Producer steps back from company role after Russell Brand verdict

Various Artists Limited asked Jack Bayles to step back while it considers the verdict and events surrounding Russell Brand’s trial. Bayles said he did not remember the 2009 incident described in court, apologised if he failed to recognise or address distress, and said he had stopped working with Brand in 2010.

• Various Artists Limited asked Jack Bayles to step back from the company while it considers the trial verdict and related events.· 1 source
• The company said Bayles would no longer work on two BBC sitcoms it was making.· 1 source
• The trial heard that in 2009 Bayles and another member of Brand’s team made a staffer give Brand a massage; the woman said she complained to Channel 4 bosses afterward.· 1 source
• Bayles said he did not remember the incident, apologised if he failed to notice or address distress, and said he had stopped working with Brand in 2010.· 1 source
• The report says a jury found Brand guilty of one count of rape and three counts of sexual assault, and cleared him of two further rape charges and one attempted indecent assault allegation.· 1 source