LORRAINE Kelly has said that she was left feeling “uncomfortable” by Russell Brand after he touched her thigh and called her a “s**t” during an appearance on The Graham Norton Show in 2007.
It comes after allegations of rape and sexual assault were made against 48-year-old Brand following an investigation by The Times and Channel 4 Dispatches.
Brand has so far denied all the allegations against him.
Kelly, 63, had previously interviewed Brand on a number of occasions and has said looking back at her appearance on Norton’s show makes her feel “uncomfortable”.
Now, an unearthed clip shows Brand placing his hand on Lorraine’s thigh and telling the audience: “You’re wearing suspenders. Jesus Christ. I’ve taken off more than I can chew. I’m out my depth.”
The audience and Norton both started laughing before Brand added: “Yeah so I have been in other films but it doesn’t seem too important now that Lorraine Kelly’s a s**t.”
Speaking on her show today, Kelly told Mirror editor Alison Phillips she wouldn’t allow that sort of behaviour now.
“It’s so interesting, you know I interviewed him a lot over that time when he was very, very famous and in the public eye and I usually got the charming, flirty Russell”, she said.
“Of course it’s different, we’re older, I’ve been doing this for a long, long time. And I would like to think there was a little tiny bit of respect there, maybe.
“Although, this happened on The Graham Norton Show, now it was back in 2007, but have a look…”
The clip then played for viewers at home and once it ended, Kelly said: “Now look, that’s uncomfortable to watch now, it absolutely is.
“Obviously, for the record I was not wearing suspenders at all but, everyone was laughing. I was laughing.
“Well it’s difficult, looking back on it now, I probably would have said something but it’s an entertainment show, it’s late night… but that was his shtick, that’s what he was doing and that’s what he was actively encouraged to do.”
In a statement on his YouTube channel, Brand (above) denied the “criminal” and “very serious” allegations against him.
He said: "As I've written about extensively in my books, I was very, very promiscuous.
"I don't mind them using my books and my stand-up to talk about my promiscuous consensual conduct in the past. What I seriously refute are these very, very serious criminal allegations."
He added: "Also, it's worth mentioning that there are witnesses whose evidence directly contradicts the narrative that these two mainstream media outlets are trying to construct, apparently, in what seems to me to be a coordinated attack."
Signing off the video, Brand said: "Now, I don't wanna get into this any further because of the serious nature of the allegations, but I feel like I'm being attacked and plainly they're working very closely together.
"We are obviously going to look into this matter 'cause it's very, very serious."
Anyone who feels affected by any of these issues can contact Rape Crisis Scotland on 08088 01 03 02
