Russell Brand life and biography

Russell Brand is an English comedian, actor, columnist, author and presenter of radio and television.

Brand achieved fame in the UK for presenting a Big Brother spin-off, Big Brother's Big Mouth, and for his radio show, among other television series and award ceremonies. He has appeared in several films, including the romantic comedy Forgetting Sarah Marshall, Bedtime Stories, St Trinian's, Get Him to the Greek and most recently, Despicable Me. He is noted for various controversies that have surrounded him in the British media, such as the 2008 prank calls that led to his resignation from the BBC.

Russell Edward Brand made his theatrical debut, aged fifteen, in Bugsy Malone as Fat Sam. Essex council decreed it criminally neglectful to allow this chameleon like ability to put on hats to go un-nurtured and promptly funded an education at the fancy Italia Conti stage school, which lead to a three-year scholarship at the drama centre in Camden.

In his spare time he began performing stand up in pubs around London and reached the final of the prestigious Hackney Empire new act of the year competition. Brand was denied the victory that many assumed would be his (allegations of jury rigging… More came to naught) but was a runner up and his angry young man political rantings caught the eye of Time Out's Malcolm Hay who dubbed him "Essex's Bill Hicks".

Further gigs at the Empire followed and a successful run at the Edinburgh Festival with more flattering reviews and an appearance in the final of So You Think You're Funny?.

MTV caught Russell's show at the festival and gave him his own series, Dance Floor Chart, where he bantered bizarrely with intoxicated youths in discos. Additionally he presented Select their flagship tea-time phone in show. When Jackass arrived in Blighty Russell was afforded the dubious privilege of promoting it for MTV UK.

BRAND followed for UK Play "a challenging look at cultural taboos." Over ten episodes he had a boxing match with his Father (long before Dennis v Mortimer), had a bath with a homeless man, who he had living in his bed, acted as pimp to a heroin addicted prostitute and tried to convert the leader of the young BNP to socialism.

He also presented his own show on Sunday afternoon for Xfm and acted in Channel Four's White Teeth (Merlin-hippy commune leader/drug dealer), Steve Coogan vehicle Cruise of the Gods, and hosted/wrote The Russell Brand for Channel Four's Comedy Lab series.

Summer 2004 saw Russell host E4's live Big Brother discussion series Efourum, and presents Kings of Comedy for E4, in between which Russell took his one man show Better Now to the Edinburgh Fesitval - a hilariously honest chronicle of Russell's odyssey through a twilight world of whores, heroin and hairdos, demonstrating that the road of excess leads to the palace of unemployment. The show was a complete sellout and received 4 and 5 star reviews in The Times, The Guardian, The Scotsman and The Metro amongst others. Russell has a number of exciting projects in development and has most recently been seen hosting Celebrity Big Brother's Mouth on E4.

In 2005 and 2006 Russell continued his work on Big Brother, hosting Big Brothers Big Mouth. Which was very successful and is now lining up to another series for the forth coming Big Brother 7 this May. He also performed at Edinburgh again last year, with his hit show Eroticised Humour. He will be performing there again this summer. Russell has gone back to MTV to host a new music and enteratainment show, 1 Leceister Square.

Personal life

Brand lives in Hampstead, London, with his cat, which he named after the singer Morrissey, of whom Brand is a big fan. He has been a vegetarian since the age of 14, and is a fan of football and a supporter of West Ham United; Brand says that his love of football is "intrinsically about my relationship with my father". He dresses in a flamboyant bohemian fashion, describing himself as looking like an "S&M Willy Wonka". He has bipolar disorder, and he has suffered from bulimia, and went through a period of self-harm. Brand has shown interest in the Hare Krishna Movement and chants the Hare Krishna mantra for drug rehabilitation. During an interview with Ellen DeGeneres on her show in October, 2010, Brand talked about his love of the Transcendental Meditation technique.

Brand is a former heroin and sex addict and a recovering alcoholic. He has had numerous run-ins with the police, having been arrested 11 times. During the time of his addiction, he was known for his debauchery. Brand was ejected from The Gilded Balloon in Edinburgh, and he infamously introduced his drug dealer to Kylie Minogue during his time at MTV. He has abstained from drug use since 2002 and is now a patron of the addiction charity Focus 12. His abandonment of drugs and alcohol was instigated by his agent, John Noel, after Brand was caught taking heroin in a bathroom during his Christmas party. Brand regularly attends AA and NA meetings.

After a string of high-profile relationships, Brand developed a reputation in the media as a ladies' man. His dating life won him The Sun's Shagger Of The Year award in 2006,2007, and 2008. The award has been renamed "The Russell Brand Shagger Of The Year Award" in honour of Brand having won three years in a row. In January 2009, Brand and several other celebrities wrote to The Independent (as supporters of the Hoping Foundation) to condemn Israel's assault on Gaza, and the "cruel and massive loss of life of the citizens of Gaza". In February 2009, Brand and several other entertainers wrote to The Times defending Bahá'í leaders then on trial in Iran. In April 2009, he attended the 2009 G-20 London summit protests and spoke to the press.

Brand first met American singer/songwriter Katy Perry in the summer of 2008 when Perry filmed a cameo for Brand's film Get Him to the Greek. Brand and Perry began dating after meeting again in September 2009 at the MTV Video Music Awards, where Brand, as host, remarked "Katy Perry didn't win an award and she's staying at the same hotel as me, so she's gonna need a shoulder to cry on. So in a way, I'm the real winner tonight." Perry claims she threw a bottle of water at Brand to get his attention and then they went clubbing together the same night. The couple became engaged in December 2009 when Brand proposed to Perry while on a holiday in India. The couple married on 23 October 2010 near the Ranthambhore tiger sanctuary in Rajasthan, India, the same location where Brand proposed.

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