The conviction of Russell Brand for one rape and three sexual assaults on Thursday would never have happened were it not for the remarkable courage of his victims. There was no guarantee, before the trial, that he would be found guilty; two more rape charges and one of attempted indecent assault ended in acquittal. The women who testified about what Brand did to them between 2004 and 2009 are owed a debt of gratitude by everyone who believes that sexual predators should pay a price for their crimes, even when they are celebrities. On Monday, Brand will receive what the judge said would be a “significant” jail sentence.
The message sent by his rape conviction is particularly powerful. His sexual encounter with “Woman E”, who was 21 at the time, began as a consensual one, before he turned it into an anal rape that left her with psychological and physical injuries. A single case is unlikely to alter a culture of male sexual entitlement, in which it is viewed as acceptable to push women over boundaries that they do not want to cross. But the jury’s acceptance of her version of events – which was supported by multiple witnesses – can still be viewed as a step forward. Far too many women are disbelieved, or not taken seriously, when they make allegations about abuse by partners.
Nearly 10 years after the #MeToo movement, serious problems in the entertainment industries around sexual misconduct and abuse of power – as well as insecure working conditions that make it hard for junior colleagues to speak out – are widely recognised. Brand, who was a highly in-demand media figure from about 2007, picked “Woman E” out of an audience, while one of the sexual assaults he was convicted of took place in Choice FM’s studios, and another of his victims was a Channel 4 colleague. When he initiated a relationship with “Alice” (a pseudonym), she was a 16-year-old schoolgirl and he was on the verge of stardom (his alleged conduct towards her has not led to criminal charges, but was featured in the 2023 Dispatches programme that prompted the police investigation).
Internal reviews led to apologies from the BBC and Channel 4, after the revelations on Dispatches and in the Times and Sunday Times. But it would be naive to claim that the culture that enabled Brand, who was also once a Guardian sports columnist, is no more. His particular shapeshifting, from outrageous Essex boy to anti-establishment commentator to born-again Christian, would be unlikely to fool people a second time. But as the times change, so do the ruses and roles that predators adopt. It is frankly disturbing to be reminded now of just how brazen Brand was about his vicious behaviour (spitting on, choking and humiliating women) in his bestselling memoirs and on the radio. On Thursday, Pan Macmillan announced that it would stop publishing his books – including a British Book Awards biography of the year.
Two further rape complaints are being examined by police. Brand’s barrister, Ian Winter KC, has referred himself to the Bar Standards Board after an extraordinary exchange with a reporter that he initiated outside court, after the verdict. But whether or not more charges are brought, and whatever the wider impact of Brand’s disgrace, the women who testified should be proud of their part in exposing him.
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