Does Fame Protect Abusers? The Russell Brand Case.

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• News
• PSHE
• Upper Secondary (Key Stage 4)
• Further Education (Key Stage 5)
• BTEC, GCSE

Introduction

Comedian Russell Brand has been convicted of rape and sexual assault, years after victims felt unable to speak up. Students explore how fame and power protected him, why speaking up about abuse is hard, and where young people can get help. Includes a content warning. Interactive activities include polls and open questions. Best suited to Key Stage 4 to FE citizenship, PSHE/RSE or current affairs lessons, taught live in class. Teachers may adapt it for older Key Stage 3 classes. This lesson was created with AI assistance.

Does Fame Protect Abusers? The Russell Brand Case.

Why speaking up matters

The deck looks at Russell Brand's conviction for rape and sexual assault and asks how fame and power kept him from being challenged for years. It ends with where young people can get help, so that students know they will be listened to.

Safeguarding: read the lesson through first, check it against your school's safeguarding and RSE policies, and tell your safeguarding lead you are teaching it. Do not display open-question answers live, because LessonUp shows them on the board and a student may write something personal. If a student discloses anything, follow your school's procedure: listen, do not promise to keep it secret, and pass it to the safeguarding lead the same day. Keep discussion on fame, power and speaking up, never on what happened to the women.

Sources: BBC News (5, 6 and 8 November 2026) and The Guardian (6 November 2026). Helpline details checked on the Childline and Rape Crisis websites on 9 November 2026. Colours: the teal of the sexual assault awareness ribbon. Image credit: Matthias Wagner / Unsplash

Before we start

This lesson talks about rape and sexual assault. We won't go into the details of the crimes.

If anything today affects you, you can step out and talk to a trusted adult.

You are not alone, and you will be listened to.

Note: Read this slide aloud and pause. Tell students where they can go if they need to step out and who they can talk to afterwards.

Stretch: None on this slide; give students a moment before moving on.

Device-free: Agree a quiet signal a student can use to step out without explaining why.

1

Yes

2

No

3

A little

Have you seen or heard this news yet?

Note: An opening show of hands tells the teacher how much students already know, and whether they have seen coverage that went into detail.

Stretch: Ask where students saw the news, and whether it was a news site or social media.

Device-free: Thumbs up, sideways or down for Yes, A little or No.

1

Shocked

2

Not surprised

3

Angry

4

Unsure

How do you feel about this news?

Note: A plain feelings poll replaces the usual emoji poll for this topic. Recording first reactions gives a point of comparison at the end.

Stretch: Ask students who chose "Not surprised" what had made them suspicious, without naming anyone else.

Device-free: Students write one word for how they feel on a mini-whiteboard, kept private if they wish.

By the end of this lesson you can...

• Understand how Russell Brand's fame and power helped him avoid being challenged for years.

• Evaluate what makes it hard to speak up about abuse, and what makes it easier, including where young people can get help.

Note: The aims keep the focus on power and speaking up rather than on the crimes, and end with getting help.

Stretch: Ask students why a lesson about one famous man might matter to their own lives.

Device-free: Students copy the aims onto mini-whiteboards and tick each one off at the end.

Key Info

What?

Comedian Russell Brand has been jailed for 10½ years for one rape and three sexual assaults (2004–2009).

Where?

Southwark Crown Court in London. The crimes happened at a comedy show, a party and media workplaces.

Who?

Russell Brand, the six women who gave evidence, the jury, and broadcasters including the BBC and Channel 4.

Note: The jury convicted Brand of one rape and three sexual assaults, and cleared him of two other rape charges and one attempted indecent assault. Keep to these facts.

Stretch: Students explain why it matters that a jury, not the media, decided the case.

Device-free: In pairs, students sum up What, Where and Who in a single sentence.

Sentence (9 November 2026): At Southwark Crown Court, Brand was jailed for 10 years and six months. He is likely to serve two-thirds of it in prison. The Crown Prosecution Service said the case shows that "fame, status and the passage of time do not change the fundamental issue of consent". He was found not guilty on three other charges. (BBC News; The Guardian) Image credit: Wesley Tingey / Unsplash Image credit: Brad Weaver / Unsplash Image credit: Eva Rinaldi, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Background

Russell Brand became famous in the 2000s as a comedian and TV and radio presenter.

In November a jury convicted him of raping a fan and sexually assaulting three women who worked around him.

The BBC has apologised to staff who felt unable to raise concerns because he seemed "too influential". One woman said she feared she wouldn't be believed.

After the verdict, the police said: "No one is above the law, no matter how famous or powerful they may be."

Note: The two key facts are the BBC's apology to its own staff and the woman who feared she wouldn't be believed: both show how fame made speaking up feel risky.

