Russell Model’s ‘sinister behaviour’ was an ‘open secret’ amongst senior TV and radio executives at BBC and Channel 4, bombshell investigation claims – as chiefs ‘face grilling’ over how the star handled feminine employees

Allegations about Russell Brand’s ‘sinister’ behaviour in direction of ladies had been an ‘open secret’ amongst TV and radio executives, it has been claimed.

Bosses on the BBC and Channel 4 are stated to have turned a blind eye in direction of the entertainer’s behaviour whereas he labored for them as a presenter between 2006 and 2013.

The broadcasters have insisted they took all vital steps over him, however executives might nonetheless be referred to as earlier than a Authorities choose committee the place MPs will grill them over what they knew.

Model has been accused of rape, sexual assault and emotional abuse by a number of ladies, together with one who says she was 16 on the time. He has denied the allegations. 

The 48-year-old’s behaviour is alleged to have been widespread data amongst feminine performers on the comedy circuit, who’re stated to warned one another about him.

Model has posted a video on YouTube and Twitter refuting the allegations and insisted relationships on the time of his promiscuity’ had been ‘consensual’.

Nevertheless, his perspective in direction of ladies is claimed to have been an open secret in radio and TV manufacturing, based on sources who briefed The Sunday Times. 

He additionally has a historical past of constructing high-profile and controversial remarks about ladies on his reveals – together with calling newsreader Andrea Simmons a ‘intercourse bomb’ and describing her as ‘erotic’ and saying he wished to ‘go beneath the desk’ whereas she was studying the information.

In 2008 a ferocious public backlash was sparked after Model and Jonathan Ross referred to as the much-loved Fawlty Towers actor Andrew Sachs throughout Model’s present and left lewd messages on his answerphone – together with bragging about intercourse with Sachs’s granddaughter Georgina Baillie, with whom he had a short relationship.

In keeping with The Sunday Instances many imagine the BBC ought to been awake to the considerations about Model’s behaviour on his present effectively earlier than the Sachsgate scandal.

Reportedly, a critical criticism was made by BBC employees to the station’s Controller Lesley Douglas about Model’s behaviour within the studio, in December 2007.

The Instances has reported that the criticism adopted an ‘alarming show of aggression and disrespect’ by the radio host the place he hurled objects in a match of rage.

It additionally reported he urinated in a bottle in full view of manufacturing employees and a visitor – who ‘gave the impression to be a minor’ – and had been invited to seem on Radio 2 by a charity.

This alleged criticism and any others that had been made weren’t talked about in subsequent official reviews into Sachsgate.

Douglas’ legal professionals have stated she ‘didn’t at any time encourage, allow and/or fail herself to take any enough steps inside her energy with regard to the conduct of Russell Model of which she was conscious’.

‘She is presently unable to supply any additional info which can be related to the issues raised on this article because of the obligations owed by her to her former employer,’ her legal professionals added.

Model left the BBC after the intense editorial breach in 2008 as did Douglas.

A BBC spokesperson stated: ‘The circumstances of the breach had been reviewed intimately on the time. We hope that demonstrates that the BBC takes points severely and is ready to behave. 

‘We’ll at all times take heed to folks if they arrive ahead with any considerations, on any challenge associated to any particular person working on the BBC, previous or current.’ 

Nevertheless, the BBC additionally confirmed that it didn’t examine pre-Sachsgate complaints made about Model between 2006 and 2008 when he hosted reveals for Radio 2 and 6 Music.

A number of occasions after this it’s implied that Model was pressured to apologise by manufacturing employees, but regardless of this, his profession continued to flourish.

Two of the ladies in Channel 4’s Dispatches which aired on Saturday evening stated they felt manufacturing corporations had ‘enabled’ Model’s behaviour.

Manufacturing runner, Rachel, 24, labored alongside Model on Large Brother’s EFourum, later Large Mouth. Weeks after she began the position, Model is claimed to have targeted his consideration on her.

Rachel stated: ‘It is troublesome to say when the road was crossed.’ She added that producers typically requested her to ship unfavourable information to Model to ‘soften the blow’. 

She stated the pair went on to have intercourse, which he instructed her was a breach of his contract.    

Rachel stated: ‘He made clear to me I could not inform anybody else on the crew as a result of he had it written into his contract that he wasn’t allowed to have any sexual contact with anybody engaged on Large Brother.

‘It sounds barely dramatic however with hindsight and now as an older lady I can say with readability that, you recognize, I felt like I used to be groomed, for intercourse.

‘Manufacturing corporations enabled him to exist in these environments the place he was in a position to make the most of who he was.’

Three employees who labored on Large Brother instructed Dispatches about Model.

One stated: ‘My position was to recruit viewers members for the dwell present. We used to exit flyering out by the colleges, discover college college students who would come be on the present.’

One other stated: ‘Russell is stating viewers members and asking the runner to get telephone numbers.’

A 3rd stated they’d be handed paper generally telling which lodge Model was in.

The manufacturing employees stated they acquired tearful telephone calls the following day from people who had been to see the comic.

One stated: ‘It was like we had been taking lambs into slaughter. We had been mainly appearing like pimps to Russell Model’s wants.’

Alice, who stated she was in an emotionally abusive and controlling relationship with Model when she was simply 16 and he 31 , claims Channel 4 and the BBC ‘had a hand’ in enabling Model. 

Later in life, Alice went on to work for Channel 4. She recalled throughout a gathering in late 2013 or early 2014 Model was pitched as a number of a present – however considerations about his behaviour had been flagged. 

