Woman says she 'closed eyes and tried not to be there' during alleged Russell Brand rape

A woman who alleges she was raped by Russell Brand at a bar told the police "I just closed my eyes and tried not to be there" while the attack was taking place.

In a 2023 video interview with an officer shown to the jury at his trial, the woman said she had been speaking to Brand about him hosting the Channel 4 show Big Brother's Big Mouth when he allegedly sexually assaulted her.

Brand, 51, faces seven charges in the trial - three counts of rape, three charges of sexual assault and one of indecent assault.

The allegations, made by six female complainants, span a 10-year period between 1999 and 2009. He denies the charges.

In her recorded interview with police, the woman said "he literally just grabbed my boobs out of nowhere in the middle of the conversation,".

A short while later, she said he "dragged me in the toilets" where the floor was flooded, before "he unzipped himself" and allegedly orally raped her.

The woman is the third complainant the jury have heard from in the trial - and the second to allege rape.

The pair had been attending a birthday party in Soho in London in 2004 when the alleged incidents happened.

She said after the alleged sexual assault, "The visual I remember is just this big grin - it felt like a clown, (with) that sort of weird look in the eye. It was a normal conversation about him being on Big Brother. He just moved towards (me) and grabbed both my boobs".

She said the alleged rape was "swift", and left her "in disbelief and shock".

"The toilets were behind where he stood. It was literally just grab and pull. He was holding me quite strongly on the arm and pulled me in that direction," she said.

"Part of me was saying just get it over with so you can get out of here".

"I just closed my eyes and tried not to be there. I just remember it felt like a force. I definitely said I don't want to do this," she added.

After the alleged rape, the woman, who was in her 20s at the time, said Brand "turned to me and said 'oh I guess we should swap numbers now'".

Russell Brand denies all the charges and has pleaded not guilty.

He has said that any sexual contact if it happened, would have been consensual.

The trial continues and is expected to last for six weeks.