Noel Fielding Says He Has Had No Contact With Russell Brand for Years

The Great British Bake Off presenter Noel Fielding said that he has had no contact with Russell Brand for many years, following Brand’s sentencing to 10 and a half years in prison for rape and sexual assault.

Brand was jailed on Monday after being found guilty of one count of rape and three counts of sexual assault.

In a statement issued to The Sun, Fielding said he was “horrified and deeply disturbed to learn of Russell Brand’s crimes, which I was completely unaware of until they became public knowledge.” Fielding added, “My thoughts are with the women whose courage brought him to justice.”

Reflecting on Past Collaborations and Resurfaced Footage

Fielding addressed his professional history with Brand, noting that their work together on television, radio, and live charity shows was strictly professional rather than personal. “Whilst we played it up for the cameras and in the media, I considered it a professional relationship, rather than a personal one,” Fielding said.

The pair frequently collaborated in the 2000s, performing comedy gigs as a duo known as The Goth Detectives and appearing together on Channel 4’s Big Fat Quiz of the Year.

Photo: The Guardian

Following Brand’s conviction, archival footage resurfaced featuring Fielding and Brand joking about rape alongside television presenter Jonathan Ross during a 2007 episode of the Big Fat Quiz of the Year. Reflecting on those moments, Fielding stated, “Looking back at some of the jokes I made alongside him I was appalled. They were horrible and inappropriate, and I very much regret them.”

Figures Distance Themselves as New Investigations Begin

The conviction has prompted other prominent figures to distance themselves from Brand. Presenter Jonathan Ross issued a statement to the Press Association expressing that he was “as horrified by the revelations about David Walliams and the crimes of Russell Brand as the rest of the nation.” Ross added that during a time when he was on friendly terms with both men, he was genuinely unaware of their conduct.

Photo: The Independent

Brand, who became a prominent figure through his work on television, radio, and Hollywood films such as Forgetting Sarah Marshall, is expected to serve two thirds of his sentence before being released on licence, and will remain on the sex offenders’ register for life.

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