‘The answer that was supplied was that we’d take the feminine employees off the crew – ladies which have labored arduous to get into this business – now cannot work on explicit reveals due to worry that they is perhaps assaulted or harassed. I used to be in disbelief,’ she stated. 

In a press release, Channel 4 stated: ‘Channel 4 is appalled to study of those deeply troubling allegations, together with behaviour alleged to have taken place on programmes made for Channel 4 between 2004 and 2007. 

‘We’re decided to know the complete nature of what went on. We now have carried out in depth doc searches and have discovered no proof to counsel the alleged incidents had been delivered to the eye of Channel 4. We’ll proceed to overview this in mild of any additional info we obtain, together with the accounts of these affected people.

‘We will likely be asking the manufacturing firm who produced the programmes for Channel 4 to analyze these allegations and report their findings correctly and satisfactorily to us.

‘Within the a few years for the reason that alleged incidents passed off, there has clearly been in depth change in Channel 4’s administration and commissioning groups. Right now, Channel 4 has a zero-tolerance strategy to unacceptable behaviour and has a strong Code of Conduct. We require all suppliers to have in place rigorous safeguarding insurance policies and supply whistleblowing help, together with Channel 4’s Communicate Up facility.

‘We’re dedicated to making sure our business has secure, inclusive {and professional} working environments.’

Whereas working for the BBC, Model supplied to carry a unadorned feminine worker with him when assembly Jimmy Saville.

In the course of the telephone name with Saville in Might 2007, 5 years earlier than his crimes had been uncovered, Model stated: ‘I’ve received a private assistant. And a part of her job description is that anybody I demand she greet, meet, massages, she has to do it. She’s very enticing, Jimmy.’ 

Reportedly, a critical criticism was made by BBC employees to the station’s Controller Lesley Douglas about Model’s behaviour within the studio, in December 2007.

The Instances has reported that the criticism adopted an ‘alarming show of aggression and disrespect’ by the radio host the place he hurled objects in a match of rage. 

It additionally reported he urinated in a bottle in full view of manufacturing employees and a visitor – who ‘gave the impression to be a minor’ – and had been invited to seem on Radio 2 by a charity.

This alleged criticism and any others that had been made weren’t talked about in subsequent official reviews into Sachsgate.

Sachsgate erupted in 2008 after Model and Jonathan Ross referred to as the much-loved Fawlty Towers actor Andrew Sachs throughout Model’s present and left lewd messages on his answerphone.

Ross stated ‘He f***** your granddaughter’ within the pre-recorded broadcast. 

Model had been in a sexual relationship with Sachs’ granddaughter, Georgina Baillie, which the actor had not been conscious of.

A BBC spokesman confirmed that a number of complaints had been made to former Radio 2 controller Lesley Douglas, however they had been by no means investigated, including that they ‘solely went so far as that’ and ‘nothing was accomplished’.

The BBC spokesman added that Ms Douglas resigned in 2008 after the Sachsgate scandal.

Sources stated there have been no plans to launch a recent investigation into the allegations.

A consultant for Ms Douglas stated: ‘Ms Douglas didn’t at any time encourage, allow and/or fail herself to take any enough steps inside her energy with regard to the conduct of Russell Model of which she was conscious.’

The BBC didn’t reply to questions on considerations being ignored by senior colleagues. It stated: ‘Over successive years the BBC has advanced its strategy to the way it manages expertise and the way it offers with complaints and points raised.’

In the meantime, Channel 4 confirmed final evening that it had ordered a probe into claims that employees working with Model on the fact TV spin-off Large Brother’s Large Mouth in 2005 had been made to really feel like ‘pimps’ when he instructed them to seek out feminine viewers members for him to satisfy.

It was additionally alleged that Model’s behaviour in direction of younger ladies ‘raised questions’.

One employee revealed occasions when she needed to acquire Model from his lodge room and he would seem in his underwear, suggesting that they had a ‘quickie’ earlier than filming. One other employees member stated they had been left ‘in tears’ by his behaviour.

A spokeswoman for the community stated it had instructed Endemol, the corporate that made Large Brother’s Large Mouth, to analyze the claims totally and report again. 

She stated: ‘We will likely be asking the manufacturing firm who produced the programmes for Channel 4 to analyze these allegations and report their findings correctly and satisfactorily to us.’

She added that the broadcaster was ‘decided to know the complete nature of what went on’ and had ‘carried out in depth doc searches and located no proof to counsel the alleged incidents had been delivered to the eye of Channel 4’.

Nevertheless, employees at Channel 4 have accused their bosses of ‘passing the buck’ to Endemol, with one telling The Mail on Sunday: ‘They fee the manufacturing firm and due to this fact they’ve a accountability to make it possible for their employees are handled correctly and that complaints are handled correctly and swiftly. It is typical Channel 4.’

The BBC didn’t reply to Dispatches’ questions on considerations being ignored by senior colleagues. It stated: ‘Over successive years the BBC has advanced its strategy to the way it manages expertise and the way it offers with complaints and points raised.’

It additionally apologised for failing to answer Dispatches’ freedom of knowledge requests asking for particulars of complaints about Model.

In Dispatches’ episode, Lorraine Heggesy, Senior Tv Government and BBC One Controller 2000 – 2005, stated: ‘Each the broadcaster and manufacturing firm are collectively answerable for responsibility of care and for requirements to be upheld throughout the manufacturing.’