Russell Brand has told police that he led a “very promiscuous” life and maintained that his past sexual encounters were consensual, stating that these events have been “unfavourably reframed decades later.” The 51-year-old comedian is currently facing trial at Southwark Crown Court in London, where he denies seven offences against six women in allegations spanning 10 years from 1999. He denies all the charges.
During the trial, the jury heard statements Brand provided to police across four interviews held between November 2023 and July 2025. In these prepared statements, Brand consistently insisted he had “never engaged in any non-consensual sexual activity.” He attributed the allegations to “defamatory and fictitious” media coverage, specifically referencing joint reports by Channel 4, The Times, and the Sunday Times. Brand added: “On 16 September 2023, a defamatory and fictitious documentary was broadcast in conjunction with the publication of two national newspapers containing false, anonymised allegations which led to unprecedented media reporting.”
Regarding his lifestyle, Brand described his past behavior as being friendly and warm when engaging with the public. He admitted to having sexual encounters in numerous scenarios and locations, often with people he had just met. “I led a very promiscuous life in the past, which I have spent years openly denouncing,” he said in his first statement on 16 November 2023. He further explained that he frequently kissed hundreds of people during public events and press junkets, noting that these interactions were often recorded or photographed. He also acknowledged that he would sometimes ask casual partners to leave shortly after an encounter had ended.
Addressing a specific 2004 allegation involving an MTV worker—who claimed Brand touched her breasts before forcing her into a toilet and raping her—he stated he had no memory of meeting the woman. He asserted, “At no point would I have touched [her] breasts unless it was consensual,” adding that while he had engaged in consensual sex in toilet cubicles during parties, he had never forced anyone into a toilet or forced his penis into anyone’s mouth. In a statement on 14 December 2023, Brand said he did not remember the women who had come forward to accuse him, noting it was possible he had engaged in consensual sexual activity with them that had since been reimagined.
Brand, who appeared in court wearing a grey suit and a pale blue shirt, faces three counts of rape and three counts of sexual assault. An initial charge of indecent assault was amended to attempted indecent assault on Tuesday. Brand gave similar statements to police in his subsequent interviews on 17 January 2024 and 17 July 2025. In response to police questions after each statement, Brand said: “I have nothing further to add at this time.”
“Subsequently, both the media and the police publicly invited additional allegations to be made, which resulted in further encounters being invented or reimagined.”
“I have shared kisses with hundreds of members of the public during press events and photos of many such kisses, in front of hundreds of people, are available online. Everything I did in public once I was famous could be photographed or recorded and end up in the tabloids – I was aware of this.
