Woman tells Russell Brand trial she did not consent to sex

A woman accusing Russell Brand of raping her in 1999 told a London jury on Thursday that she had not consented to sex after inviting him into her hotel room in Bournemouth. Brand has pleaded not guilty to the charge, one of seven allegations involving six women in his trial at Southwark Crown Court. [1] [2]

She said she met Brand at an event during the Labour Party conference and invited him to her room to continue their conversation. She believed he was gay and said she had felt “sexually safe” with him. But after she came out of the bathroom, she said, she found him partly undressed and felt threatened. “He just changed suddenly from this... camp, friendly and effeminate to monster-like,” she told the jury. [1] [2]

The jury was shown a bare-chested photograph of Brand that the woman said she had taken at his request before the alleged assault. The image does not establish what happened afterwards. Jurors also watched a police interview recorded in 2023, in which she described the alleged rape and said she later feared she might be pregnant. That interview was played before she gave evidence in person. [1] [4]

During cross-examination, Brand’s barrister, Ian Winter KC, suggested she had welcomed Brand’s attention and questioned why she had not left the room or reported the allegation to police at the time. “I welcomed his company, not what followed,” she replied. She said she was frightened, did not think she could escape and believed no one would believe her. Challenged over whether she had wanted sex with Brand, she said: “I can 100 per cent tell you I did not consent.” [1] [2]

Brand, 51, faces three counts of rape, three of sexual assault and one of indecent assault relating to alleged incidents between 1999 and 2009. He denies all the charges. According to the BBC, he has said that any sexual contact, if it occurred, was consensual. The trial continues. [1] [2]