Katy Perry’s short-lived relationship with Russell Brand prompted a slew of headlines when the seemingly unlikely couple were first linked back in 2009 – and even more when they broke up just 14 months after their wedding.
The British comedian, 48, has now been accused of rape, sexual assault and emotional abuse during the height of his fame by four women. The claims were made in a joint investigation by The Sunday Times, The Times and Channel 4’s Dispatches.
Brand has strongly denied all the “very serious allegations” made against him, which date back to between 2006 and 2013, and has insisted that his past relationships have been “absolutely always consensual”.
Perry, 38, has not addressed the allegations against her former husband. However, she has spoken in the past about the circumstances surrounding her split from Brand, and previously revealed that he called time on their relationship over text.
“He’s a very smart man, and I was in love with him when I married him,” Perry told Vogue in 2013. “Let’s just say I haven’t heard from him since he texted me saying he was divorcing me December 31, 2011.”
She added that had found Brand’s humour “hysterical in some ways”, until “he started making jokes about me and he didn’t know I was in the audience, because I had come to surprise him at one of his shows”.
“At first when I met him he wanted an equal, and I think a lot of times strong men do want an equal, but then they get that equal and they’re like, I can’t handle the equalness,” she continued. “He didn’t like the atmosphere of me being the boss on tour. So that was really hurtful, and it was very controlling, which was upsetting.
“I felt a lot of responsibility for it ending, but then I found out the real truth, which I can’t necessarily disclose because I keep it locked in my safe for a rainy day. I let go and I was like: This isn’t because of me; this is beyond me. So I have moved on from that.”
Perry also documented her split from the Forgetting Sarah Marshall star in her concert documentary Part of Me. One memorable scene from the film showed the musician breaking down in tears after a row with her husband, before composing her face into a smile moments before going on stage to perform to a packed venue.
Addressing their relationship this year in Running Wild With Bear Grylls: The Challenge, Brand described Perry as an “amazing person” and said that their romance came at a “chaotic” time in his life.
Katy Perry with then-husband Russell Brand— (Getty Images)
“Aside from my sort of feelings of affection for Katy, it’s a time that I remember has been a little bit chaotic and a bit for me, to speak for myself, a little disconnected,” he said.
The singer first met Brand backstage at the 2008 MTV VMAs ceremony, when he was presenting and filming scenes for the 2010 film Get Him to the Greek.
At the MTV Video Music Awards (VMAs) the following year, Perry reportedly threw a bottle at Brand’s head, and the pair were romantically linked soon after.
Perry and Brand at the Grammy Awards in 2011— (Getty Images)
They married one year later in a lavish ceremony at the Ranthambore Tiger Sanctuary in Rajasthan, India, with Brand arriving at the wedding on an elephant. They divorced in 2012, citing “irreconcilable differences”.
Brand is currently married to author Laura Gallacher, the sister of Sky Sports broadcaster Kirsty. The couple have three children together.
Perry, meanwhile, has been engaged to actor Orlando Bloom since 2019, and the couple are parents to three-year-old daughter Daisy Dove.
The Independent has contacted Brand’s representatives for further comment.
Rape Crisis offers support for those affected by rape and sexual abuse. You can call them on 0808 802 9999 in England and Wales, 0808 801 0302 in Scotland, and 0800 0246 991 in Northern Ireland, or visit their website at www.rapecrisis.org.uk.If you are in the US, you can call Rainn on 800-656-HOPE (4673)
