Channel 4 employee made ‘serious & concerning’ allegation about Russell Brand – but it wasn’t investigated, report says
CHANNEL 4 bosses have today apologised to one of their former employees who made a “serious and concerning allegation” about Russell Brand’s behaviour.
But a probe found the broadcaster failed to investigate claims properly when they were raised more than 10 years ago.
Channel 4 was forced to launch a probe into the comedian's time making shows for them after a string of allegations against him were made public.
The litany of claimes were first revealed in September last year as part of a joint Channel 4 and The Sunday Times and The Times investigation.
Five women came forward to accuse him of rape, assault and emotional abuse between 2006 to 2013.
Some of the complaints came from Brand's time working as a radio host for the BBC, who have launched an investigation.
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Since the Dispatches documentary aired, more women have come forward.
Brand has vehemently denied any wrongdoing and insists his relationships were "always consensual".
And today a report found that no Channel 4 employees were aware of the behaviour of the comedian when he was a presenter on Big Brother’s Big Mouth and on Kings of Comedy from 2004 to 2007.
But they did highlight a “serious allegation” made in 2009, that wasn’t sent up the chain of command or dealt with correctly.
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C4 CEO Alex Mahon said: “One former Channel 4 employee made a serious and concerning allegation about Russell Brand in 2009.
“This was not escalated to Channel 4’s then senior management team, nor investigated as it should have been.
“I have apologised on behalf of the organisation to the individual for this breakdown and for the distress this matter has caused.
“In my view, it is a matter of regret for our industry that repugnant behaviours were tolerated – and indeed appeared on-air – in the past.
"Production staff, employees and suppliers should never experience inappropriate behaviour.
“Channel 4 and I are committed to creating an environment where if any employee or person working on a Channel 4-commissioned show feels uncomfortable about behaviour towards them, then processes are in place for investigation and for appropriate action to be taken.”
Russell Brand: In Plain Sight: Dispatches aired on C4 on September 16, 2023, which looked at numerous allegations made against Brand during his time with broadcasters, including the BBC.
Afterwards the C4 Board and Ethics committee reviewed 111,984 emails and 333 files of archived hard copy documents, with 88 current and former Channel 4 employees approached for interview.
They also received two reports via C4’s Speak Up facility, the first of which couldn’t be substantiated. The second was probed and prompted the apology.
I reject the allegations in the strongest possible terms.
Russell Brand
Sir Ian Cheshire, Chair of Channel 4 said: “I would like to thank the investigating team for conducting a careful and far-reaching review and to thank those interviewed for their assistance.
“The Board is satisfied that no Channel 4 employees were aware of the deeply disturbing alleged behaviour contained in Russell Brand: In Plain Sight: Dispatches.
However, we consider it clear that a serious allegation about Russell Brand was made in 2009 by a then serving member of staff which was not properly investigated nor escalated to Channel 4’s then senior management.
“The Board and Ethics Committee are confident that strengthened safeguarding processes introduced in the past decade mean that an allegation such as this would today be reportable through multiple routes.
“The investigation’s recommendations, which are accepted in full, will further strengthen Channel 4’s already rigorous safeguarding processes to further protect and uphold the welfare of all employees and those that the channel works with.”
Brand spoke publically in January for the first time since the allegations came out.
Russell Brand's video transcript from September in full
Hello there, you awakening wonders.
Now this isn't the usual type of video we make on this channel where we critique, attack and undermine the news in all its corruption because in this story I am the news.
I have received two extremely disturbing letters - well a letter and an email.
One from a mainstream media TV company, one from a newspaper, listing a litany of extremely egregious and aggressive attacks as well as some pretty stupid stuff - like my community festival should be stopped, that I shouldn't be able to attack mainstream media narratives on this channel.
But amidst this litany of astonishing, rather baroque, attacks are some very serious allegations that I absolutely refute. These allegations pertain to the time when I was working in the mainstream - when I was in the newspapers all the time, when I was in the movies, and as I have written about extensively in my books I was very very promiscuous
Now during that time of promiscuity, the relationships I had were absolutely always consensual. I was always transparent about that then, almost too transparent. And I'm being transparent about it now as well.
And to see that transparency metastasized into something criminal that I absolutely deny makes me question is there another agenda at play?
Particularly when we have seen coordinated media attacks before - like with Joe Rogan when he dared to take a medicine that the mainstream media didn't approve of and we saw a spate of headlines from media outlets across the world using the same language.
I’m aware that you guys have been saying in the comments for a while ‘Watch out Russell, they are coming for you, you are getting too close to the truth, Russell Brand did not kill himself’.
I know that a year ago there was a spate of articles ‘Russell Brand is a conspiracy theorist, Russell Brand’s right wing’.
I’m aware of news media making phone calls, sending letters to people I know for ages and ages.
It’s been clear to me or at least it feels to me like there's a serious and concerted agenda to control these kind of spaces and these kind of voices and I mean my voice along with your voice.
I don't mind them using my books and my stand up to talk about my promiscuous consensual conduct in the past. What I seriously refute are these very very serious criminal allegations.
Also it’s worth mentioning that there are witnesses whose evidence directly contradicts the narratives that these two mainstream media outlets are trying to construct apparently in what seems to me to be a coordinated attack
Now I don't want to get into this any further because of the serious nature of the allegations, but I feel like I'm being attacked and plainly they are working very closely together
We are obviously going to look into this matter because it’s very, very serious. In the meantime I want you to stay close, stay awake but more important than any of that if you can, please, stay free.
In a rambling, 45-minute long interview, Brand labelled the allegations as "hurtful and painful".
He said: "Of course, I deny any allegations of the kind that have been advanced and what I have seen is the significance of family and the importance of beliefs that are transcendent of this."
The comic continued: "I reject the allegations in the strongest possible terms."
Speaking to host , he said: "I put myself in a vulnerable position by being very promiscuous.
"Attacks like this, accused of what I consider to be the most appalling crimes, is very painful and hurtful. But there are consequences to the foolish way I lived in the past."
It comes after Brand was interviewed under caution in relation to three “non-recent” alleged sexual offences in November last year.
A Metropolitan Police spokesman said: “A man in his 40s attended a police station in south London for a second time on Thursday, December 14, 2023.
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"He was interviewed under caution by detectives in relation to further non-recent sexual offences.
“The same man previously attended a police station on Thursday, November 16, 2023, for questioning. Inquiries continue.”
