Russell Brand denies rape accusations in statement

On Saturday 16 September, Channel 4 Dispatches released a documentary that followed their investigation into Russell Brand's treatment of women. Over the last 12 months, Channel 4, The Times and the Sunday Times have been studying the 48-year-old's crude behaviour.

In the documentary, four women share their experience with Brand's controversial behaviours.

The documentary highlights the controversial behaviours of Brand throughout his career, including his admission to being a nymphomaniac in 2010.

On Friday 15 September, Russell Brand responded to the allegations with complete denial.

In a statement posted on the social platforms Instagram and YouTube, Brand said: "I have received two extremely disturbing letters, a letter and an email. One from a mainstream media TV company and one from a newspaper listing a litany of extremely egregious and aggressive attacks, as well as some pretty stupid stuff like my community festival should be stopped, that I shouldn't be able to attack mainstream media narratives on this channel. But amidst this litany of astonishing rather baroque attacks are some very serious allegations that I absolutely refute."

The comedian continued to declare: "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, and as I've written about extensively in my books, I was very, very promiscuous."

More than a decade ago, the comedian admitted to being a nymphomaniac. While speaking to reporters about being unable to control his sexual compulsion, Brand revealed: "I was having sex with different women three, four, five times a day. It was bacchanalian in Ireland, nine in one evening."

The comedian, who has also worked as an actor, author and presenter, also revealed that he would use his fame to satisfy his sexual desires.

Brand said: "The fame and kind of will that I had meant that, instead of taking someone for a date and then going to the pictures and then calling them, I was able to go, 'Let's do sex right now!'"

In his statement that pleaded his innocence, Brand also questioned the intention of the media.

He explained: "Now during that time of promiscuity, the relationships I had were absolutely, always consensual. I was always transparent about that then, almost too transparent, and I'm being transparent about it now as well, and to see that transparency metastasised into something criminal, that I absolutely deny, makes me question, is there another agenda at play?"

Brand followed his rhetoric with reference to Joe Rogan, a commentator and podcaster, who championed the deworming veterinary drug ivermectin as a COVID-19 treatment.

The 48-year-old said: "Like with Joe Rogan when he dared to take a medicine that the mainstream media didn't approve of, and we saw a spate of headlines from media outlets across the world, using the same language."

While urging his fans to stick by him, and to reassert his alleged innocence, Brand concluded: "I don't mind them using my books and my stand up to talk about my promiscuous, consensual conduct in the past, what I seriously refute are these very very serious criminal allegations."

In response to Brand's statement that refuses the claims, comedian and actress Rosie Holt wrote on X: "I guess the lesson is kids, if sexual misconduct rumours have been swimming about you for ages, set up a cult on YouTube to support you when the allegations become public."

The infamous Andrew Tate jumped to Brand's defence as he wrote "Yep!" to former Fox News host Tucker Carlson's post on X.

The post read: "Criticize the drug companies, question the war in Ukraine, and you can be pretty sure this is going to happen."

The Sunday Times recently revealed that the team of reporters who worked on the documentary have private emails and text messages that support the allegations. The reporters have also viewed medical and therapists' notes and submitted freedom of information requests.