Katherine Ryan Feeling “Grief & Relief” Over Russell Brand Conviction

Katherine Ryan has said she is feeling “grief and relief” after Russell Brand was convicted of rape and sexual assault in London on Thursday.

Ryan was one of the first prominent industry figures to call out Brand’s behavior, with Deadline revealing in 2023 that she repeatedly accused him of being a “sexual predator” during the recording of Comedy Central series Roast Battle in 2018.

Speaking on her Telling Everybody Everything podcast, Ryan responded to Brand being found guilty of multiple sexual offenses at Southwark Crown Court.

“It really made me feel just quite dysregulated again, caught off-guard, emotional, in awe of the survivors who also had nothing to gain,” she said. “They came forward despite Russell Brand having fame, power, money, and a legion of fans ready to attack them.”

Ryan continued: “I will never be someone who like, dances on graves. There has been some justice done today. There’s a level of relief, but there’s grief alongside relief. Everything’s nuanced, and it was proved in court that a terrible thing happened, and that means that a terrible thing happened.

“I just think again and again about people who have been hurt, and who have to carry that, who’ve carried that around long enough, and will continue to carry that in some way, regardless of what justice is done.”

Deadline reported how Brand was dropped from Roast Battle after Ryan torched him on camera over allegations that he had sexually assaulted women. Her jokes did not make the final edit. One person familiar with the matter said Brand was “absolutely furious” at being targeted by Ryan.

Ryan had previously spoken about her experience on Roast Battle, but did not name Brand or the show she was working on. In an appearance on BBC series Louis Theroux Interviews..., Ryan revealed that she confronted her unnamed co-star: “I – in front of loads of people, in the format of the show – said to this person’s face that they are a predator.”

She revisited the subject during her Sky stand-up special last year. Ryan explained: “I was invited on a panel show, and I was so excited to do it, but then I found out that if I went on, I would be sat next to a man whom I firmly believe, but can’t prove to be a c***. And that’s the lawyer’s choice of words, not mine.”

She continued: “Initially, I turned the job down, and then I thought: well, he’ll be there in his unnecessarily tight jeans, won’t he? He’ll be there, finger-banging Tucker Carlson or sucking off a Tibetan monk for views, whatever he does now … I thought I will go on the show, and I made a moral decision.”

Her decision was that she would confront Brand and make jokes about his alleged reputation, “but in a fun way.” She recalled two gags she made about Brand, neither of which made the final edit when Roast Battle screened in the UK in 2018.

Ryan said Brand was “fine with it for a while, until eventually he had a hissy fit and threatened to quit the show.” She continued: “The channel got upset. They didn’t want him to leave, and they issued him a new contract, which he waltzed into my dressing room and threw under my nose the next day. He said: ‘Look, you’re not allowed to be mean to me anymore, because I don’t consent.’”

Ryan added that she had to “be nice” following Comedy Central’s intervention on the show, produced by Fulwell Entertainment. He was eventually replaced by Jonathan Ross.

Brand will be sentenced on Monday. He faces a significant jail term.