UK comedian Russell Brand pleads not guilty to rape and sexual assault

British comedian Russell Brand has entered his pleas against five charges of rape and sexual assault at a London criminal court.

Russell Brand has pleaded not guilty to charges of rape, sexual assault and indecent assault.

The former Hollywood star and British comedian entered the plea during an appearance at Southwark Crown Court.

It marks the first time he has formally denied the five charges against him.

Brand, who is currently on conditional bail, faces one allegation of rape, one of indecent assault, one of oral rape and two further counts of sexual assault which are alleged to have happened between 1999 and 2005.

After entering his plea, Brand was told he would face a trial that is currently set to begin on June 3rd next year.

British comedian Russell Brand pleaded not guilty to five charges. Picture: Getty.

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Prosecutors charged Brand, known for his sexualised humour that skyrocketed him to fame in the 2000s, following a police probe into allegations aired during a Channel 4 documentary.

The former movie star turned social media figure 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.

Brand previously addressed the claims after he first faced the charges in April. In a video on social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter, he insisted he intended to fight.

“I was a fool before I lived in the light of the Lord. I was a drug addict, a sex addict and an imbecile, but what I never was a rapist. I’ve never engaged in non-consensual activity,” he shared with fans.

He faces two counts of rape, two of sexual assault and one of indecent assault between 1999 and 2005, allegedly involving four women. Photo: HENRY NICHOLLS / AFP.

Brand rose to fame in the early 2000s before scoring his own popular show on BBC Radio 2 in the UK. He was forced to step down from his position over an on-air prank that saw him leaving actor Andrew Sachs a sexual explicit voicemail about his granddaughter.

Despite the career setback, he went on to start in Hollywood films including Forgetting Sarah Marshall and Get Him To Greek before going on to rebrand himself as a conservative figure on social media.

Originally published as UK comedian Russell Brand pleads not guilty to rape and sexual assault