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By Joshua Rhett Miller
Senior Reporter
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Laura Gallacher, Russell Brand's wife of nearly a decade, stood by her husband's side throughout his criminal trial, including on Monday as he was sentenced to more than 10 years for rape and sexual assault.
But the 39-year-old author and illustrator, who married Brand in 2017, is now struggling to stay composed as her new reality takes shape, according to the disgraced entertainer's attorney, Ian Winter.
"I'm afraid words are completely inadequate to truly try to convey to your Lordship the total devastation she's experiencing," Winter told Judge Joel Bennathan, The Mirror reported. "Currently, [they] are wrestling with how to exactly explain to a child who's just turned 10 what has happened here. It brings home the consequences of this conduct to totally innocent people who have been caught up in it."
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Brand's wife intends to remain "standing by him" in the aftermath of his decade-plus prison sentence, Winter said.
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Gallacher attended Monday's proceedings alongside eight other members of Brand's entourage, including his father, Ronald Brand, The Mirror reported.
The actor-comedian showed little emotion as Bennathan characterized him as a "sexual predator," but mouthed the words "we'll be OK" to his wife as he was led away by officers at Southwark Crown Court in London.
"About 20 years ago, Russell Brand, you were becoming famous," Bennathan told Brand in court. "You were clever — and in many people's eyes, funny and charismatic. You had also become a sexual predator."
Brand and Gallacher had continued recording their Sunday Service podcasts throughout his trial, with Gallacher referencing her "nerves" before arriving at court and comparing the experience to being in the "eye of the storm." She also said the address of the courthouse on Battle Bridge Lane had been fitting since "you don your armor," The Mirror reported.
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Gallacher, the daughter of former Scottish golfer Bernard Gallacher, started dating Brand when she was 19 and he was 31, according to The Mirror. The couple later married in August 2017 in a private ceremony near their home in Henley-on-Thames, England. The couple has three children, ages 10, 8 and 3.
Gallacher has written several children's books, including The Joy Journal for Magical Everyday Play, which was published in 2020.
The 12-year gap between Gallacher and her sister translated to plenty of time alone during her childhood, she has previously said.
"My parents allowed me a lot of time outside to be creative, like making mud pies or petal perfumes," Gallacher told The Telegraph in 2022. "To me, that was a world of magic."
Gallacher has also praised Brand for letting their children experience that same sense of wonder by "engaging their imaginations" on walks together.
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"He's naturally very playful, and so good at storytelling it becomes like an immersive story time," she told The Telegraph. "And then if he spots something in nature, he’ll say, ‘Can Mummy tell us about this? Because she really knows about all this,’ and it's my cue to describe something I’ve researched."
But Gallacher's father wasn't pleased when the pair were first introduced in 2007, when Laura was an 18-year-old art student. Brand, then 31, shared an agent with Laura's sister, model and presenter Kirsty Gallacher, and met Laura in London after one of his events. Laura's father "begged her to end it," The Telegraph recently reported.
Attempts to reach Gallacher on Tuesday were unsuccessful.
Brand's sentencing on Monday marked a "significant milestone" in holding the actor-comedian accountable for his actions, Metropolitan Police Detective Superintendent Andy Furphy said.
"The victims have had to revisit deeply traumatic experiences and endure significant public and media attention," Furphy told reporters outside court. "I hope today’s outcome provides some measure of closure and allows them to continue rebuilding their lives."
Senior Crown Prosecutor David Roberts also praised Brand's victims for cooperating with investigators.
"We want to thank all the women who were at the heart of this case," Roberts said in a statement. "They did not know each other, and each has carried what happened to them for almost two decades."
If you or someone you know has been a victim of sexual violence, you can contact the National Sexual Assault Hotline at 800-656-4673, or contact the Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network (RAINN) helpline via their website rainn.org.
Contact Newsweek editors on this story: Rebecca Flood, Gray R. Thomas
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