Nick Cave has delivered a scathing assessment of Russell Brand’s latest book, How To Become a Christian in 7 Days.
The 68-year-old Australian musician, who is well known for dealing with religious themes in his work, was asked about Brand’s book in the latest installment of his Red Hand Files email.
He replied simply: “Good for atheism.”
Brand has been widely ridiculed online in the past week after the former comedian spent over 90 seconds attempting and failing to find a Bible passage he read in court while promoting his book on Piers Morgan Uncensored.
He will face trial later this year over allegations of rape and sexual assault made against him by six women. He denies all the charges, which date from 1999 to 2009.
While appearing on Morgan’s YouTube show on April 24, Brand — who became a right-wing podcaster in 2021 and a Christian last year — was asked about taking a Bible into his court hearing in February. The religious text was confiscated by the dock officer after he began reading it in a London courthouse.
“Can I go back to asking you a question about your Bible?” Morgan asked Brand. “Is that the one you took into court? What was your thinking of taking it into court and you were seen looking at some passages – what were the relevant passages?”
“It was this from Isaiah,” he said, before looking through his Bible for over 90 seconds of excruciating silence.
After almost two minutes of searching in silence while Morgan shot awkward looks at the camera, Brand finally gave up, admitting: “I can’t actually find the verse that I had that day but this is good enough. This is from Isaiah 12.”
The moment has been mocked by viewers since the interview aired, with one writing on X: “This is so painful to watch. Piers Morgan asked Russell Brand to read the passages that were relevant to him when he brought his Bible into court.”
Another described it as “one of the most painfully awkward exchanges” of the week, while another tweeted: “There should be a class act lawsuit against Russell Brand for making anyone suffer through this awkward moment. 2 mins of my life I will never get back.”
In the interview, Brand spoke about his prior relationship with a 16-year-old girl, saying that he now believes his actions, while legal, were “morally and spiritually wrong.”
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