Russell Brand rape accuser says she could not breathe

A woman who accuses British comedian Russell Brand of raping her in 1999 told police she was scared, said no and “couldn't even breathe” during the alleged attack, a London jury heard on Thursday.

The jury at Southwark Court was shown video of a 2023 police interview in which the unidentified woman said Brand raped her in a hotel room in Bournemouth, southern England, when he was acting in a theatre show at the Labour Party Conference.

Brand, 51, denies all seven charges involving six women and has pleaded not guilty.

The woman said she had spoken with Brand at his show and suggested they continue talking in her hotel room. She told police that when she returned from the toilet he had stripped to tight underpants, leaving her “taken aback” and shocked.

She said Brand then pushed her onto the bed. “I do remember saying ‘no, what are you doing?’” she told police, adding that she felt “frozen” and later “felt so dirty”.

Prosecutors on Wednesday accused Brand of being a “sexual predator” who was “ruthless” and “manipulative”. The jury is due to hear testimony from six women whose allegations date from 1999 to 2009.

Judge Joel Bennathan told jurors that all six women went to police after seeing a 2023 British television documentary, but cautioned that the programme presented the allegations in a “one-sided” way.