Channel 4 Claims “Two New Worrying Allegations” Have Been Made About Russell Brand Since Exposé

An investigation into Russell Brand and his time on Channel 4 found “no evidence” that TV bosses knew about his sexual misconduct allegations. However, one former employee reportedly made a “serious and concerning” allegation about the comedian in 2009, which was not escalated or investigated at the time.

Brand recently faced a wave of rape, sexual assault and emotional abuse allegations — all of which came from a joint investigation between The Times, The Sunday Times and Channel 4’s Dispatches. He has vehemently denied any wrongdoing.

Chief executive officer Alex Mahon revealed today that Channel 4 spearheaded an “extremely thorough investigation” into the Dispatches allegations “as they pertain to” the network, which featured Brand as a presenter on Big Brother’s Big Mouth and Kings Of Comedy between 2004 and 2007, per The Daily Mail.

“Whilst the investigation did not find any evidence to suggest that any Channel 4 employees were aware of Russell Brand’s alleged behavior contained in the program, it did find that one former Channel 4 employee made a serious and concerning allegation about Russell Brand in 2009,” Mahon said, per The Daily Mail.

She continued, “This was not escalated to Channel 4’s then senior management team, nor investigated as it should have been. I have apologized on behalf of the organization to the individual for this breakdown and for the distress this matter has caused.”

The report also found that there were “two new worrying allegations” made after the Dispatches episode came out. Apparently, “serious concerns” about Brand’s behavior had been in “circulation” when he joined Celebrity Bake Off in 2018, per Deadline.

One staff member claimed a former Channel 4 employee said they witnessed inappropriate behavior, while another made an allegation about the way Brand treated a Channel 4 staffer “while both parties were working on the production of ancillary content involving Channel 4 in 2009.”

“Two of the people spoken to said they thought serious concerns about [Brand’s] behavior involving sexual misconduct had been in circulation within commissioning in 2018, around the time [Brand] was engaged to appear in a Celebrity Bake Off Stand Up To Cancer special recorded in October 2018,” the report states. “These concerns led them to take the view that [Brand] should not be engaged for shows for which they were responsible.”

The report added that neither person had knowledge of the specific allegations, and several others were unable to corroborate their stories.

If you or someone you know needs to reach out about sexual abuse or assault, RAINN is available 24/7 at 800-656-HOPE (4673), or online at RAINN.org.