Andrew Sachs’s Granddaughter Says Russell Brand ‘Respected Boundaries’

Russell Brand was described as “always lovely” and as someone who understood and respected boundaries by Andrew Sachs’s granddaughter in a character reference submitted before the comedian was jailed for rape and sexual assault, it can be revealed.

Georgina Baillie wrote the supportive reference for Brand, which was placed before Mr Justice Bennathan during his sentencing hearing on Monday.

She told the judge that she met Brand in 2006 and had about 12 “casual sexual encounters” with him over the following year.

In her letter, Ms Baillie wrote: “Russell never behaved aggressively, coercively or without regard to my wishes.

“I never knew Russell to be dishonest in his dealings with me. In my experience, he was someone who understood and respected boundaries.”

Her appeal for leniency does not appear to have influenced the judge. Some legal experts had suggested that Brand’s sentence of 10 years and six months was tougher than anticipated.

The reference emerged after Ms Baillie told the Daily Mail, following Brand’s convictions for sexual offences, that he was “a seriously unwell sex addict” and that she wanted him to “right the wrongs”.

In the document, Ms Baillie described the comedian as an “unabashed womaniser”, while also portraying him as “always lovely” and someone she trusted to be truthful.

Georgina Baillie, 41, became caught up in Russell Brand’s sordid world after the fallen comedian phoned her grandfather, Fawlty Towers actor Andrew Sachs, to boast about having sex with her. PA found that she wrote a letter supporting Brand before he was sentenced on Monday

Ms Baillie was 21 and performing with a four-member gothic burlesque dance troupe called the “Satanic Sluts” when she entered Brand’s orbit and began a consensual relationship with him

During his trial, Brand said celebrity friends and former colleagues had turned away from him after he was first accused of sexual offences in 2023.

A jury convicted him of four offences committed between 2004 and 2009, after hearing evidence from women who said Brand subjected them to sexual contact without their consent.

Ms Baillie, an artist and art therapist, is the granddaughter of the late Fawlty Towers actor Andrew Sachs. She was also at the centre of the 2008 Sachsgate scandal, which resulted in Brand losing his BBC Radio 2 programme.

Brand and Jonathan Ross telephoned Mr Sachs and left four voicemails describing Brand’s sexual relationship with Ms Baillie. The incident was later broadcast on Brand’s radio show.

Ms Baillie told the court that Brand left her a voicemail after the incident, “suggesting I go to my grandfather’s house to delete the message”.

In her statement, she said she had been “vilified in the press and cast as some sort of immoral witch” after the scandal became public. She also told the judge that Brand later paid for her rehabilitation while she struggled with alcohol addiction.

“Everything between us was consensual and Russell never asked me to do anything I did not want to do,” she wrote of their relationship.

“I was a somewhat wild and free young woman at that time, and I was to some degree in awe of his fame and lifestyle.

“I was never forced or coerced into anything.”

She said she had “grown fond” of Brand and described him as a “genuinely nice person to me”.

“He was very quick-witted and could talk or argue with his own shadow, but could also be thoughtful, reserved and contemplative,” she added.

“Like many funny people, he could be very quiet at first but would throw in a joke and have people rolling about laughing.

“He was intelligent and eloquent, though he could also be immature and he had a large ego.

“In the world that he occupied, it was impossible to succeed without bucket-loads of self-belief and drive.

“He was very talented and that talent brought him fame, fortune and success.

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“He was not everybody’s cup of tea; his comedy was often cutting, shocking or crass, but for me he was exceptional and he was widely adored.

“At the height of his fame, Russell’s public reputation was as an unabashed womaniser and he was in many ways deified for it.

“My friends and I adored him and were excited and intrigued by him. He was different.

“And in return to me and my friends, he was always lovely.

“I never knew Russell to be dishonest in his dealings with me.

“I regarded him as truthful and reliable. Russell never behaved aggressively, coercively or without regard to my wishes.”

Ms Baillie’s life was upended in 2008 when Brand and Jonathan Ross telephoned her grandfather to reveal details of her sex life, with the messages later broadcast on BBC Radio 2

Concluding her statement, Ms Baillie referred to the Sachsgate scandal and wrote: “I have perhaps just as good a reason as anyone not to support Russell, but I still choose to support him because of the person I know him to be.”

The letter was obtained by the Press Association.

Brand was sentenced on Monday to 10 and a half years in prison after being convicted at trial of rape and three counts of sexual assault.

The jury found him guilty of forcing a 21-year-old fan to have anal sex while he was at the height of his fame, groping and kissing a radio station employee, grabbing a woman’s breasts in a bar, and placing his head in the lap of a Channel 4 worker who had been forced to massage him.

When passing sentence, the judge described Brand as “staggeringly arrogant” and said he had sexually assaulted women while believing his fame and status would protect him from the consequences.

The Metropolitan Police has said it received further complaints about Brand after the trial began. Two rape allegations were made before the trial, and the force is assessing with the CPS whether additional charges should be brought.

The Press Association also obtained five other character references used by Brand’s legal team in its request for a shorter sentence during Monday’s hearing.

Brand’s legal team redacted the names of the references’ authors before submitting the documents.

One friend said the former comedian had spent about £400,000 helping at least 20 people attend rehabilitation for alcohol and substance addiction.

One person Brand helped into rehab told the judge: “I believe his intervention saved my life, and I never forget what he did for me.”

Brand was also supported by residents from London’s East End, whom he helped in 2014 after the New Era estate in Hackney was purchased by a private equity firm.

The campaigners took their case to Downing Street and attracted national media coverage with Brand’s help, eventually preventing residents from losing their homes.

One resident, who invited Brand to their home for family meals, wrote to the judge: “I will always be grateful for the kindness, dedication and humanity Russell demonstrated towards us.

“He stood by us at a time when we were vulnerable and needed help, and I have never forgotten what he did.”

Another resident, a mother of two, said she had become friends with Brand. She added: “I was never made to feel uncomfortable or sense anything other than respect and kindness.

“He’s a great listener and would often compliment us on how hard we all worked as single working mothers and how we pulled together to help each other.”

The judge authorised the release of the character references after reading them all before passing sentence. Each writer said they were aware of Brand’s crimes before choosing to support him.