Russell Brand 'looked possessed' as he raped woman in Soho bar, court told

Published: 14:05 EDT, 26 October 2026 | Updated: 14:33 EDT, 26 October 2026 Russell Brand 'looked possessed' and his eyes were 'completely blank' as he raped a woman in a cocktail bar toilet, a court heard.The comedian allegedly dragged the woman, who was in her 20s and working for MTV at the time, into a cubicle before locking the door and forcing her to perform a sex act on him.He is said to have told her 'don't be a spoilsport' during the assault at Nordic Bar in Soho in 2004.The woman's sister told jurors at London's Southwark Crown Court that her sister was 'very subdued, distant and not her usual self' the following morning.'I asked whether she'd had a good night out and she said no, Russell Brand had pulled her into a toilet, locked the door and tried to assault her,' said the sister, who cannot be named for legal reasons.The witness said her sister only told her the full extent of what had happened after seeing news reporting about Brand in 2023.She said her sister described Brand's eyes being 'completely blank' and that he 'looked possessed or a completely different person' as he forced her into oral sex.Meanwhile, Brand's former personal assistant told the court she saw him mistreating women and accused those close to him of 'normalising bad behaviour'. Russell Brand, pitcured outside court on Monday, allegedly 'looked possessed' as he forced an MTV worker in her 20s to perform a sex act in a cocktail bar toilet. He denies all the charges against him Helen Berger worked with Brand in 2006 and 2007 when he was a regular face on the BBC, Channel 4 and MTV, while writing a book and performing his stand-up to sell-out crowds.She told jurors that Brand had an 'insane sexual appetite' and was sleeping with people 'day and night', often finding sexual partners on social media website MySpace.In a statement to the court, Ms Burger said: 'Though I've worked with a lot of celebrities before and seen a lot of people normalising bad behaviour, this was on another level.'When I went to Russell's flat he was always in his underwear. He loved walking around in his underwear with no shirt on.'I worked a lot and was exhausted, emotional, and it was a lot to deal with. I always had to manage my emotions around him.'She added that Brand once conducted an interview with actress Sadie Frost while dressed only in his pants and an open robe.On another occasion, she said she found a female celebrity asleep in Brand's bed while he was wandering around the house half-dressed. She added: 'He was like a peacock, women would always approach him.'Ms Berger said she was instructed to get phone numbers from female fans when she first started working with Brand, but felt uncomfortable about this and later told him she would not do it anymore.Ms Berger also recalled seeing Brand dismiss a woman he was chatting to at a party as soon as he realised she was in a relationship.'He turned in a way that really startled me. He literally switched off his charm and moved on to the next woman,' she said.Ms Berger said she quit her job after nine months when she was 'sick of him and feeling burned out'.Meanwhile, the manager of a Channel 4 worker who says she was sexually assaulted by Brand during a forced massage at a recording session said she remembered her colleague being 'shocked' by the incident.Another of the woman's colleagues told jurors she recalled being told about the 'chaotic' session when the actor had 'refused to record unless she gave him a massage'.Last week, the alleged victim told the court that she was 'repulsed' after she was forced to massage Brand and he thrust his head into her lap.She claimed Brand's associates Jack Bayles and Gareth Roy goaded her to massage him and then laughed as he carried out the assault.Brand is accused of three counts of rape, three counts of sexual assault, and one charge of indecent assault. He denies all the charges.The trial continues.