Back in the '00s, Russell Brand was one of the most famous comedians on TV - but his life now looks very different. Former Ponderland star Russell, who was today handed a hefty fine after pleading guilty to driving offences, was accused of rape, assault and emotional abuse in a joint investigation by Channel 4 ’s Dispatches programme, The Times and Sunday Times, back in 2023. The Met Police handed the CPS their file to consider charges last November.
The 49-year-old comic has strongly denied all such accusations, which allegedly occurred between the years 2006 and 2013, at the height of his stadium-filling fame. Back then, Essex-born Russell was a familiar face on panel shows and mainstream radio programmes while starring in Hollywood movies such as St Trinian's (2007) and Forgetting Sarah Marshall (2008). Now things have taken a somewhat different turn.
Since then, the comic has retreated to his family home in the upmarket Home Counties town of Henley, where he has been making something of a nuisance of himself... In November, it was announced that Russell had abandoned his plans to convert The Crown Inn pub in the South Oxfordshire village of Pishill - much to the relief of furious locals.
Russell purchased the boozer in 2020 with the intention of transforming it into a recording studio where he could create his online videos and podcasts. If given the green light, Russell would have had the first floor changed into an office while converting the garage and cottage into a filming studio.
