An excerpt from Russell Brand’s 2007 memoir has resurfaced following rape, sexual assault, and emotional abuse allegations made against him by four women.
Four women spoke out against the Essex-born comedian, who pre-emptively and vehemently denied the “very serious allegations” against him in a statement shared on YouTube.
He called the claims, uncovered during a joint investigation by The Times, The Sunday Times, and Channel 4, “a litany of astonishing, rather baroque attacks”.
Brand said that all of his relationships “were absolutely always consensual,” during the “promiscuous” stage of his life, referring to his most successful years on-stage and in Hollywood.
“These allegations pertain to the time when I was working in the mainstream, when I was in the newspapers all the time, when I was in the movies, and as I’ve written about extensively in my books I was very, very promiscuous,” he said.
Now, in light of the allegations against him, a section from Brand’s autobiography My Booky Wook pertaining to his time at a sexual treatment centre in Philadelphia, US, has re-emerged online.
In it, Brand wrote that the decision to seek treatment for his sex addiction was followed by the realisation “my sexual behaviour might become damaging to my career”.
Brand wrote that his manager John Noel checked him into KeyStone Center Extended Care Unit “using a combination of threats, bullying, love and blackmail to make me go”.
He continued: “So anyway, I didn’t want to go to that sexual treatment center, but all the do- gooders – and I mean that literally, as they did generally do good (I’ve never really understood why people employ that term pejoratively) – they all insisted, and I sort of, kind of agreed.
“Just to shut everyone up, really, and for the same reason that I finally gave up drink and drugs – because my ambition is the most powerful force within me, so once people convinced me that my sexual behavior might become damaging to my career, I found it easier to think of it as a flaw that needed to be remedied.”
Since the allegations against Brand came to light, more women have reportedly contacted The Sunday Times about the ex-BBC presenter’s behaviour “since the early 2000s”, the newspaper said on Monday (18 September).
“The new allegations, which have not been investigated and will now be rigorously checked, come after four women, including one who was 16, alleged that they were sexually assaulted by Brand during the height of his fame between 2006 and 2013,” it added.
Brand performed at a sold-out stand-up comedy show in London on Saturday, shortly after the allegations against him were made public.
Brand did not address the allegations against him during the gig at The Troubadour Wembley Park theatre, instead telling his audience that there were things he could not discuss.
