The BBC has issued a formal apology after a review into the conduct of Russell Brand has found some staff “felt unable to raise” concerns about him and believed he “would always get his way and therefore they stayed silent”.

The 49-year-old actor and comedian denies accusations of sexual abuse (including rape) and harassment, and has previously said all his sexual relationships were “absolutely always consensual”.

In September 2023, a joint investigation by The Sunday Times, The Times, and Channel 4’s Dispatches revealed four women had accused him of sexual assaults between 2006 and 2013.

On Thursday (British time), the BBC published the results of a review carried out into Brand’s conduct during his time at the broadcaster between 2006 and 2008.

Peter Johnston, the BBC’s director of editorial complaints and reviews, investigated eight complaints about Brand.

Only one of those was formally made to the BBC. It was a 2007 complaint by an employee that Brand urinated in a cup while recording a Radio 2 show, and into a bottle during a second show.

According to Johnston’s report, Brand was also accused of behaving “in an aggressive manner, throwing objects at the screen in anger when a mistake was made by the production team during that second show”.

“I am grateful to those who have come forward to talk to me and my team and I have apologised on behalf of the BBC to those most directly affected by what I have documented here,” Johnston said.

“The culture of the time undoubtedly influenced what was acceptable/tolerated. But I have found that a number of individuals had concerns about Russell Brand’s behaviour which they felt unable to raise then.

“Many interviewees believed, rightly or wrongly, that Russell Brand would always get his way and therefore they stayed silent (and I note here my finding above that the one complaint that was made in 2007 was not dealt with effectively when it was made).”

Johnston said the complaint was raised verbally with the BBC’s then-controller. After it was filed, the employee concerned did not work on the show again, at their request.

“The processes for raising any concerns were also not as developed as they are now,” Johnston said.

“In the intervening years the BBC has introduced other mechanisms and routes for staff to raise concerns.”

Another allegation Johnston looked into was that Brand had exposed himself to a woman in the bathroom of the broadcaster’s Los Angeles bureau. A complaint was made but the incident was considered “fairly common knowledge” and “often ‘joked about’”.

The woman involved told Johnston that “she felt embarrassed and did not want to raise it or talk about it, so instead treated it lightly when it came up”.

There were also rumours among staff that Brand brought groups of women into the office and had sex in the staff toilets.

“A few most closely involved in the shows described Russell Brand as promiscuous or out-of-control, but said that they did not witness anything non-consensual or potentially illegal, nor did they make complaints about this at the time,” Johnston wrote.

The BBC acknowledged that Brand was “perceived to be too influential” for staff to complain about.

“The review considered eight complaints of misconduct about Russell Brand, only two of which were made while he was engaged by the BBC, one formally and one informally,” it said.

“It is of great concern that some of these individuals felt unable to raise concerns about Russell Brand’s behaviour at the time, and the BBC has apologised to them as part of this review.”

British police are still investigating several accusations of sexual offences against Brand between 2006-2013, at the height of his fame. He has been interviewed three times by police since September 2023.

-with AAP