The comedian and writer Katy Brand has celebrated the guilty verdict in the Russell Brand rape trial – more than a year after she revealed how his behaviour was enabled by TV producers and media power players at the peak of his career.
On Thursday (5 November), the actor and comedian, 51, was found guilty of one count of rape and three counts of sexual assault against four women following a four-week trial at Southwark Crown Court.
The trial heard the star treated women as “disposable” and “amusements” to fill his voracious sexual appetite in a string of attacks between 2004 and 2009, by which time he had achieved “staggering fame”.
Katy Brand, who is of no relation to the guilty star, last year republished an old Instagram post in which she spoke of Russell Brand’s dominance in the comedy scene for years, despite rumours circulating in the industry of his predation.
“If you would like to know how men like Russell Brand are able to last so long in the entertainment business without anyone doing anything, here’s just one experience I had,” Katy Brand wrote on her Instagram. “I wrote a TV comedy show in 2019. They wanted to cast Russell Brand. I asked if they had done due diligence on him because there were a lot of allegations at the time. The producer made an awkward noise and said, ‘oh that’s all rather unpleasant to think about isn’t it’, and then told me their CEO, a very powerful media figure, was taking Brand out for lunch that week anyway to persuade him to do it.”
She continued: “I said I would quit if he was cast. Brand said no, so they simply abandoned the whole thing anyway. That’s how it happens. Because they don’t care until they are forced to care. Solidarity with all the victims. Please keep speaking out.”
In the wake of the Brand guilty verdict this week, Katy Brand has now posted a further comment on her Instagram in which she expressed admiration for his accusers and once again condemned the industry for protecting him for so long.
“Russell Brand guilty. Good,” Brand wrote. “It is hard to convey how all powerful this piece of s*** was for a while. He dominated British TV and entertainment for a very long time. So many meetings I had where I pitched shows and was told there needed to be a part for him or they wouldn’t be interested.
“Practically every pitch meeting available was to one of his enablers for a while. So many women abused. So many women held back. All my admiration for his accusers. F*** him forever and ever. Amen.”
Russell Brand was formerly one of Britain’s biggest stars, finding fame as a stand-up comedian and television presenter, before leaping to America, where he starred in blockbuster comedy movies including Get Him to the Greek and a remake of Dudley Moore’s Arthur. In recent years he had rebranded as a YouTuber, conspiracy theorist and Christian theologist, having been baptised in the River Thames in 2024 by the adventurer Bear Grylls.
He is currently under investigation for two more alleged rapes, including of a 16-year-old schoolgirl, and further victims could still come forward, police have warned following his conviction.
One of the allegations under investigation was featured in a 2023 Channel 4 Dispatches documentary, court documents have revealed. The woman alleges she was 16 when Brand sent a car to collect her from school for sexual encounters. Brand has been interviewed under caution and files have been passed to the Crown Prosecution Service in relation to both complainants.
