Russell Brand major Wembley gig update after denying 'criminal allegations'
Russell Brand has gone ahead with his scheduled live comedy performance at Wembley Park Theatre stadium tonight, despite initially being delayed.
The 48-year-old comedian will perform his Bipolarisation tour at 7pm tonight, hours after releasing a statement in which he denied 'very serious' and 'criminal' allegations put to him in a letter and email from a TV company and newspaper. He did not specify what the allegations were in the two-minute and 45-second YouTube video.
Russell's sold-out gig is one of a number of dates on the tour, which kicked off earlier this week on September 12. The comedian is also due to perform the tour in Windsor, Plymouth and Wolverhampton.
On Wembley Park Theatre's website, the event was billed to start at 7pm with doors opening at 5pm. It is described as: "Rules and rule-breaking! Democracy and freedom! We reach conclusions from mass confusion by polling the live audience. We want to hear YOUR opinion. After amassing a movement of 25 million people across his digital channels, the Community festival and the live show Stay Free; the cultural and political commentator and award-winning British comedian is back on stage."
Russell Brand is going ahead with a sold out gig tonight, just hours after sexual assault allegations have emerged (Getty Images)
The comedian has been the focus of a joint investigation by Channel 4 Dispatches, The Times and The Sunday Times. (PA)A tannoy announcement confirmed the show is still going ahead as it played a message to the theatre and eventgoers which said: "Russell is stuck in traffic on the M40. The start will be closer to 7:40pm. He is 100 percent on his way and is looking forward to seeing you soon," said the Mirror's Saskia Rowland.
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The gig comes after Russell issued a lengthy statement in which he denied 'criminal allegations' put to him, which are yet to be published. In a two-minute 45-second YouTube video in which he said he had received an 'extremely disturbing' letter and email from a TV company and newspaper, which "listing a litany of extremely egregious and aggressive attacks".
He said: "Now, this isn't the usual type of video we make on this channel where we critique, attack and undermine the news in all its corruption because in this story, I am the news. I've received two extremely disturbing letters or a letter and an email. One from a mainstream media TV company, one from a newspaper listing a litany of extremely egregious and aggressive attacks, as well as some pretty stupid stuff like community festival should be stopped, that I shouldn't be able to attack mainstream media narratives on this channel. But amidst this litany of astonishing rather baroque attacks, often very serious allegations that I absolutely refute.
"These allegations pertain to the time when I was working in the mainstream, when I was in the newspapers all the time, when I was in the movies. And as I've written about extensively in my books, I was very, very promiscuous. Now, during that time of promiscuity, the relationships I had were absolutely always consensual. I was always transparent about that.
"Then almost too transparent, and I'm being transparent about it now as well. And to see that transparency metastasized into something criminal that I absolutely deny makes me question, is there another agenda at play? Particularly when we've seen coordinated media attacks before, like with Joe Rogan, when he dared to take a medicine that the mainstream media didn't approve of, and we saw a spate of headlines from media outlets across the world using the same language. "
He added: "I'm aware that you guys have been saying in the comments for a while, watch out, Russell. They're coming from you. You're getting too close to the truth. Russell Brand did not kill himself. I know that a year ago there was a spate of articles.
"Russell Brand’s a conspiracy theorist, Russell Brand’s right wing. I'm aware of news media making phone calls, sending letters to people I know for ages and ages. It's being clear to me, or at least it feels to me like there's a serious and concerted agenda to control these kind of spaces and these kind of voices. And I mean, my voice along with your voice. I don't mind them using my books and my standout to talk about my promiscuous consensual conduct in the past."
He concluded in his two and a half minute statement: "What I seriously refute are these very, very serious criminal allegations. Also, it's worth mentioning that there are witnesses whose evidence directly contradicts the narrative that these two mainstream media outlets are trying to construct, apparently, in what seems to me to be a coordinated attack.
"Now, I don't wanna get into this any further because of the serious nature of the allegations, but I feel like I'm being attacked and plainly they're working very closely together. We are obviously going to look into this matter 'cause it's very, very serious. In the meantime, I want you to stay close, stay awake, but more important than any of that, if you can, please stay free."
If you've been the victim of sexual assault, you can access help and resources via or calling the national telephone helpline on 0808 802 9999.
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