Earlier in the year, famous actor-turned-podcaster Russell Brand was accused of multiple counts of sexual assault, and today he was granted bail by the UK court.
Russell Brand had a day in court on Friday. Brand’s appearance at London’s Westminster Magistrates’ Court is due to heinous accusations this year aimed at the Stay Free podcast host, and after his UK Court appearance, he was granted bail. Brand has been accused of multiple counts of sexual assault and rape, and in April, he was charged with the crimes by the UK Court (he has not been indicted). Accusations against Russell Brand have been ongoing, and he’s received complaints for up to two years prior to today’s appearance.
The charges levied at Brand came from accusations of rape, oral rape, indecent assault and two counts of sexual assault in cases related to four separate women between 1999 and 2005. Brand himself vehemently denied the accusations on his X (formerly Twitter) account in a video post titled “My Response”. Of the four women included in the charges, one of the women suggested they were 16 years old at the time of the assault, according to NBC (the age of consent in the UK is 16).
Brand stated, “I have never engaged in non-consensual activity,” adding, “I am now going to have the opportunity to defend these charges in court, and I’m incredibly grateful for that.” Brand’s full response to the April charges can be seen below.
Russell Brand is no stranger to speaking openly about topics related to his fame, often doing so on X and on his podcast, Stay Free with Russell Brand. Since launching the podcast, Brand has claimed to have converted to Christianity, and he doesn’t shy away from sharing his religious beliefs—and conspiracy theories—with his audience.
In a video posted to X in September 2023, Brand said, “These allegations pertain to the time when I was working in the mainstream, when I was in the newspapers all the time, when I was in the movies,” adding, “And as I’ve written about extensively in my books, I was very, very promiscuous.” It is important to note that this is not the end of the legal proceedings. Russell Brand has not been indicted by any court in connection with the allegations.
Russell Brand also stated, “The relationships I had were very, absolutely, always consensual,” and appears to believe there is an agenda behind the allegations made against him. We will continue to cover the story as it works its way through the courts and more information is released.
