Russell Brand appears in UK court charged with further sexual offences

Russell Brand has appeared in a UK court via video link from the US charged with two further sexual offences, including rape.The 50-year-old comedian was charged in December with one count of rape and one count of sexual assault in relation to two women. The two alleged offences took place in 2009.Brand previously denied two counts of rape, one count of indecent assault, and two counts of sexual assault in relation to alleged offences between 1999 and 2005, involving four women.During a brief hearing in relation to the fresh charges on Tuesday afternoon, Brand appeared at Westminster Magistrates Court via video link from Florida.Wearing a partially unbuttoned blue denim shirt, Brand spoke only to confirm to his name and date of birth.The chief magistrate Paul Goldspring, said: “Mr Brand, one of the charges you face is what we call indictable only which means it can only be tried at crown court.”Brand was granted bail to appear at Southwark Crown Court on 17 February for a pre-trial preparation hearing. A trial is scheduled to begin later this year in relation to the five original charges.Brand was charged after an investigation by Channel 4 and The Sunday Times in which several women made allegations against him. The night before publication, Brand denied the claims in a video posted online, stating that all of his relationships had been consensual and accused the media of a “coordinated attack”.He presented a BBC Radio 2 show between 2006 and 2008 and Big Brother spin-off shows Big Brother’s Big Mouth and Big Brother: Celebrity Hijack in the 00s.He was married to US pop singer Katy Perry from 2010 to 2012. He is now married to Laura Gallacher, the sister of TV presenter Kirsty, and the pair have two children, Mabel and Peggy.