Russell Brand trial producer Jack Bayles steps back from Various Artists Limited, Digi Mart USA News (United Kingdom): A producer who worked with Russell Brand has been asked to “step back” from his company while it considers the events surrounding the comedian’s trial. On Thursday, Brand was convicted of raping one woman and sexually assaulting three others during his showbusiness career.
The verdicts followed a trial in which six women gave evidence against the 51-year-old. During proceedings, Jack Bayles, head of comedy at independent TV production company Various Artists Limited (VAL), was accused of watching and laughing while the comedian sexually assaulted a woman.
Bayles says he does not remember the alleged incident.
In a statement, VAL said Bayles will no longer work on two sitcoms the business was making for the BBC. Bayles had been involved in the production of the BBC sitcoms Such Brave Girls and Push through his work at VAL, and he previously produced the Channel 4 sitcom Catastrophe.
“We have asked Jack Bayles to step back from the company while we consider the verdict and events surrounding the trial,” the statement read. “Our thoughts, though, are primarily with every one of Brand’s victims at this time.”
When contacted for comment, the BBC referred the Press Association to VAL’s statement.
Bayles told The Times in a statement that he was “appalled and sickened” by Brand’s actions and had cooperated fully and voluntarily with the investigation. He said he does not remember the incident that took place 17 years ago, in 2009, but acknowledged that he “clearly missed something at the time” and sincerely apologized.
Bayles described the period as a “frantic, pressured and toxic working environment” and said Brand was “chaotic, dismissive and manipulated the people around him.” He said he stopped working with Brand in 2010 and has had no contact with him since, and that no complaints about Brand’s behavior were made to him during their work together.
The trial heard that in 2009, Bayles and Gareth Roy, another member of Brand’s team, forced a young female staffer to give him a massage. When she reluctantly agreed, Brand thrust his head into her groin and only got up again when apparently insulted that she had commented on his “bony” body, the court heard.
“I was so repulsed by the situation,” she told the court, and said she complained afterwards to her Channel 4 bosses.
Brand was found guilty on Thursday of sexually assaulting this woman while recording a project for Channel 4. The court heard Brand preyed on women he encountered while becoming one of Britain’s best-known stand-up comedians, a lauded TV and radio host, and a Hollywood movie star.
His victims told the court how Brand had forced them into sexual activity, sometimes within seconds of first meeting them, using his fame in pursuit of sex with 5,000 women. Southwark Crown Court heard Brand ignored pleas from women for him to stop.
The former comedian, who was once married to Katy Perry, could not persuade any of his celebrity friends or former showbiz colleagues to give evidence in his defence. A jury found Brand guilty of one count of rape and three counts of sexual assault.
He was cleared of two further charges of rape and one allegation of attempted indecent assault.
