Russell Brand Found Guilty of Rape and Sexual Assault After Southwark Trial

Russell Brand has been found guilty of rape and sexual assault at Southwark Crown Court in London, after a trial lasting four weeks. The 51-year-old comedian and actor was convicted on Thursday 5 November 2026 of one count of rape and three counts of sexual assault, and was remanded in custody ahead of sentencing on Monday 9 November.

The jury, made up of eight men and four women, delivered its verdicts after deliberating for more than eight hours over two days. Brand had denied all seven charges against him. The judge, Mr Justice Bennathan, told Brand he faced a lengthy prison term.

The verdicts close the court case against one of Britain’s best-known broadcasters of the 2000s, whose rise from stand-up comedy to BBC radio, television presenting and Hollywood films was followed, years later, by a police investigation into allegations spanning a decade.

The verdicts, charge by charge

The jury found Brand guilty of raping a 21-year-old fan he met after a stand-up show at the Hammersmith Apollo in 2009. It also found him guilty of sexually assaulting a woman working for MTV at a party in a Soho bar in 2004, sexually assaulting a Capital Radio worker after meeting her in a corridor in 2005, and sexually assaulting a Channel 4 worker during a forced massage in 2009.

On the same Soho bar charge, the jury cleared Brand of a further allegation that he went on to orally rape the woman in a toilet. It also acquitted him of raping a woman he met at a cabaret show on the fringes of the 1999 Labour Party conference in Bournemouth, and of trying to drag an MTV worker into a toilet to indecently assault her in 2001.

The Metropolitan Police said Brand, 51, of Oxfordshire, was convicted of four sexual offences following its investigation. Prosecutors had told the court Brand used his growing fame to target women in a series of locations, including a hotel room, an MTV office, a London bar, a radio station and a recording studio. Brand told the court the encounters were consensual, and that some of the allegations had been reinvented or re-imagined.

How the trial unfolded

The trial began at Southwark Crown Court on 12 October 2026. Over three weeks, the jury heard testimony from the complainants and other witnesses, as well as from Brand himself. The charges covered the years in which Brand rose from performing stand-up comedy in small venues to presenting Big Brother’s Big Mouth and BBC radio programmes, and then to Hollywood roles in Forgetting Sarah Marshall and Get Him to the Greek.

Brand closed his eyes but showed no emotion as the verdicts were read out, according to court reporting. His wife, Laura Gallacher, was in the public gallery for the verdicts. The judge praised the preparation of the case before turning to the question of sentence.

What the judge said about sentencing

Mr Justice Bennathan told Brand after the verdicts: “You’ve been convicted of a number of offences including rape. The consequence of that is inevitably a significant custodial term.” He said a custodial sentence of some length would result, and remanded Brand into custody. A bail application was heard later in the afternoon.

Sentencing will take place at Southwark Crown Court on Monday 9 November 2026. The length of the sentence will be decided then, and no figure has been set. Until that hearing, Brand remains in custody.

The investigation that led to court

The Metropolitan Police began investigating after allegations involving Brand were reported by Channel 4’s Dispatches programme, The Times and The Sunday Times in September 2023. Five women made accusations of sexual assault and rape, as well as coercive and emotional abuse, in that joint investigation.

The Crown Prosecution Service authorised two further charges, one count of rape and one of sexual assault involving two more women, in December 2025, bringing the total to seven charges across six women. Detective Superintendent Andy Furphy of the Metropolitan Police said after the verdicts: “Brand used his influence, status and fame to exploit and sexually offend against women.”

The case was one of the highest-profile criminal trials in Britain this year, drawing reporters from across the world to Southwark Crown Court. It also renewed debate about how the television and radio industries handled complaints about powerful presenters during the 2000s, when Brand was at the height of his fame. That wider question was not decided by the jury, whose task was limited to the seven charges before it.

What happens next

The immediate next step is sentencing on Monday 9 November. The judge will then decide the length of Brand’s prison term, and whether any further orders should be made. Reports after the verdicts said Brand could face further criminal charges, with two further rape allegations disclosed in earlier hearings at Southwark Crown Court.

The verdicts are also likely to prompt fresh scrutiny of the broadcasters and production companies Brand worked for between 1999 and 2009, including the BBC, Channel 4 and MTV. Any response from those organisations, and any civil claims, would follow separately from the criminal case. For now, the court’s focus is the sentencing hearing on Monday.

Frequently asked questions

Was Russell Brand found guilty of rape?

Yes. A jury at Southwark Crown Court found Russell Brand guilty of one count of rape, relating to a 21-year-old fan he met after a show at the Hammersmith Apollo in 2009. He was also found guilty of three counts of sexual assault.

How many charges did Russell Brand face?

Seven charges involving six women: three counts of rape, three counts of sexual assault and one count of attempted indecent assault. He was convicted on four counts and acquitted on three.

When will Russell Brand be sentenced?

Sentencing is scheduled for Monday 9 November 2026 at Southwark Crown Court. The judge, Mr Justice Bennathan, told Brand he faced a lengthy prison term and remanded him in custody until then.

What did Russell Brand say in his defence?

Brand denied all seven charges. He told the court the sexual encounters were consensual, and said some of the allegations had been reinvented or re-imagined. The jury rejected that account on four of the seven counts.

How long did the trial last?

The trial began on 12 October 2026 and ran for about three weeks of evidence, with the jury deliberating for more than eight hours over two days before returning its verdicts on 5 November.

Was Russell Brand found guilty of every charge?

No. He was acquitted of two counts of rape and one count of attempted indecent assault. The acquittals covered an alleged rape at the 1999 Labour Party conference fringe in Bournemouth, an alleged oral rape in a Soho bar toilet in 2004, and an alleged attempted indecent assault on an MTV worker in 2001.

Did the jury have to agree unanimously?

Yes. The judge directed that all 12 jurors had to agree unanimously on each verdict, and the jury of eight men and four women did so on each of the seven counts.

Could Russell Brand face further charges?

Reports after the verdicts said he could face further criminal charges, with two further rape allegations disclosed in earlier hearings. No further charges have been confirmed, and any decision would rest with the Crown Prosecution Service.

Myth-busting

Myth: Brand was convicted on all seven charges. He was not. He was convicted on four counts and acquitted on three, and the acquittals are part of the verdicts, not a footnote to them.

Myth: Brand has already been sentenced. He has not. The judge remanded him in custody and set sentencing for Monday 9 November 2026, when the length of his prison term will be decided.