Russell Brand says he is ‘incredibly moved’ by support of fans after sexual abuse allegations | UK News

Russell Brand has said he is “incredibly moved” by the “ongoing support” of his fans – following sexual abuse allegations against him.

In his latest post on video platform Rumble, he said: “Thank you for joining us, I can hardly express my gratitude towards you sufficiently, and thank you for the ongoing support, all of you, I’m incredibly, incredibly moved by it.”

Brand also urged people to subscribe to his channel at a time “where your support becomes absolutely essential”.

It comes after four women made allegations of rape, sexual assault and abuse against the star between 2006 and 2013 as part of an investigation by The Times, The Sunday Times and Channel 4’s Dispatches.

Another woman, speaking to Sky News, alleged Brand “ripped holes” in her tights and “refused to call her a taxi until she performed a sex act”.

The Metropolitan Police says it has begun an investigation after receiving a number of sexual offence claims relating to London and elsewhere in the UK following media reports about the comedian.

The 48-year-old denies all the allegations against him.

The Rumble video is the second Brand has recorded this week and looks to be a return to his usual nightly routine of livestreams on the platform, on which he has more than 1.4m followers.

During his video on Monday, he accused the government of trying to “bypass” the judicial system after his YouTube channel was demonetised in the wake of the allegations against him.

The comedian also accused the “legacy media” of being in “lockstep” with each other to “support a state agenda” and “silence independent media voices”.

Ahead of the publication of the claims, he released a video on the platform in which he preemptively addressed the allegations and said all of his relationships were consensual.

On Friday, he released a second clip on Rumble in which he claimed the British government had “asked big tech platforms to censor our online content”.

YouTube, owned by Google, demonetised Brand’s channel in the wake of the allegations against him.

However, Rumble, a video site popular with some conservatives and far-right groups, has not demonetised Brand.

Dame Caroline Dinenage, chair of the House of Commons media committee, wrote to Rumble to ask if it would be stopping Brand from earning advertising revenue on the platform.

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In her letter to Rumble’s founder and chief executive Chris Pavlovski, Dame Dinenage wrote: “We would be grateful if you could confirm whether Mr Brand is able to monetise his content, including his videos relating to the serious accusations against him.

“If so, we would like to know whether Rumble intends to join YouTube in suspending Mr Brand’s ability to earn money on the platform.

“We would also like to know what Rumble is doing to ensure that creators are not able to use the platform to undermine the welfare of victims of inappropriate and potentially illegal behaviour.”

‘Deeply inappropriate’

In a statement, the site refused to demonetise Brand’s channel and described the letter as “deeply inappropriate and dangerous”.

“While Rumble obviously deplores sexual assault, rape, and all serious crimes, and believes that both alleged victims and the accused are entitled to a full and serious investigation, it is vital to note that recent allegations against Russell Brand have nothing to do with the content on Rumble’s platform,” the platform said in a statement.

“We regard it as deeply inappropriate and dangerous that the UK parliament would attempt to control who is allowed to speak on our platform or to earn a living from doing so.

“Singling out an individual and demanding his ban is even more disturbing, given the absence of any connection between the allegations and his content on Rumble.

“Although it may be politically and socially easier for Rumble to join a cancel culture mob, doing so would be a violation of our company’s values and mission.

“We emphatically reject the UK parliament’s demands.”

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Police receive ‘number of claims’

On Monday, the Metropolitan Police said a number of sexual offence claims relating to London and elsewhere in the UK following media reports about Brand.

The London force said the allegations were all non-recent.

A statement said: “Following an investigation by Channel 4’s Dispatches and The Sunday Times, the Met has received a number of allegations of sexual offences in London.

“We have also received a number of allegations of sexual offences committed elsewhere in the country and will investigate these.”

There have been no arrests and enquiries continue.