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Channel 4’s chief executive has described the allegations made against Russell Brand as “horrendous” and said it is clear that “terrible behaviour towards women was historically tolerated” in the TV industry.

Alex Mahon made the comments about Brand as she addressed the Royal Television Society’s Cambridge Convention, scheduled before the allegations of sexual assault emerged at the weekend.

Some of the claims date back to when the comedian was presenting the Big Brother spin-off programme Big Brother’s Big Mouth on Channel 4.

Brand, 48, denies any allegations made against him.

Mahon told the audience at the convention that the alleged behaviour, made public in a joint investigation by The Sunday Times and Channel 4’s Dispatches, needs to be looked into further.

She urged people with any information to get in touch anonymously if they want to.

“They’re not empty words or gestures,” she said, adding that the broadcaster will look to find out who knew what about any alleged inappropriate behaviour during Brand’s time on the show.

Channel 4 chief executive Alex Mahon addressed the Russell Brand allegations at the RTS Cambridge Convention. Pic: Richard Kendal/RTS
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Channel 4 chief executive Alex Mahon at the RTS Cambridge Convention. Pic: Richard Kendal/RTS

“But what is clear to me is that terrible behaviour towards women was historically tolerated in our industry, and the clips we’ve seen as well provide a rather shocking jolt when one realises what appeared on air not that long ago,” she said.

“The behaviour is less prevalent now, but it’s still a problem and it’s something that we must all confront. There is still more change that needs to come.”

She added: “The allegations made against Russell Brand are horrendous, and as a CEO of Channel 4 and as a woman in our industry.

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BBC boss asked about Brand allegations

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“I found the behaviours described in Dispatches and The Sunday Times and The Times articles disgusting and saddening.

“The allegations of course need to be followed up further, and we and the BBC and Banijay [a production company] are busy investigating.”

BBC general director, Tim Davie, who was also speaking at the event, said there needed to be an “important dialogue around the deep imbalances of power” within the television industry.

BBC director-general Tim Davie on stage at the RTS Cambridge Convention. Pic: Richard Kendal/RTS
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BBC director-general Tim Davie on stage at the RTS Cambridge Convention. Pic: Richard Kendal/RTS

“I think there’s a deep responsibility for the leaders. The culture needs to be one of trust,” he added.

“There has been deep problems with misogyny, abuse of power, and we just have to be utterly vigilant – be unaccepting of it.”

BBC and Channel 4 remove Brand content

Four women made sexual abuse allegations against the star between 2006 and 2013 as part of the investigation by The Sunday Times and Dispatches.

Brand, who denies the allegations, claimed in a video posted online on Friday night that all his relationships have been “consensual”.

The Metropolitan Police said it received an allegation of sexual assault against Russell Brand dating back to 2003 following the publication of the claims.

On Tuesday, Mr Davie announced a review into Brand’s time at the corporation.

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TV exec: Brand allegations ‘depressing’

The announcement came hours after the broadcaster removed some of its content featuring Brand from iPlayer and BBC Sounds.

TV production firm Banijay UK, owners of Endemol, which produced Big Brother and its spin-offs, confirmed over the weekend that it had launched an investigation.

YouTube also suspended adverts on videos by Brand, while Channel 4 took down content featuring the comedian from its streaming service.

The Google-owned company said it had suspended the monetisation of Brand’s channel for “violating our Creator Responsibility policy”.

The comedian found fame in the early 2000s on the stand-up circuit and as a TV host, before starring in Hollywood films such as Forgetting Sarah Marshall and presenting a show on BBC Radio 2.

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However, in recent years, he has switched to wellness coaching and producing regular YouTube videos – from which he is thought to derive much of his income.

Brand maintains a presence on Rumble – a video site popular with some conservatives and far-right groups – where his channel has 1.4m followers and X, formerly known as Twitter, where he has more than 11m followers.

He has not posted on either since his video denial on Friday.

‘Pretty depressing’

It comes as a TV executive who worked at a company that hired Brand described the allegations against the star as “depressing”.

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Russell Brand denies ‘serious allegations’

Phil Edgar-Jones was creative director of Remarkable Pictures, part of Endemol UK, and oversaw Big Brother during its Channel 4 years.

Speaking to Sky News, he said: “There was never any sense that he’d done anything inappropriate that was brought to our attention, certainly.

“We knew he had a reputation for being promiscuous – and everybody knew that at the time – but that’s as far as it went, as far as we knew.”

He added that the allegations were “pretty depressing”.

Mr Edgar-Jones, who is now director of Sky Arts and Entertainment, went on to stress that Remarkable Pictures would “100%” have acted if something was brought to its attention.

Removing YouTube earnings is ‘cancel culture’

Brand was at the centre of the so-called “Sachsgate” scandal in 2008, when he and TV presenter Jonathan Ross left lewd messages on the answerphone of Andrew Sachs, the late actor who starred in Fawlty Towers.

