Russell Brand removed from Corbyn's poetry anthology amidst allegations

British celebrity and comedian Russell Brand, who is facing allegations of sexual assault from four different women, was removed as a contributor in Jeremy Corbyn’s upcoming poetry anthology Poetry For The Many.

The publication of Corbyn’s anthology, while originally set for November 14, will be pushed back so that publishers can redesign the cover, which once featured Brand’s name.

A spokesperson for Corbyn’s organization the Peace and Justice Project, confirmed the Huffington Post's report that Brand would be removed.

“In light of the recent allegations concerning Russell Brand, we have removed his contribution from our upcoming Poetry For The Many project,” a spokesperson said.

The controversial remaining contributors 

The book’s remaining contributors include Rob Delaney, Julie Hemondhalgh, Ken Loach, Morag Livingstone, Francesca Martinez, Maxine Peake, Michael Rosen, Alexei Sayle and Gary Younge. 

Ken Loach, one of the aforementioned contributors, was removed from the Labour Party over his membership of the group “Labour Against the Witchhunt.” The group argued that antisemitism claims against the Labour Party were false. 

In one interaction, reported by the Jerusalem Post,  Loach was asked by a BBC interviewer if some might say Corbyn’s election as Labour Party leader had “allowed the oxygen for those sort of views.” In response, Loach said, “Jeremy Corbyn has been a longtime supporter of the Palestinians and the injustice that is done to them, the theft of the land by the Israelis and the massacre of people in Gaza, the blockade of Gaza.” 

Another contributor, Rob Delaney, had joked about Jewish toddlers having their “cute little horns filed off," according to the Jewish Chronicle. Delaney wrote in 2009, “When I think of adorable Jewish baby boys getting circumcised AND having their cute little horns filed off, I get so sad!”

Television actress Maxine Peake, also contributing to the book, in 2020 was forced to apologize after linking the killing of George Floyd in the United States to Israel, the JC reported.

Accusations of sexual assault against Russell Brand 

As the Jerusalem Post reported on September 16, Brand was accused of multiple cases of sexual assaults between 2006-2013. He denied the accusations in what he describes as a “coordinated attack by mainstream media.” 

One of the alleged victims of Brand was only 16 years old at the time of the abuse, the Sunday Times reported.