Russell Brand pleads not guilty to additional rape and sexual assault charges
russell brand, the 50-year-old broadcaster, actor and media personality, entered not guilty pleas to two further sexual offence charges at Southwark Crown Court in London. The new allegations, and the scheduling of case-management and trial dates, extend an existing criminal case that the court will now consider joining or keeping separate.
Court appearance in London and the fresh pleas
Brand appeared at Southwark Crown Court on Tuesday to enter not guilty pleas to one count of rape and one count of sexual assault. The two alleged offences are said to have taken place in the city in 2009 and relate to two women. He spoke from the dock to confirm his name and the pleas, and was bailed to appear at the same court at a date to be fixed.
Russell Brand's wider charge history and pending trial dates
These two charges were added to an existing set of allegations. Brand had previously pleaded not guilty to two counts of rape, one count of indecent assault and two counts of sexual assault in relation to alleged offences in London and Bournemouth from 1999 to 2005 involving four women. He was charged in December with the two latest counts, and a trial has been scheduled for June to hear the original charges. With the fresh pleas, he has now pleaded not guilty to seven charges in total and remains due to stand trial later this year in relation to the five original charges.
Judges, hearings and legal remarks
Two judges made procedural comments at the brief hearings. Recorder Andrew Baumgartner said there would be a case management hearing in March. Separately, Mr Justice Bennathan said there would be a further case management hearing in March and told Brand: “Mr Brand I’m sure you’ve heard everything we’ve been talking about. I will renew your bail. ” The judge reminded Brand of his bail conditions; Brand replied, “Yes, your lordship. ” Brand's lawyer told the court that his client needed more time to address the further allegations, and the court will hold a hearing to decide whether the new allegations should be joined to the existing case.
Arrival, courtroom behaviour and departure from court
Witnesses noted Brand's appearance at court. He arrived wearing a fedora-style hat, sunglasses and a patterned shirt described variously as leopard or tiger print, with several buttons undone, and a dark jacket on one account. He entered the glass-fronted dock wearing dangling necklaces and a light-coloured monogrammed fedora hat, carrying a copy of the Bible with colourful post-it notes and bookmarked pages. Before the hearing started he removed his hat and the Bible was taken from him by a dock officer. Asked how he was feeling ahead of the hearing, he replied, “Blessed. ” As he left the courtroom he put on his sunglasses, clutched the Bible and left with his legal team and four men who had been sitting in the public gallery; he was later picked up in a black Mercedes. Outside the building there was a brief scuffle between his security and a cameraman.
Origins of the investigation and Brand's public response, plus background
Detectives began investigating allegations into Brand following media reporting in 2023. Brand has said publicly that he denied the claims before publication, posting a video the night before in which he said all of his relationships had been consensual and accused the media of a “coordinated attack. ”
Born in Essex, Brand rose to fame as a stand-up comedian and became a household name as host of TV shows such as Big Brother's Big Mouth and Big Brother: Celebrity Hijack in the 2000s. He presented a radio show between 2006 and 2008 and went on to act in films including Forgetting Sarah Marshall and Get Him to the Greek. In his personal life he was married to the US pop singer Katy Perry from 2010 to 2012; he is now married to Laura Gallacher, the sister of a television presenter named Kirsty, and the couple have three children.
