notes that nobody is suggesting they knew about the crimes for which Brand has now been convicted. Miliband was in two minds about the interview but felt pushed into it, while Burnham "just wants to be everybody's mate."
The article highlights Brand's public behaviour, including a 2007 stand-up joke about not getting "bogged down in things like age, race or whether or not they're awake" when selecting women, and a 2013 joke about rape. His 2007 memoir, My Booky Wook, described spitting on women and compiling a "victims list."
Sachsgate and Celebrity Friends
The piece also recalls the 2008 Sachsgate scandal, when Brand and Jonathan Ross left obscene messages for Fawlty Towers actor Andrew Sachs. The BBC later apologised and suspended Ross for three months. David Walliams, Noel Gallagher, and Noel Fielding were among Brand's famous friends.
Jones concludes that The Guardian and New Statesman gave Brand a platform, credibility, and an audience, but questions whether it will destroy their reputations. "Well now they've had their pants pulled down by Russell Brand," he writes.
