Russell Brand, 51, appeared at Southwark Crown Court for a two-day pre-trial hearing ahead of his trial on October 12, where he faces three counts of rape, three counts of sexual assault and one count of indecent assault against six women, all of which he denies.
Brand, wearing a grey three-piece suit, was accompanied by his wife Laura Gallacher to the central London courthouse, arriving in a black Mercedes for the first of two days of pre-trial hearings. He stayed silent as he arrived but, as he left in the afternoon, replied "God bless you for saying that" after an onlooker shouted "Praise the Lord, Russell Brand". He and his wife were flanked by private security as well as court guards and managers.
Prosecutors have brought seven counts against Brand for alleged incidents spanning 1999 to 2009. British authorities initially charged him in April 2025 over alleged offences involving four women between 1999 and 2005; the Crown Prosecution Service authorised two additional charges in December 2025 involving two other women and alleged incidents from 2009, prompting the court to move the trial from June to October. The main trial is expected to run about 10 to 12 weeks.
Detectives opened inquiries after a joint Channel 4 and Sunday Times investigation more than two years ago. Previous hearings have heard Brand is accused of raping a woman in a hotel room at the Labour Party conference in Bournemouth, grabbing a TV worker's breasts and forcing her into a sex act in a toilet, and kissing and groping a radio station worker.
Brand, once one of Britain's best-known stand-up comedians who presented spin-off shows for Big Brother and starred in Hollywood films, has in recent years pivoted to podcasting and online influencing, and now lives in the United States. He has vehemently denied the accusations, insisting in a video response: "I was a fool before I lived in the light of the Lord. I was a drug addict, a sex addict and an imbecile. But what I never was, was a rapist. I've never engaged in nonconsensual activity."
Weeks before the trial, Brand stirred controversy by moderating a panel at the Make America Healthy Again summit in Washington, where he joked with Dr. Mehmet Oz about a backstage hug with Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins, saying "She initiated that contact, I shall make clear." The quip, coming days before he faces a jury, drew muted reaction and renewed criticism.
The BBC is reviving its Fame Under Fire podcast to offer in-depth daily coverage of the trial, with reporter Anoushka Mutanda-Dougherty reporting from Southwark Crown Court. The case is one of the UK's highest-profile ongoing celebrity criminal cases, and under UK law the charges remain allegations unless proven in court. Brand is on bail during the proceedings.