Russell Brand Faces Further Rape & Sexual Assault Charges in Court

Russell Brand has been granted bail after a video court appearance charged with two further sexual offences, including rape. The comedian and actor appeared at Westminster Magistrates' Court on Tuesday on a video link from the US accused of one count of rape and one of sexual assault, which are both alleged to have taken place in 2009. He had previously denied two other counts of rape, one count of indecent assault and two counts of sexual assault in relation to alleged offences between 1999 and 2005, involving four women. Brand, wearing a denim shirt with a number of buttons undone, spoke only to confirm his name and date of birth during the six-minute hearing. He was bailed to appear at Southwark Crown Court on 17 February. According to court documents, the two latest alleged offences took place in London. A trial is planned at Southwark Crown Court later this year in relation to the five original charges. Brand, 50, rose to prominence as a comedian in the mid-2000s, before finding success in Hollywood with the 2008 film Forgetting Sarah Marshall and its 2010 spin-off, Get Him To The Greek.