- Published
This was not the Russell Brand most people will remember from the height of his noughties TV and comedy fame.
asserted
people → publish → fame
The flamboyant character with big gestures and provocative one-liners was not the man we saw in the courtroom.
asserted
we → see → courtroom
During his rape trial, Brand mostly sat impassively in the dock, staring straight ahead.
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Brand → sit → dock
His stillness was striking.
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stillness → strike → ?
His face betrayed no visible emotion or reaction as the string of allegations against him were outlined in detail over several days.
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string → betray → days
After a three-week trial, the 51-year-old was found guilty of one charge of rape and three charges of sexual assault.
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old → find → assault
He was found not guilty of two counts of rape and one count of attempted indecent assault.
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He → find → assault
The allegations spanned a 10-year period from 1999 to 2009 and involved six female complainants.
The Brand on show in this trial seemed courteous to a fault.
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Brand → span → fault
Yet the polite, respectful man we saw holding doors open and thanking court staff was in striking contrast to how he was portayed in the evidence we heard.
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we → see → evidence
His victims told of a brash, arrogant, sexually voracious man who did not take no for an answer from the women he preyed on; a ruthless rapist and manipulative sex offender.
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he → tell → women
Flashes of the Brand we were used to seeing in the media were not totally absent - they often manifested themselves in the morning when he would arrive at Southwark Crown Court.
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he → use → Court
Mostly dressed in variations of dark jackets and trousers, long scarves and open-neck shirts, he would often make a beeline for the media scrum outside the courthouse.
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he → dress → courthouse
'Today I feel blessed'
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I → feel → ?
On day one of the trial, he confidently uttered the words: "Today, I feel blessed.
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I → utter → words
I feel of course concerned, but hopeful that this process will lead to good outcomes for everybody involved.
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process → feel → everybody
In all my years of covering court cases I've never seen a defendant address journalists during a trial.
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defendant → cover → trial
His professed hatred for the mainstream media clearly did not stop him from having his say.
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hatred → profess → say
Sitting on the floor of a court corridor in the early days of the trial, I was tapping on my phone when Brand walked past.
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Brand → sit → phone
"Hello, mate!" came his cheery greeting.
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greeting → come → ?
It was a bizarre moment given the seriousness of his situation.
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It → give → situation
I continued typing.
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I → continue → ?
In another slightly surreal moment a black people carrier pulled up outside the court on the day the trial began.
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trial → pull → day
The door to the car slid open and out stepped a man who looked just like Brand - but it wasn't him.
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it → slide → Brand
The mystery man attracted a few shouted questions before Brand stepped out of the car behind him.
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Brand → attract → him
The man was present on most days of the trial and wandered around after Brand, attracting double-takes and much comment, with no clarity about who he actually was.
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he → wander → clarity
Brand now positions himself as a Christian influencer and has been public about his faith.
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Brand → position → faith
It was on display during his trial via the crucifixes of varying sizes that he wore.
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he → vary → that
One day, I saw him handling what looked like prayer beads.
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what → see → beads
The judge faced Brand, who sat in a long glass box with a door at one end, which was mostly left open, giving him a view of his wife.
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which → face → wife
Between Brand and the judge, sat two sets of lawyers with the jury sitting immediately to the right of the judge.
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jury → sit → judge
Day after day we listened to harrowing and graphic accounts of rape and sexual abuse of some of the worst kinds imaginable.
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we → listen → kinds
The courage of the women who told their stories in court, who spoke behind a screen, was remarkable.
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who → tell → screen
The tears flowed, their nerves evident in their voices.
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nerves → flow → voices
The way they told their stories was deeply moving.
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they → tell → stories
He didn't flinch
In the dock Brand's statue-like demeanour was broken only occasionally, when, during some of the evidence, he closed his eyes for several seconds, perhaps in silent prayer or meditation.
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he → flinch → prayer
He didn't flinch.
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He → flinch → ?
He maintained his composure even during some of the most harrowing evidence, when one of the victims told the court how blood and faeces had been left on Brand's bed sheets after he had raped her at his house.
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he → maintain → house
During the testimony, Brand let out a sigh and looked at the ceiling with his eyes closed.
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eyes → let → ceiling
Speculation grew about whether Brand would give evidence - defendants can choose whether to take to the stand in their trials.
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defendants → grow → trials
It became a daily talking point among the reporters.
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It → become → reporters
…and 28 more, not listed.
The Aporia
