Russell Brand to be sentenced after rape conviction

The former comedian and actor, now 51, was found guilty at Southwark Crown Court of raping a woman in 2009 and sexually assaulting three others, all of whom were female TV and radio workers.

The offences took place between 2004 and 2009, during the height of Brand’s fame.

Mr Justice Bennathan ordered that Brand begin his prison sentence immediately after the guilty verdicts were delivered last Thursday afternoon and said a lengthy sentence could be expected.

Brand was last seen mouthing "I’m OK" to his lawyers before being led to the cells.

Laura Gallacher, Brand’s wife, left the courtroom in tears following the verdicts.

Russell Brand and his wife Laura Gallacher outside Southwark Crown Court. (Image: PA)

Today, the judge is expected to hear victim impact statements and legal submissions from both the prosecution and defence before passing sentence.

The convictions followed a four-week trial that revealed how Brand, who rose to fame as a comedian before becoming a TV and radio host and Hollywood actor, used his celebrity status to exploit and abuse women.

During the trial, Brand described his life as “promiscuous” and "full of idiocy," but claimed all sexual encounters were consensual and denied any criminal wrongdoing.

Victims, however, painted a starkly different picture of a powerful man who kissed and groped women moments after meeting them, pursued sexual encounters aggressively, and later dismissed or ridiculed them for objecting to his behaviour.

Brand was found guilty of raping a 21-year-old fan in 2009, whom he met after a stand-up show at the Hammersmith Apollo.

The woman, who told jurors she was a huge Brand fan, told jurors she had consensually participated in a threesome with the comedian backstage that night, despite having a boyfriend.

She later visited Brand’s Hampstead home for sex, but said the encounter turned violent when he forcibly raped her.

Brand was also convicted of sexually assaulting a woman at a Nordic bar in Soho in 2004, groping her breasts just seconds after being introduced to her.

Another victim described how Brand kissed and groped her during a 2005 visit to Capital Radio’s London studios, and said she looked to his entourage for help but no one intervened.

Brand was also convicted of putting his head into the groin of a female Channel 4 worker, after she had been forced to give him a massage in 2009.

The woman told the court how Brand had refused to continue a recording session unless she massaged him, and members of his entourage encouraged it instead of protecting her.

During the trial, Brand’s 2007 memoir, My Booky Wook, was cited as evidence, including his claim that he would not stop pursuing sex until achieving his "birthright orgasm."

Brand was cleared of two other rape charges and one count of attempted indecent assault.

Following his convictions, the Metropolitan Police confirmed Brand is under investigation for two additional rape allegations.

Russell Brand leaves Southwark Crown Court, London, (Image: PA)

Sir Mark Rowley, Metropolitan Police Commissioner, warned that more victims may come forward.

Prime Minister Andy Burnham described Brand’s crimes as "horrifying," while Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy said there was still work to do to ensure media organisations have the systems in place to protect women.

Ms Nandy said: "We need far more robust processes in place to protect women like the women who bravely came forward in the Russell Brand case to make sure that they are protected and treated seriously.

"Hand on heart, I don’t think we can say that this couldn’t happen today."

One of the comedian’s former producers, Jack Bayles, who was accused of encouraging the 2009 forced massage, has been asked to “step back” from production of two BBC sitcoms by TV production company Various Artists Limited in the wake of the verdicts.

And the Victims Commissioner Claire Waxman has called for a new legal duty on judges to direct juries on rape myths and misconceptions, if they have been ventured during a trial.

The call came after Brand’s barrister, Ian Winter KC, put forward arguments that the comedian could not be a rapist as his accusers had not screamed, fought back, or run away when they were being attacked.

In an astonishing incident after the guilty verdicts, Mr Winter was also seen verbally abusing Sunday Times journalist Rosamund Urwin in the courthouse corridor.

Ms Urwin was one of the journalists who first exposed Brand as a sexual predator, and a centrepiece of Brand’s defence case had been that media reporting had tainted the evidence in the criminal trial.

Mr Winter announced on Friday that he has self-referred himself to the Bar Standards Board after seeing media reports of the incident at court.

Brand, who boasts millions of online followers and had still been broadcasting his Christian sermons during the trial, has now spent four nights in prison since the conclusion of his trial.

The judge has already warned him to expect a lengthy prison sentence.