Stretch: Ask why staff might feel they could not complain about someone who was making money for their employer.

Device-free: Quick chat in pairs: what does "too influential" mean in a workplace? Image credit: Tingey Injury Law Firm / Unsplash

From comic to commentator

2000s: stand-up comic and presenter on Big Brother's Big Mouth and BBC Radio 2.

Late 2000s to 2010s: Hollywood films, then a YouTuber campaigning on left-wing causes such as inequality.

2020s: spreads Covid conspiracy theories, supports Donald Trump in 2024 and is baptised a Christian.

2025 to 2026: moves to the US and speaks at events for Trump-allied groups, whose leaders back him through his trial.

He called the case a "media conspiracy". Some of his US supporters still say he was falsely accused.

Note: Brand kept reinventing himself and finding new audiences, and each new audience brought loyal fans. The photo shows him at Turning Point USA's Student Action Summit in July 2025.

Stretch: Why might a famous person who is accused of a crime tell fans the media is out to get them? Students consider this for anyone famous, whatever their politics.

Device-free: Students put the four stages in order on a mini-whiteboard from memory.

Sources: BBC, "How 2000s lad culture helped Russell Brand to hide in plain sight" (6 November 2026; contains graphic content, not for students); The Guardian, 6 November 2026, on his US supporters. Image credit: Gage Skidmore, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

The Big Controversy

Courage: police praised the "extraordinary courage" of the women who came forward.

Silence: for years colleagues stayed quiet, and a former TV boss said nobody wanted to "lose the star".

Denial: some of Brand's supporters still say he was falsely accused, as he claimed to be the victim of a media conspiracy.

Why is it so hard to believe that someone you admire has done something terrible, and whose job is it to speak up?

Note: Courage, silence and denial are the three forces in this story. Reveal the question with a click and give pairs a minute to discuss.

Stretch: Students consider whether it is the job of individuals, employers or audiences to act, and argue for one.

Device-free: An agree–disagree line across the room for the statement "It was everyone's job to speak up." Image credit: Jon Tyson / Unsplash

1

Afraid for their job

2

Thought they wouldn't be believed

3

Thought it was just his act

4

Didn't want to lose the star

Why didn't people who saw his behaviour speak up?

Note: Every option is supported by the reporting, so there is no wrong answer; the vote shows which barrier students think is strongest.

Stretch: Ask which of these barriers could apply in a school, a club or a part-time job.

Device-free: Students move to four corners of the room, one for each option.

Explain your answer from the poll

Note: Review answers privately before sharing any, and keep the discussion on the case rather than students' own experiences.

Stretch: Students add one thing an employer could have done differently.

Device-free: Each student writes one sentence on a mini-whiteboard and swaps with a partner.

What would make it easier for someone to speak up about abuse?

Note: This is the turning point of the lesson: from what went wrong to what helps. Review answers privately before sharing.

Stretch: Points to look for: being believed and not blamed; a trusted adult to go to; reporting routes that protect the person speaking up; organisations that act on concerns rather than protecting the star; and the industry's new body to protect whistleblowers, the Creative Industries Independent Standards Authority.

Device-free: Build a class list on the board of things that make speaking up easier.

Key Concepts

Consent — freely agreeing to something, with the freedom to say no or change your mind at any time.

Conviction — a court's decision that someone is guilty of a crime.

Abuse of power — using fame, status or authority to harm or control other people.

Whistleblower — someone who reports wrongdoing inside an organisation.

Note: Consent is the idea at the centre of the case; the other three explain how power kept it hidden and how it came out.

Stretch: Students explain why a whistleblower might need legal protection.

Device-free: The teacher reads a definition and students call out the matching term.

Who can you talk to?

A trusted adult — a teacher, your form tutor or the school's safeguarding lead. You will be listened to.

Childline: 0800 1111 — free, confidential and open 24/7 for anyone under 19 in the UK, or chat online at childline.org.uk.

Rape Crisis: 0808 500 2222 — free 24/7 support for anyone aged 16 or over in England and Wales.

In danger right now? Call 999. It is never your fault, and it is never too late to tell someone.

Note: Leave this slide up for a while and tell students exactly who the safeguarding lead is and where to find them.

Stretch: Ask students how they could support a friend who told them something, and remind them to pass it on to a trusted adult.

Device-free: Students copy one number or name into their planner, without having to say why.

Details checked on childline.org.uk and rapecrisis.org.uk on 9 November 2026. Scotland and Northern Ireland have their own services; add your local ones before teaching there.

What question do you have about this news?

Note: Read the questions privately before answering any aloud, in case one is a disclosure.

Stretch: Ask students where they would look for a reliable answer to their question.

Device-free: Students write their question on a sticky note and hand it in face down.

News Focus lessons - short lessons on current events