Russell Brand trial hears witness was ‘appalled’ by MTV rehiring
A woman whose recorded police interview was played at Southwark Crown Court said she avoided Brand at work after MTV rehired him as a presenter around 2006.
A witness in Russell Brand’s trial said she was ‘absolutely appalled’ when MTV rehired him as a presenter around 2006, while she still worked there. Her recorded police interview was played at Southwark Crown Court in London on Monday, 19 October. She said she then avoided Brand at work. Brand denies the charges against him.
What the witness said about MTV
The woman said she refused to go near Brand or attend parties when she knew he was in the building. ‘If I knew where he was, I would just avoid,’ she said in the interview, according to the Evening Standard. She said she saw him in the distance a couple of times and thought he probably would not recognise her.
Her account followed an alleged incident at a Soho bar in 2004. The Evening Standard reported that she accused Brand of groping her after a brief conversation and forcing her into oral sex in a toilet. Those allegations are before the court; they are not findings of fact.
The witness said she told an MTV producer friend a few days later that Brand had tried to sexually assault her. Recalling the conversation, she said she described him as a ‘sexual predator’ so the friend would know what she was alleging, according to the Evening Standard. Her account of that conversation was part of the police interview played in court.
Why she said she went to police years later
She said she did not report the alleged assault to police at the time because she believed it would be her word against his. She also referred to what she called ‘those laddish culture times’. The Evening Standard reported that she came forward almost 20 years later after seeing allegations made by other women about Brand in a 2023 documentary.
The witness said she had been excited to meet Brand at the party because she knew his television work and liked his humour. Describing her response after the alleged incident, she said she felt ashamed and tried to change how she thought about it so she would not see herself as a victim.
Brand faces three charges of rape, three counts of sexual assault and one count of indecent assault. He has pleaded not guilty to all seven charges and says all his sexual encounters were consensual. The trial was continuing at Southwark Crown Court on 19 October.
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Sources and context
- Russell Brand rape accuser ‘appalled’ when star rehired as TV presenterEvening Standard (Tristan Kirk; PA Wire photo credits are not the report’s byline)
- Russell Brand rape trial live: Woman gives evidence to courtDaily Mail (Mark Duell, Rebecca Camber and Liz Hull)
AI-assisted article checked against the listed sources. NewsJaws did not conduct interviews or attend the reported events.