The recent allegations of rape, sexual assault, and grooming against Russell Brand have sparked a profound moment of self-examination in the United Kingdom. While Brand vehemently denies the accusations and claims that all his sexual encounters were consensual, the revelations have forced the UK to confront the deeply toxic and violently misogynistic media culture that dominated the 2000s.
Brand, who played a prominent role in this culture, is not the sole focus of scrutiny; the entire era of the ’00s is being reevaluated. It has become increasingly apparent that the ugliness of that period may have been closer to the surface of public life than many were willing to acknowledge at the time.
Viewers and readers have expressed their revulsion at being reminded of the extreme nature of entertainment during that era. Many are grappling with the realization that what was considered normal at the time now feels profoundly abnormal.
Sarah Ditum, a newspaper columnist and author of “Toxic: Women, Fame, and the Noughties,” which will be published in the United States in January, observed that it was only during her research for the book that she fully comprehended how alien that period of the ’00s now seems.
The ‘noughties’ or ’00s in Britain saw a culture where Russell Brand made onstage jokes in 2006 about violent oral sex, and a year later, he and comedian Noel Fielding riffed about rape during a comedy special. In 2010, actor Danny Dyer suggested in his “agony uncle” column that a jilted man should “cut his ex’s face, then no one will want her.”
The boundaries of acceptability extended to paparazzi lying on the sidewalk to capture upskirt photographs of Emma Watson, who was just 18 at the time. Influential radio DJ Chris Moyles offered to “lead [Charlotte Church] through the forest of sexuality” when she turned 16. The iconic comedy show “Little Britain” featured blackface and jokes targeting LGBTQ people and individuals with disabilities. The show’s stars, David Walliams and Matt Lucas, have since issued apologies.
Remarkably, the careers of those involved in these controversies remained largely unharmed. Today, Noel Fielding hosts the popular “Great British Baking Show,” Chris Moyles hosts a program on Radio X, and Danny Dyer was a leading star in the renowned soap opera “EastEnders” until recently. NBC News has reached out to Fielding’s and Moyles’ representatives for comment. Dyer expressed regret for his “tasteless joke” in his autobiography, stating that he never expected the magazine to publish it.