Andrew Sachs' granddaughter Georgina Baillie told judge Russell Brand 'understood and respected boundaries' in the 12 times she slept with rapist comic

Detailed summary

Georgina Baillie penned a glowing character reference for Brand which was presented to Mr Justice Bennathan at his sentencing hearing on Monday.

Published: 08:49 GMT, 12 November 2026 | Updated: 09:43 GMT, 12 November 2026

Russell Brand was hailed by Andrew Sachs's granddaughter as 'someone who understood and respected boundaries' and was 'always lovely' in a character reference submitted before he was jailed for rape and sexual assault, it can be revealed.

Georgina Baillie wrote the glowing reference for Brand, which was presented to Mr Justice Bennathan at his sentencing hearing on Monday.

She told the judge that she and Brand met in 2006 and had around 12 'casual sexual encounters' over the course of a year.

Ms Baillie wrote: 'Russell never behaved aggressively, coercively or without regard to my wishes.

'I never knew Russell to be dishonest in his dealings with me. In my experience, he was someone who understood and respected boundaries.'

Her plea for leniency appears not to have swayed the judge. Some legal experts suggested Brand's sentence of 10 years and six months was harsher than expected.

The letter emerged after Ms Baillie told the Daily Mail following Brand's convictions for sex attacks that he was 'a seriously unwell sex addict' and that she wanted him to 'right the wrongs'.

In her reference, Ms Baillie described the comedian as an 'unabashed womaniser', as well as someone who was 'always lovely' and whom she trusted to tell the truth.

Opening of the article, excerpted from Daily Mail. To read the rest, open the article on the publisher's site.