Actor and comedian Russell Brand convicted of rape and sexual assault

British comedian and actor Russell Brand has been found guilty in a London court of rape and sexual assault and told he faces jail.

Brand, once one of Britain's most high-profile broadcasters and the former husband of US singer Katy Perry, had denied the accusations, saying the incidents had either been consensual, reinvented or re-imagined.

Prosecutors had described the 51-year-old, who starred in the films Get Him to the Greek and Arthur, as a ruthless, sexual predator.

He was convicted on Thursday (early Friday AEDT) at London’s Southwark Crown Court of one rape and three sexual assaults.

He was acquitted of two other rapes and an attempted indecent assault.

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The jury of eight men and four women in Southwark Crown Court deliberated more than eight hours over two days.

Known for risqué stand-up routines and battles with drugs and alcohol, Brand rose to prominence in the early 2000s, hosting television programs and his own BBC radio show. He appeared in Hollywood films including Forgetting Sarah Marshall and Get Him to the Greek.

In recent years he has moved away from mainstream media, relocated to Florida and built a large online following with videos mixing wellness, conspiracy theories and discussions of his religious devotion.

Brand said the criminal case had a devastating impact on his life and family.

“My entire life has been consumed by these events, these allegations, these accusations,” he said.

Brand’s lawyers argued that the alleged victims were undermined by the fact that they only went to police years after the alleged assaults, and following the broadcast of a 2023 documentary that contained anonymous allegations against Brand.

Brand testified that friends and colleagues had abandoned him.

His wife, Laura, who accompanied him to court, testified as a character witness in his defence, but no one with relevant evidence was willing to give evidence on his behalf, Brand said.