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More allegations have surfaced against Russell Brand, with a former classmate accusing him of groping female pupils during his time at Italia Conti Performing Arts School.<\/p>\n
The Get Him to the Greek actor, 48, found himself in the press one week ago when several women accused him of rape, sexual assault, and controlling behaviour over a seven-year period at the height of his fame.<\/p>\n
Brand has denied all allegations against him, claiming any encounters were \u2018consensual\u2019, but admitted to being \u2018promiscuous\u2019 with a sex addiction.<\/p>\n
Following the initial investigation by Channel 4\u2019s Dispatches and The Times, more alleged victims have spoken out, with the Metropolitan Police also receiving a report of an alleged sexual assault from 2003.<\/p>\n
Now, Tony Brown of Brand\u2019s old school in Central London, has said he used to grab girls underneath what Brand called his \u2018cloak of love\u2019.<\/p>\n
Brand was expelled from the prestigious performing arts school after just one year for \u2018breaching its code of conduct\u2019, said to be related to drug-taking and truancy. <\/p>\n
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Actor Tony told The Mirror: \u2018He started wearing a large black trenchcoat, which he called his cloak of love. <\/p>\n
\u2018He would sneak up behind girls wrapping them in the coat, pulling them in close and touching them under it.<\/p>\n
\u2018You would often see the girls flinch. He would be pinching their bums and grabbing their boobs.\u2019<\/p>\n
Brown, 48, started the school on the same day as Brand in 1991.<\/p>\n
\u2018A couple of his favourite junior girls would have been two years below us, making them around 14. It\u2019s hard to tell what the girls thought as I think at the time they would have put on an act in front of their friends.<\/p>\n
\u2018No one wanted to be seen to be the prude and he capitalised on it, I suppose. He could manipulate any situation. It wasn\u2019t a normal school environment. Girls probably outnumbered boys by about 20 to one.\u2019<\/p>\n
The dad-of-five added that, on the second or third day of class, students were instructed to \u2018make love\u2019 to a chair in the middle of a studio.<\/p>\n
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While Brown thought it was \u2018bizarre\u2019, he said Brand \u2018did it with the most enthusiasm.\u2019<\/p>\n
Brown, who now works as a radio presenter, said \u2018the way Brand talked about what he\u2019d done with girls the night before was so disrespectful.\u2019<\/p>\n
\u2018I\u2019ve got daughters now. I dread to think anyone would talk about them that way,\u2019 he added. <\/p>\n
The school said it is \u2018deeply concerned\u2019 in response to Brown\u2019s claims.<\/p>\n
A school spokesperson said: \u2018Italia Conti takes any allegations of inappropriate behaviour extremely seriously, and we have robust policies and \u00adprocedures to ensure that any reported matter is dealt with appropriately.\u2019<\/p>\n
They have urged any concerned former pupils to contact the school.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, Brand has spoken about his school days in the past, writing about his \u2018cloak of love\u2019 in his 2007 autobiography, My Booky Wook.<\/p>\n
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\u2018Perhaps it was in seeking to cope with this sudden upturn in my sexual economy \u2013 this huge shift in the quality and quantity of available women \u2013 that I developed my cloak of love identity,\u2019 he penned.<\/p>\n
\u2018I got myself this cloak. It stretched from the top of my head to the tips of my tiny toes, like a curtain, and I used it to veil myself and my true intentions, right in it, as I stalked the corridors of Italia Conti.\u2019<\/p>\n
The latest claims come as Brand\u2019s past behaviour is currently being investigated by the BBC and Channel 4 from when he worked on their shows.<\/p>\n
His career has also taken several blows, with his tours in the UK and Australia cancelled, his YouTube channel demonetised, and having been dropped by his team.<\/p>\n
After what he called a \u2018distressing\u2019 week\u2019, Brand broke his silence last night (September 22) with a new video message.<\/p>\n
In the clip, Brand said the week since the claims were published had been \u2018extraordinary\u2019.<\/p>\n
He said: \u2018I thank you very much for your support and for questioning the information that you\u2019ve been presented with.\u2019<\/p>\n
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Brand also promoted his platform on Rumble \u2013 a right-wing, online video platform that refused to follow YouTube in blocking the comedian from advertising revenue on its site.<\/p>\n
The controversial podcaster described the streaming site as having made a \u2018clear commitment to free speech\u2019.<\/p>\n
Brand added that he never imagined that he would need his followers\u2019 support as much as he does now.<\/p>\n
\u2018And I need your support now, more than ever, and more than I ever imagined I would,\u2019 he said.<\/p>\n
\u2018So, follow me, support our channel if you can, if it\u2019s within your means, but more important than any of that is that you please, if you can, stay free.\u2019<\/p>\n