Russell Brand pleads not guilty to rape and assault
Russell Brand has pleaded not guilty to charges of rape, sexual assault and indecent assault at a court hearing in London.
The broadcaster, comedian and actor appeared at Southwark Crown Court, where he formally denied the five charges for the first time.
He faces one allegation of rape, one of indecent assault, one of oral rape and two further counts of sexual assault. The offences are alleged to have taken place between 1999 and 2005, and relate to four women.
The 49-year-old will now face a trial, which is scheduled to begin on 3 June 2026.
Mr Brand did not speak to reporters and looked straight ahead as he entered the court building wearing a dark suit and unbuttoned shirt.
He is accused of oral rape and sexual assault against one of the women in July 2004, and is accused of raping another woman in 1999.
He is also charged with indecently assaulting a woman by grabbing her arm and dragging her towards a male toilet in 2001, and with sexually assaulting a different woman by kissing and groping her in 2004 or 2005.
He stood in the glass dock as he spoke to confirm his name, and replied "not guilty" after each of the counts were put to him.
He walked out of the dock in his sunglasses and thanked the usher as he left.
The media personality and influencer, of Hambleden, Buckinghamshire, will remain on conditional bail until the trial.
A pre-trial review has been scheduled for 20 May 2026.
After being charged in April, he released a video saying he was not a rapist and had never engaged in non-consensual sexual activity.
"I'm now going to have the opportunity to defend these charges in court and I'm incredibly grateful for that," he told followers at the time.
Mr Brand, who was born in Essex, rose to fame as a stand-up comedian and became a household name as host of TV shows like Big Brother's Big Mouth, and with his own radio programmes on stations including BBC Radio 2 and 6 Music.
He went on to establish a Hollywood career, starring in films like Forgetting Sarah Marshall and Get Him To The Greek.
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