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Russell Brand Trial Opens: What the BBC and MTV Records Show
— 3 mins read
How MTV and the BBC gave Brand his platform, and what happened when it went wrong
Russell Brand’s trial began this week at Southwark Crown Court. The 51-year-old faces three counts of rape, three of sexual assault and one of indecent assault, relating to six women and covering the years 1999 to 2009. He denies all the charges. The trial continues.
Brand built his career largely through two broadcasters, MTV and the BBC. Both have been involved in public controversies involving him, and the BBC has since reviewed his time at the corporation.
MTV
Brand worked as a presenter at MTV UK in the early 2000s. In his 2007 memoir, he wrote that he arrived at work dressed as Osama bin Laden on 12 September 2001, the day after the attacks on New York. MTV dismissed him.
In 2008, MTV in the United States hired him to host its Video Music Awards. MTV’s ratings among 18 to 34-year-olds rose 15 per cent on 2007. In July 2009, the network announced he would host the awards again. MTV did not respond to requests for comment at the time.
The BBC
Brand presented shows on BBC 6 Music and BBC Radio 2 between 2006 and 2008. On 18 October 2008, his pre-recorded Radio 2 show included messages that he and Jonathan Ross had left on the answerphone of the actor Andrew Sachs. The controller of Radio 2, Lesley Douglas, approved the broadcast by email.
The broadcast initially drew little attention. After the Mail on Sunday reported it on 26 October, complaints to the BBC passed 18,000 within days. Brand resigned from the BBC on 29 October. Douglas resigned the following day, and Ross was suspended without pay for twelve weeks. In April 2009, Ofcom fined the BBC £150,000 and described the calls as “gratuitously offensive, humiliating and demeaning”.
The BBC review
In September 2023, after a joint investigation by Channel 4 Dispatches, The Times and The Sunday Times, the BBC began an internal review of Brand’s time at the corporation. The findings were published in January 2025. Peter Johnston, the BBC’s director of editorial complaints, led the review, which interviewed 72 people. Brand declined to take part.
Peter Johnston, the BBC’s director of editorial complaints, led the review, which interviewed 72 people. Brand declined to take part.
The review found that several people had concerns at the time but felt unable to raise them, because they believed he would always get his way. It identified “compliance inadequacies” on some Radio 2 programmes. It recommended that the BBC continue to monitor “power hierarchies in creative teams and the role of presenters”. The BBC apologised to staff who had felt unable to come forward, and said its policies have changed since then.
Since leaving broadcasting
Brand went on to a Hollywood film career, with roles in Forgetting Sarah Marshall and Get Him to the Greek. In recent years, he has focused on podcasting and online video, and he now lives in Florida.
The Metropolitan Police began investigating after the 2023 reports. Brand was first charged in April 2025, and two further charges followed in December 2025. He has pleaded not guilty to all seven.
