Katherine Ryan breaks her silence on Russell Brand as she jokes about the ‘elephant in the room’ during a speech – after accusing the comedian of being a ‘sexual predator’

Katherine Ryan has addressed her comments about Russell Brand for the first time since he was accused of rape and sexual assault this week.

During an on-stage appearance at RTS Cambridge on Wednesday night, Katherine joked about the “elephant in the room”, after it was revealed she accused Brand of being a sexual predator.

Katherine then insisted the “elephant” she was referring to was her recent two-stone gift. weight loss, as she avoided any further reference to her former colleague, 48.

Katherine had accused Brand of being a “sexual predator” while working on the series Roast Battle, before he was axed from the series.

His accusations emerged after Russell was the subject of complaints from a number of women accusing him of abusive and predatory behavior, including rape, sexual assault and emotional abuse, which he has denied with vehemence.

During her appearance, Katherine joked that her weight loss was “the elephant in the room” but neglected to mention Brand.

Russell served as a judge on Comedy Central’s Roast Battle in 2018, but was only included for one season after Ryan allegedly roasted him on camera over allegations that he sexually assaulted women – which he fervently denied.

Roast Battle consists of comedians making jokes at each other’s expense. The first season included Brand, Ryan and Jimmy Carr. Jonathan Ross replaced Brand for the second season.

While filming the show – created by Fulwell 73 – Ryan allegedly made allegations against Brand. His comments were not aired on the show, according to Deadline.

Ryan’s confrontations reportedly revealed how comedians in the industry spoke openly about Brand’s alleged sexual and predatory behavior.

Brand was reportedly “absolutely furious” after being targeted by Ryan on the show, a source told the newspaper.

Two other sources said he demanded that producers protect him from the serious allegations.

Industry insiders have now revealed that they thought it was best for Brand to step down as a judge on the show, and that “ultimately it came down to the fact that it seemed Russell didn’t “didn’t have a good sense of humor.”

This show appears to be one of Brand’s last appearances on British television screens, with the exception of The Great British Celebrity Bake Off in the same year.

Breaking her silence: the actress made an appearance on stage at RTS Cambridge on Wednesday where she made a joke in reference to her two-stone weight loss

Speaking out: Katherine accused Brand of being a “sexual predator” while working on the series Roast Battle, before he was kicked off the show.

Earlier this week, Katherine told the Mail that she and her female co-stars had avoided speaking out about sexual predators working in the industry, for fear they would be seen as “troublemakers”.

She also confirmed that female comics share their stories and fears about predatory men because they consider it the best way to keep them safe.

She said, “Do you think maybe that singles me out as a troublemaker? Do you think women don’t come forward for this and other similar reasons.

“Women in my industry are having these conversations and warning each other because that’s the best, safe course of action for us.”

Katherine Ryan previously claimed she told a comedian “to his face” that he was a sexual predator and that the accusations against this person were an “open secret”.

The Canadian comedian and writer told Louis Theroux she confronted the unnamed man while they were working on a TV show together in front of audiences “over and over again.”

Shocking: Russell has been the subject of complaints from a number of women accusing him of abusive and predatory behavior, which he has vehemently denied.

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Speaking in 2022, she said she had no qualms about doing so as she decided to handle it “like a man” – although the confrontation itself was later removed from the show.

In her conversation with Theroux, Ryan claimed she received criticism afterward for not naming the person in question publicly, but said just talking about him was a “contentious minefield.” because he had “very good lawyers”.

In the Dispatches documentary that first revealed the allegations against Brand, comedian Daniel Sloss claimed that Brand’s behavior was well known to many and that women were cautious about it.

He told the show that there were “many stories with varying degrees of seriousness” about Brand that came from a number of different people in the comedy circuit.