Inside Russell Brand and Katy Perry’s marriage – from Hindu wedding to text message breakup
Brand was married to Perry for 14 months—and their split was messy.
Actor and comedian Russell Brand is back in the headlines after the Metropolitan Police formally charged him with rape.
Brand, 50, has received allegations from women accusing him of rape, sexual assault, and controlling behaviour at the height of his fame, when he was fronting talk shows, hosting on mainstream radio, and starring in Hollywood blockbusters.
Amid a lengthy investigation, yesterday, the Get Him to the Greek actor was charged with one count of rape, one count of indecent assault, one count of oral rape, and two counts of sexual assault in four separate incidents from 1999 to 2005.
Brand later addressed the charges with a video shared online, denying any wrongdoing and claiming he ‘never was a rapist.’
Allegations against him first gained traction in 2023 as a series of shocking claims came to light.
Meanwhile, Brand, who will appear in court on May 2, has maintained that any sexual encounters at the time were ‘consensual’.
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Previous Page Next PageThe disgraced star rose to fame in the early 2000s, starting out as a stand-up comic before securing presenting gigs on MTV and Channel 4, such as Big Brother spin-off, Big Brother’s Big Mouth.
Brand has also hosted his own radio shows, released books, and voiced characters in films such as Despicable Me and Trolls.
In recent years, he’s taken a step back from the spotlight, instead spending his time podcasting and campaigning, often dividing people with his political views.
Brand was a former atheist, and prominently so. Last year, he was baptised in the River Thames.
Despite being catapulted to fame with his success on TV, however, there’s one high-profile relationship he is instantly recognised for.
Brand has been formally charged with rape (Picture: @rustyrockets) When was Russell Brand married to Katy Perry?Brand was married to US pop star Katy Perry for 14 months.
The Teenage Dream hitmaker, 40, started dating Brand after splitting from Travie McCoy in December 2009. They first crossed paths in the summer of that year while Perry filmed a cameo for Get Him to the Greek.
Perry and Brand got together after meeting again that September at the VMAs, with things moving very quickly indeed, as Brand proposed on New Year’s Eve just months later while holidaying in India.
She married Brand on October 23, 2010, in a traditional Hindu ceremony near the Ranthambhore tiger sanctuary in Rajasthan.
However, on December 30, 2011, Brand announced that he and Perry were divorcing.
Brand and Perry announced their divorce in December 2011 (Picture: Billy Farrell/Patrick McMullan via Getty Images)Perry later stated that conflicting career schedules and his desire to have children before she was ready led to the end of their marriage.
As shown in Perry’s own concert documentary, Brand told her he wanted a divorce via text message just moments before she was due to go on stage.
She said he never spoke to her again after that message was sent.
Meanwhile, Brand claimed he divorced her due to the Roar singer’s commercial success and reluctance to engage in activism.
Perry also spoke about struggling with suicidal thoughts when their marriage ended so abruptly.
Did the pair have any children? Perry is now in a relationship with Orlando Bloom, and they share a daughter (Picture: Ryan Emberley/Getty Images for RBC)Perry gave birth to a daughter named Daisy Dove in August 2020, born to her and partner Orlando Bloom, to whom she got engaged in 2019.
Brand is also a father, having been married to Laura Gallacher for eight years and sharing Mabel (born in 2016) and Peggy (born in 2018). Gallacher gave birth to their third child, a son, in 2023.
However, Perry did not have children with Brand.
Ahead of their split, a source told The Mirror Perry and Brand had realised they had ‘nothing in common’.
‘Russell left his party lifestyle behind a long time ago because it nearly killed him. All he wanted to do was stay at home, do his yoga, keep his demons away, and have a family with Katy,’ the source said.
‘But when Katy had rare time off from her touring, all she wanted to do was go out partying in Hollywood.
Brand will appear in court on May 2 (Picture: Leon Neal/Getty Images)‘After the high of the wedding, reality kicked in. Katy was away all the time, and she became more and more successful. She is doing so well and Russell couldn’t handle it.’
As Perry grew more famous, she and Brand clashed over his desire to settle down and have kids.
‘[Russell] really wanted me to have children, and I knew I wasn’t ready—I think it was a way of control,’ Perry previously told Marie Claire.
‘I think it was part of, if I have a kid, then I would have to sacrifice. I’d have to be home more.’
This article was first published on September 27, 2023.
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