The ex-PA of Russell Brand has claimed she felt ‘sick to my stomach’ after the comedian allegedly showed her ‘naked’ photos of women and she recognised someone she knew.
Speaking as part of an investigation into Brand’s behaviour, Helen Berger, who worked from Brand between 2006 and 2007, alleges the star showed the intimate images to her, and his entourage, at a bar in Edinburgh.
‘It did something to me,’ Ms Berger said. ‘It made me feel immediately sick to my stomach.
‘These are women who aren’t expecting to be shown to like the dude’s friends. I felt terrible for all these people, these women. I felt shame in that moment.’
Ms Berger described Brand as a ‘narcissist’, whose ‘favourite subject was him’. She also claimed he was ‘always in his underwear’ around her.
Speaking as part of an investigation into Brand’s behaviour, Helen Berger (pictured), who worked from Brand between 2006 and 2007, alleges the star showed the intimate images to her, and his entourage, at a bar in Edinburgh
Russell Brand leaves the Troubadour Wembley Park theatre in north-west London after performing a comedy set last night following bombshell allegations
Ms Berger described Brand as a ‘narcissist’, whose ‘favourite subject was him’. She also claimed he was ‘always in his underwear’ around her
After sending her CV to a recruitment agency, Ms Berger was given an interview to work with Russell.
She said: ‘It was an exciting time. Russell was on a national comedy tour, he was writing a book, he had a weekly column in The Guardian, he had two shows – Big Brother’s Big Mouth, 1 Leicester TV.’
Ms Berger claims some of Brand’s behaviour, she would nowadays not accept – such as him being in underwear around her.
‘He always only wore his underwear,’ she said. ‘His tighty-whities.
‘I don’t think today I would accept a boss only being in his underwear around me.’
Referencing his ‘sex addiction’, Ms Berger claims he ‘could not stop sleeping with women’ and was ‘never satisfied’.
She claims he used to ask her to take down phone numbers of female audience members at his shows. Ms Berger said that if she were to see that behaviour now she would think it wasn’t right, but at the time it was so ‘normalised’.
The former employee claims that one night at Edinburgh festival, where Brand was headlining, she had been in a bar with him and hi
s writing partner Matt Morgan – among others.
She said: ‘A producer was with us and he was like “show us some of those pictures”.
‘Russell pulled out his phone and he started showing us pictures of women and they all were just sort of giggling at the photos. These are women that are sending them pictures of themselves, their boobs you know, naked.’
Ms Berger added: ‘At a certain point I was like “Okay let me see what we’re looking at” and I leaned in but as he’s going through these pictures he gets to a picture of somebody I knew.’
After seeing a woman she knew in one of the pictures, Ms Berger felt ‘sick’ and admitted to ‘feeling shame’.
When asked if she had ever had concerns over the consent of Brand’s encounters, she said: ‘I never worried. I saw a lot of woman, knowing who he was “sh***er of the year”, willingly walking into his bedroom.
‘I never once thought that he was somebody that would rape anybody, assault anybody. No I didn’t think so. As far as I knew, what could I possibly know about when I wasn’t there, but from what I saw.’
Ms Berger claims some of Brand’s behaviour, she would nowadays not accept – such as him being in underwear around her
The Sunday Times and Channel 4‘s Dispatches’ investigation into the 48-year-old star included multiple women accusing him of abusive and predatory behaviour, including rape, sexual assault and emotional abuse, between 2006 and 2013.
Before the Dispatches episode aired, Brand posted a video to his YouTube channel denying the allegations. He insisted any relationships he had were consensual.
The Metropolitan Police has said it will speak to the media outlets following their investigation into Brand’s alleged treatment of women, but added that at this time the force has ‘not received any reports in relation’ to the allegations of sexual assault detailed in the article or documentary film.
***
Read more at DailyMail.co.uk