The voicemails had related to Sachs’ granddaughter Georgina Baillie, who had an on-off relationship with Brand in the 2000s.

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Evidence against Brand ‘compelling’

Speaking to The Politics Hub With Sophy Ridge, Baillie said that YouTube’s decision to suspend earnings from Brand’s channel amounted to “cancel culture”.

The 38-year-old actress went on to say that, even though she did not know all of the details surrounding the allegations, some of the evidence is “compelling”.

When asked about her thoughts about the claims, Baillie added: “I don’t know what happened there – I don’t know because I wasn’t there. He never did anything like that with me, everything was more than consensual, I promise.”

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Reward of £20,000 offered to identify parents of three siblings abandoned as babies over eight years

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Reward of £20,000 offered to identify parents of three siblings abandoned as babies over eight years

A £20,000 reward is being offered for information that leads to the identification of the parents of three siblings found abandoned in London over eight years.

The Metropolitan Police said that despite more than 450 hours of CCTV being reviewed, the parents of the three children, known as Elsa, Roman and Harry, remain unidentified.

However, it is believed their mother has lived in an area of east London “over the past six years”.

Elsa was believed to be less than an hour old when she was found by a dog walker on 18 January last year, in East Ham, east London.

In the months that followed it was found that she had two siblings who were also abandoned in similar circumstances, in the same area of London, in 2017 and 2019.

On Saturday, police said the independent group Crimestoppers had offered a £20,000 reward for information passed to the charity, which will expire on 18 April.

Detective Inspector Jamie Humm, of the Met’s child abuse investigation team, said: “We have carried out extensive inquiries over the past year to try and locate Elsa’s parents.

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Baby Roman. Pic: Met Police
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Baby Roman. Pic: Met Police/PA

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“This has involved reviewing over 450 hours of CCTV and completing a full DNA structure of the mother.

“We have serious concerns for the wellbeing of the parents, especially the mother, and are continuing to work closely with Newham Council and appeal for the public’s help for information.

“I believe that someone in the area will have been aware of the mother’s pregnancies and that within the community there may be (or) have been concerns for this mother’s welfare.

“Thanks to the DNA work of forensic colleagues, police will be able to eliminate any unconnected person quickly and easily, as such I would ask you to contact police with confidence.”

 Newborn baby found in east London
Police and Community Support Officers at the junction of the Greenway and High Street South in Newham, east London, where a newborn baby was found in a shopping bag by a dog walker. The girl, who police say is well and not injured, was discovered wrapped in a towel and inside the bag on Thursday evening. Picture date: Friday January 19, 2024.
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Picture by: Yui Mok/PA Wire/PA Images
Date taken: 19-Jan-2024
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The baby was found at the junction of Greenway and High Street South in Newham. Pic: PA

Elsa was found wrapped in a towel in a reusable shopping bag, of which police have also released a new image, and was kept warm by the dog walker. She was uninjured.

Police said at the time that it was “highly likely” that she was born after a “concealed pregnancy”.

The Boots bag in which Baby Elsa was found abandoned by a dog walker in Newham on 18 January 2024. Pic: Met Police/PA
Image:
The Boots bag in which Baby Elsa was found abandoned by a dog walker in Newham on 18 January 2024. Pic: Met Police/PA

The BBC reported that at an initial court hearing, East London Family Court was told it took doctors three hours to record Elsa’s temperature because of the cold, and the Met Office said that temperatures dropped to as low as -4C on the night she was found.

Hospital staff named her Elsa in a reference to the character from the film Frozen.

The police investigation into the identity of the children’s parents continues, and anyone with information is asked to call police on 101 or post @MetCC ref Operation Wolcott.

People can also contact Crimestoppers anonymously at any time on 0800 555 111 or via Crimestoppers-uk.org.

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Ellis Cox: Mother appeals to catch son’s killer on birthday anniversary

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Ellis Cox: Mother appeals to catch son's killer on birthday anniversary

Fresh appeals have been made for information on what would have been the 20th birthday of Ellis Cox, who was shot dead in Liverpool last June.

A number of people have been arrested in connection with the murder at Liver Industrial Estate, but no one has been charged yet.

The 19-year-old’s family and police have paid tribute to him and called for those with information to come forward.

He was shot in the back after a confrontation between his friends and another group of up to three males on Sunday 23 June.

Pic: Merseyside Police
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Ellis Cox who was shot dead in June 2024. Pic: Merseyside Police

His mother Carolyn paid tribute in an appeal to coincide with what would have been his 20th birthday.

“He was so kind… so laid back, so calm, so mature for his age. And he was just funny. Very funny.

“He was my baby… no mum should have to bury a child. He was my life. And I don’t know what to do without him.”

