Russell Brand news: Katy Perry and Dannii Minogue comments resurface; comedian backed by Elon Musk and Andrew Tate amid rape allegations

Russell Brand’s father has jumped to his defence after the comedian was accused of rape and sexual assault.

Taking to Facebook, 80-year-old Ron Brand said: “Is this seriously the most important thing happening in this world? Immigrants? Cost of living? 10s of thousands killed in Ukraine? Who is prioritising at BBC News. Who is really driving this vendetta?’.

He added: “With many struggling to pay bills. The unproven accusations of 15 years ago take lead on BBC News?”.

The allegations about Brand were initially published by The Sunday Times and Channel 4 Dispatches.

In his autobiography, My Booky Wook, Brand discussed their relationship and claimed that he had lost his virginity to a prostitute that was paid for by his father.

An excerpt from Russell Brand’s 2007 memoir has resurfaced following rape, sexual assault, and emotional abuse allegations made against him by four women.

Read the full excerpt here

Asked by LBC radio host Nick Ferrari what broadcasters should do in the wake of allegations against Russell Brand, which the comedian and actor has denied, pensions minister Laura Trott told LBC radio: “I think everybody needs to do better.

“I think no woman, Nick, reading the allegations that were all over the place this weekend could do anything other than shudder. It’s horrific.

“And I pay absolute tribute to the women who’ve come forward and also the journalists that have pursued this, the editors who’ve allowed them to do that, the investment that’s been put in place and the huge legal risk that’s taken for stories such as these.

“We all need to do better. And I would just plead any woman who’s had experiences like this to come forward and to report them to the police.”

Channel 4 has removed a number of TV episodes starring Russell Brand from its catch-up series, following allegations of sexual assault against the presenter.

The comedian, 48, has been accused of rape, sexual assault and emotional abuse by four women, with the alleged incidents taking place between 2006 and 2013. At the time, Brand was at the height of his fame in the UK and was working as a presenter for BBC Radio 2 and Channel 4.

The investigative journalist whose investigation into Jimmy Savile for Newsnight was suppressed by the BBC said there is a “much wider problem” in the entertainment industry

Meirion Jones told Times Radio he has been contacted by “numerous women” since the allegations about Russell Brand were exposed by the Sunday Times.

He said: “Over the last 36 hours I’ve been contacted by numerous women who worked for BBC, ITV for Channel 4, for indies, saying that this is a much, much wider problem. I mean, I’d hoped that after

Savile, after Weinstein that the industry would sort itself out. “It plainly hasn’t. One woman contacted me and said that she complained about a powerful person at the BBC who is harassing three women.

“In the end, the BBC protected that individual and the three women had to leave. She says she thought about throwing herself under a bus. She’s sorted herself out now. She’s fine. She’s happy. But I’ve had similar stories from ITV, from indies, from across this industry. It’s much wider than just Russell Brand.”

More women have come forward with allegations against Russell Brand, The Times have said.

The newspaper, one of the two media outlets that published the original allegations against him, said they had been approached by a number of women since Saturday.

They said the claims had not yet been investigated but “will now be rigorously checked”.

They did not provide any further details, other than that they related to Brand’s behaviour since the “early 2000s”.

Brand has denied the allegations and said his relationships were “absolutely always consensual”.

The head of parliament’s women and equalities committee has described the allegations against Russell Brand as “shocking and criminal”.

Caroline Nokes urged victims of the star to file complaints with the Metropolitan Police and authorities in the US, “because this merits and needs a criminal investigation”.

Ms Nokes told the BBC: “For too long we have seen men, and the perpetrators of these sorts of crimes are almost invariably men, not being held to account for their behaviours and their actions.”

As well as questions around “who knew what and when”, Ms Nokes called for broadcasters and production companies who worked with Mr Brand to examine what channels were available for those working with the star to raise complaints.

“And frankly, where were his colleagues, where were his male colleagues when he was conducting himself in this absolutely abhorrent way?” she said.

Russell Brand has been dropped by his agent Tavistock Wood after being accused of rape and sexual assault by four women.

In a joint investigation released by The Times, The Sunday Times and Channel 4 on Saturday (16 September), the comedian and actor has been accused of sexually assaulting four women between 2006 and 2013. Others have accused Brand of predatory and abusive behaviour.

Women in comedy work hard to keep themselves and each other safe from problematic male colleagues, writes comedian Vix Leyton.

Will the allegations against Russell Brand ignite the change the industry needs?

“It serves more as a depressing indictment of how, despite all the talk about time being up, a lot of people didn’t want to believe women – particularly when they’re accusing people they admire – and only started listening when a man spoke about it. The risk for Daniel Sloss is a lot lower than the women who came forward on Channel 4, and for the incredible female journalists who worked doggedly to get this piece over the line.

“It is a horrible time to be a woman in comedy at the moment, and the depressing part is that when the furore over this specific incident has died down, we know that very little will have changed.”

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