Laura Gallacher is determined to support Russell Brand and has no plans to leave him after he was sentenced to more than 10 years in prison for rape and sexual assault.
The mother of his three children is said to be experiencing “total devastation” after her husband was convicted of four sexual offences.
Ms Gallacher, the sister of television presenter Kirsty Gallacher and daughter of Ryder Cup-winning golfer Bernard Gallacher, is reportedly struggling to explain the truth about Brand’s crimes to their children.
She left Southwark Crown Court close to tears yesterday after crumpling in her seat when the sentence was handed down. During the hearing, she had been seen shaking her head as Brand’s victims described the effect of his attacks.
Ms Gallacher then leaned forward in disbelief before composing herself and mouthing, “I love you” to Brand. He waved as he was taken to the cells, while she placed her hand against the glass dock and quietly repeated the words.
Her loyalty to Brand, described by some sources close to her family as resembling “brainwashing”, was highlighted by his legal team as they sought a less severe prison term.
Ian Winter KC told the judge that Brand’s wife was “standing by him”.
He said: “Words are completely inadequate to convey the total devastation she’s experiencing.
“They are wrestling with how to explain to a child who’s just turned ten what has just happened here and the consequences of this conduct to totally innocent people who have been caught up in it.”
Laura Gallacher mouths “I love you” to Brand after he waved to her while being taken to the cells, following the court’s decision that she was standing by him
The mother of three leaned forward after hearing that Brand would receive a sentence of more than 10 years
Ms Gallacher was escorted through the crowds to a waiting Mercedes after her husband was jailed
She fought back tears while leaving court on Monday with a friend
Brand pictured with his wife at Southwark Crown Court last Thursday, hours before his conviction
Soon afterwards, Ms Gallacher left the court with her red-rimmed eyes hidden behind sunglasses as she faced difficult questions about her decision to stand by Brand.
When the comedian was later driven away from Southwark Crown Court in a prison van, members of the public struck the vehicle’s windows. One man shouted: “Not so funny now, Russell, are you?”
Brand is also being investigated over fresh allegations of abuse.
Police have received “multiple reports” of sexual abuse since the 51-year-old comedian and actor was convicted of raping one woman and sexually assaulting three others.
Former girlfriend Jemima Goldsmith, 52, became the latest person to come forward last night, accusing Brand of “violence, coercive control and abuse”. She said she was so frightened after an alleged “violent incident” in 2014 that she called police to remove him from her £15 million Cotswolds home.
Brand showed no emotion in court yesterday as the judge said he had used his celebrity status to prey on women, believing that “fame meant you could act how you liked, when you liked, unhindered by the rules by which decent people live”.
Sitting in the dock, Brand blinked in apparent disbelief as he was told he would serve at least seven years of a 10-and-a-half-year sentence for attacks on four women between 2004 and 2009.
He could now face a second trial as police examine a number of new claims. Prosecutors are expected to decide within weeks whether to charge him over two further alleged rapes, including an alleged attack on a 16-year-old.
Mr Justice Bennathan said yesterday that Brand had displayed a “casual arrogant disregard to any woman’s right to say no to you”. He told him: “About 20 years ago, Russell Brand, you were becoming famous, you were clever, and in many people’s eyes you were funny and charismatic. You had also become a sexual predator.”
The judge condemned Brand’s “staggering arrogance” and his belief that his “status protected” him. He said Brand had resorted to attacking journalists after they first exposed his alleged conduct in 2023. The judge also criticised members of Brand’s entourage for allowing “dreadful behaviour” to continue after assaults allegedly took place in front of staff who either laughed or failed to intervene.
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He praised the victims for their “determination and bravery”. “All those women had to face being confronted and being told they had lied, or twisted the truth and, or, they had agreed to your sexual demands: that was all done because of you, on your instructions,” he said.
Mr Justice Bennathan also rejected rape myths after Brand’s defence barrister faced criticism for citing stereotypes and suggesting the victims should not be believed because they had not screamed, kicked or slapped him more forcefully.
The judge said: “Whatever women wear, wherever they go, indeed whatever they drink, they retain the right to say no and to demand justice from the criminal courts when sexual predators like you, Russell Brand, act without their consent.”
Brand’s barrister, Mr Winter, was paid about £1 million to defend him, legal sources told Our News Outlet. The fraud specialist was reportedly brought in after several leading female barristers declined to take the case.
However, the strategy appeared to backfire after Mr Winter faced a Bar Standards Board investigation over a foul-mouthed exchange with the journalist whose investigation exposed Brand. After the verdict, he reportedly told her that she had “f*****” justice.
A courtroom sketch shows Brand in front, with his wife to the left, his father Ron to the right and his bodyguard behind them as he was sentenced
Brand’s father told reporters that his son was the real victim of the trial
Two Brand supporters cried outside court after he was sentenced for four sexual offences
The supporters held this banner outside the court
Brand’s crucifix was visible through the window of the prison van as he was driven away
Andy Burnham has promised to review the law, saying he would be “relentless in making whatever improvements” were needed to offer greater support to victims. In court, Mr Winter argued that Brand had been unfairly depicted as a “monster” and suggested he should instead be viewed as a man who experienced a “short, momentary total failure” to respect a woman’s consent.
Despite Brand’s rape conviction, Mr Winter prompted surprise in court when he argued that his client should be sentenced “not in the way that he has been portrayed over the last four days [as someone] who is, in general terms, a rapist”.
Brand will serve two-thirds of his sentence before being released on licence.
He is expected to seek legal advice about an appeal, although legal sources have said the jury’s mixed verdicts could make it difficult to convince appeal judges that the conviction was unsafe.
Brand was convicted of rape and three sexual assaults, but acquitted of two further rape charges and an allegation of attempted indecent assault.
One source said: “In a way it would have been easier for Winter if there had been a clean sweep of guilty verdicts, at least then he could have argued that Brand did not get a fair trial because of the Channel 4 Dispatches and Sunday Times investigation.
“The mixed verdicts show the jury reached their verdicts on the facts, regardless of the media attention, which makes an appeal very tricky.”
After sentencing, Detective Superintendent Andy Furphy urged anyone who may have been a victim of Brand to contact police.
He said: “I want to make a direct appeal to anyone who has been a victim of rape or any other sexual offence.
“We know it can take enormous courage to speak about what has happened to you, no matter how long ago it occurred or who was responsible.
“If you come forward, you will be listened to, supported and treated with care and compassion.”
Jemima Goldsmith, pictured with Brand in 2013, has accused him of “violence, coercive control and abuse” after reports emerged that she and the comedian had gagged a massage therapist for more than a decade
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