YouTube has blocked Russell Brand from making money on his channel

Russell Brand has been blocked from making money off his YouTube channel after accusations he sexually assaulted women.

YouTube said it had suspended monetisation on Brand's channel after he violated its creator responsibility policy. Source: YouTube

Key Points

• With over six million subscribers to his YouTube channel, Brand has repositioned himself in recent years.
• Brand denied the "very serious criminal allegations" on social media hours before they were published.
• Live shows planned by Brand have also been cancelled after the allegations emerged in the media.

YouTube has blocked Russell Brand from making money from his online channel after the British actor and comedian was accused of a string of sexual assaults.

Brand, once one of Britain's most high-profile comedians and broadcasters, said on Saturday he had never had non-consensual sex.

That came as the UK's Sunday Times newspaper and Channel 4 TV's documentary show Dispatches reported that four women had accused the 48-year-old of sexual assaults, including a rape, between 2006 and 2013.

London police said on Monday that since then they had received an allegation of sexual assault dating from 2003.

Brand, the former husband of US singer Katy Perry, has repositioned himself in recent years to build a more than six million-strong following to his YouTube channel.

Recent videos included an interview with the former Fox News host Tucker Carlson and discussions on everything from COVID-19 to UFOs, censorship and wellbeing.

YouTube, owned by Google parent Alphabet, said it had suspended monetisation on Brand's channel after he violated its creator responsibility policy.

"If a creator's off-platform behaviour harms our users, employees or ecosystem, we take action to protect the community," a YouTube spokesperson said.

Russell Brand leaves the Troubadour Wembley Park theatre in north-west London after performing a comedy set on Saturday, 16 September. Source: AAP / James Manning

Brand issued a video message on social media on Saturday to deny the "very serious criminal allegations" hours before they were published.

"These allegations pertain to the time when I was working in the mainstream, when I was in the newspapers all the time, when I was in the movies. And as I've written about extensively in my books, I was very, very promiscuous," Brand said.

"Now, during that time of promiscuity, the relationships I had were absolutely always consensual," added the comedian, known for his flamboyant style and appearance.

Live shows planned by Brand have also been cancelled after the allegations emerged in the media.

If you or someone you know is impacted by sexual assault, call 1800RESPECT on 1800 737 732 or visit 1800RESPECT.org.au. In an emergency, call 000.