ALBAWABA - Russell Brand's criminal trial continued in London on Thursday, October 15, as the first complainant described an alleged rape at a hotel during the 1999 Labour Party conference in Bournemouth. The woman told the court she initially felt comfortable around the comedian but became frightened after they returned to her hotel room.
Russell Brand, 51, appeared at Southwark Crown Court as the jury heard a recorded police interview and later listened to the woman give evidence under cross-examination. He has pleaded not guilty to all charges and denies the allegations against him.
Woman Describes What Allegedly Happened in 1999
According to Sky News and The Guardian, the woman said she met Russell Brand at a cabaret performance during the political conference. She described him as friendly, attentive and softly spoken, explaining that she initially thought he was gay and felt sexually safe around him.
After the event, she invited him to her hotel room to continue their conversation. She told police that when she returned from the bathroom, Brand had partly undressed and was behaving in what she described as an unusual, playful manner.
The complainant alleged that Russell Brand made her take photographs of him while he was partially naked. She said his behaviour frightened her before he allegedly pushed her onto the bed and removed her clothes.
In the recorded interview, she described trying to push him away and said she had told him no. She also explained that she felt detached from what was happening.
“I second-guessed myself if it was rape because it was so normal,” she said in the interview, before stating that she knew she had been raped.
The woman told police she did not report the alleged incident at the time because she felt ashamed. She said the 2023 Channel 4 documentary Dispatches, which featured allegations of sexual misconduct against Brand, prompted her to reconsider reporting what she said had happened. A friend initially contacted police before she came forward herself.
Complainant Challenges Defense Questions
Later on Thursday, the woman answered questions from Russell Brand’s barrister, Ian Winter KC. To protect her identity, she gave evidence behind a screen.
Winter questioned whether she had welcomed Brand’s company and why she had invited him to her room. The woman acknowledged that she had initially wanted to continue their conversation but said she had not invited him there for sex.
She explained that she became afraid when his behaviour changed and felt she had nowhere to escape. She also expressed regret about inviting him into her workspace, saying she blamed herself for that decision.
When the defense suggested she had not struggled or said no, she firmly disputed the suggestion.
“I did say no. I did say no,” she replied, according to Sky News.
A woman who claims Russell Brand raped her at a Labour Party conference told a court she was "frightened" after he forced her to take pictures of him, and went on to have "nightmares" about the possibility of being pregnant. https://t.co/zh4P2PeAyt
The judge, Mr Justice Bennathan, intervened to note that she had also said she told Brand no in her recorded police interview. The complainant maintained that she had not consented to sex.
The court also heard that photographs taken by the woman that night showed Brand partially undressed in the hotel room. The images were presented as evidence during the proceedings.
This is a summary of what happened in Russell Brand’s rape and sexual assault trial so far today.
⚠️ Warning: This post contains distressing details of an alleged rape.
The court has was played the 2023 police video interview of the first alleged victim.
At the beginning of the interview, she stated: “I’m reporting that Russell Brand did rape me.”
The woman told police that she first encountered Brand at a Labour Party conference fringe event in Bournemouth in 1999, where he approached her from behind and repeatedly pulled her ponytail.
She initially described him as “very gentlemanly”, “attentive” and “softly spoken”. She said she had even assumed he was gay because of his mannerism.
The woman later invited Brand back to her hotel room to continue their conversation because she didn't want to go to pubs andclubs. And she would not have invited him if she thought that he was hitting on her, she also said that he wasn't her type.
However, she alleged that his behaviour changed after they arrived. She described him taking off his shirt, acting strangely and becoming increasingly intimidating.
She told police she became frightened when Brand forced her to take pictures of him, saying: “I was really scared.”
According to her, Brand then pushed her onto the bed and removed her trousers.
The woman said she mentally disconnected from what was happening, but made clear that she remembered saying no.
During the alleged rape, she said Brand repeatedly told her that “it’s all fine” and that what was happening was “normal”, which she felt was an attempt to convince her that his actions were acceptable.
Afterwards, Brand allegedly reassured her that she should not worry about sexually transmitted infections because he regularly got himself tested.
However, the woman said she experienced nightmares about the possibility of becoming pregnant.
She described the alleged attack as quick and told police that Brand behaved as though nothing was wrong afterwards.
She said she remained silent, sat on the bed crying and felt stupid about what had happened.
When Brand eventually left the hotel room, she locked the door and placed a chair in front of it because she was frightened he might return.
She also described spending hours washing herself in the bathroom, feeling dirty and blaming herself for what had happened.