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Mother of Ellis Cox, Carolyn Cox (blonde hair) and his aunt Julie O'Toole speaking on what would have been Ellis' 20th birthday. He was shot on 23/06/2024 at Liver Industrial Estate
INGEST 28 NM20 GRANADA ELLIS COX FAMILY INTERVIEW POOL EMBARGOED UNTIL 0001 18 JAN 2025
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Mum Carolyn Cox (left) and aunt Julie O’Toole (right) are looking for answers

Pic: Merseyside Police
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Ellis’ mum described him as ‘kind” and “funny. Pic: Merseyside Police

Meanwhile, his aunt Julie O’Toole said he was “the sort of person I think you’d be hard pressed to find anyone to say anything negative about. He was loyal, fiercely loyal… everything was about his family”.

To pay tribute to Ellis, Liverpool City Council will be lighting up the Cunard Building and Liverpool Town Hall in orange on Saturday.

Detective Chief Inspector Steve McGrath, the Senior Investigating Officer, speaking about fatal shooting of Ellis Cox on 23/06/2024 at Liver Industrial Estate
INGEST 28 NM20 GRANADA ELLIS COX FAMILY INTERVIEW POOL EMBARGOED UNTIL 0001 18 JAN 2025
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DCI Steve McGrath does not believe Ellis was involved in criminality

Detective Chief Inspector Steve McGrath, the senior investigating officer, spoke about the information gathered so far, six months on from Mr Cox’s murder.

“I’m satisfied that the group that he was with was probably the target… and I would say that’s got something in relation to do with localised drug dealing in that area. But Ellis had no involvement in that whatsoever,” he said.

He added that police are looking for “really significant pieces of evidence now”, including “trying to recover the firearm that was used in relation to this, looking to recover the bikes that were used by the offenders”.

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Mrs Cox also appealed for people to come forward with information.

“If you know anything, don’t let us get to [his] next birthday and still know nothing.

“We need to get justice for Ellis. And we need to get the people who took him from us off the streets.”

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Manchester United legend Denis Law dies aged 84

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Manchester United legend Denis Law dies aged 84

Former Manchester United and Scotland footballer Denis Law has died, at the age of 84.

In a statement, his family said: “It is with a heavy heart that we tell you our father Denis Law has sadly passed away. He fought a tough battle, but finally, he is now at peace.

“We would like to thank everyone who contributed to his wellbeing and care, past and much more recently.

“We know how much people supported and loved him and that love was always appreciated and made the difference.”

Denis Law in 2005. Pic: PA
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Denis Law in 2005. Pic: PA

The Aberdeen-born footballer previously announced in August 2021 that he had been diagnosed with dementia.

A prolific striker, Law scored 237 goals in 404 appearances for Manchester United, for whom he signed for a then-British record transfer fee in 1962.

He is the only man to have two statues dedicated to him at Old Trafford – one on the Stretford End concourse, the other as part of the United Trinity statue overlooking the stadium’s forecourt beside fellow great George Best and Sir Bobby Charlton.

Denis Law, third from left, as a statue featuring him alongside Sir Bobby Charlton and George Best - known as the 'holy trinity' was unveiled in 2008.
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Denis Law, third from left, as a statue featuring him alongside Sir Bobby Charlton and George Best – known as the ‘holy trinity’ – was unveiled in 2008. Pic: AP

The only Scottish player to have won the Ballon d’Or award, in 1964, he was also part of United’s triumphant campaign in the 1968 European Cup – in which they became the first English club to ever win the competition.

In a statement, the club said: “Everyone at Manchester United is mourning the loss of Denis Law, the King of the Stretford End, who has passed away, aged 84.

“He will always be celebrated as one of the club’s greatest and most beloved players.

Denis Law, centre, during Manchester United's triumphant European Cup campaign in 1968. Pic: AP
Image:
Denis Law, centre, during Manchester United’s triumphant European Cup campaign in 1968. Pic: AP

“The ultimate goalscorer, his flair, spirit and love for the game made him the hero of a generation. Our deepest condolences go out to Denis’s family and many friends. His memory will live on forever more.”

Wayne Rooney, former United captain and the club’s all-time record goalscorer, described Law as a “legend”.

“Thoughts with all Denis’s family and friends,” he said in an online post.

Another former United captain, Gary Neville, said: “A great footballer and a great man. It’s a privilege and an honour to have spent time in your company. The King of the Stretford End.”

A tribute from the Scotland national team said Law was “a true great”.

“We will not see his likes again,” it said.

Law also played for Huddersfield Town, Manchester City, and Italian club Torino during his club career, and made 55 appearances for Scotland, scoring 30 goals for his country.

Manchester City said in a post on X: “The whole of Manchester, including everyone at City, is mourning with you. Rest in peace, Denis.”

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