Russell Brand tells trial sexual consent is 'fundamental'

Russell Brand told jurors that sexual consent was “fundamental” as he gave evidence on Wednesday at his trial on charges including rape and sexual assault. The entertainer denied committing any of the offences as his defence case began at Southwark Crown Court in London.

Brand, 51, faces three counts of rape, three counts of sexual assault and one count of attempted indecent assault. The allegations involve six women and concern events between 1999 and 2009. He has pleaded not guilty to every charge.

His barrister, Ian Winter KC, took him through the allegations individually, asking whether he had committed the offences. Brand repeatedly answered no, rejecting accusations that he had forced women into sexual activity. Asked about consent, he described it as essential and, in many ways, more important than sex itself.

The testimony brought Brand’s account directly before the jury as the defence responded to the prosecution case. According to Sky News, he spent more than four hours answering questions from his own lawyer and being cross-examined by prosecutor Riel Karmy-Jones KC. Consent and his recollection of the encounters were central to the questioning.

Under cross-examination, Brand acknowledged that he had been obsessed with sex as a younger man. He also accepted that he had allowed his growing fame to help him obtain sexual access and said that had been wrong. But he rejected the suggestion that he had been prepared to pursue sex at any cost.

Karmy-Jones challenged differences between Brand’s previous statements to police and his evidence in court. He acknowledged inconsistencies in some details, saying his recollection had developed as he revisited the events. He described the allegations and the process of addressing them as deeply traumatic.

Questioned about an alleged encounter at MTV in 2001, Brand said he did not remember the incident in which a worker accused him of trying to drag her into a toilet. He nevertheless denied that he would have been seeking non-consensual sex. He also rejected an allegation that he had kissed and groped a woman at Capital Radio studios.

Brand told the court that the public allegations had severely affected his relationships with friends and former colleagues. Asked by Winter whether he had persuaded anyone with relevant evidence to testify on his behalf, he said he had not. His answers referred to the aftermath of newspaper reporting and a Channel 4 documentary in 2023.

Towards the end of his evidence, Brand said he understood consent to be an ongoing process that could be withdrawn at any point. He maintained his denials when questioned again about the charges. The court has not reached verdicts on the allegations.

The defence case was due to continue when proceedings resumed the following morning. Sky News reported that, after Brand completed his testimony, the judge told jurors he expected them to begin deliberating on their verdicts the following Tuesday.