Russell Brand pictured arriving at court as rape and sexual assault trial commences in London

Mr Brand has been charged with three counts of rape, three of sexual assault and a single count of indecent assault.

He has entered not guilty pleas to every charge.

The selection of jurors is expected to commence this morning, with proceedings due to begin at 9:30am. The trial could run for as long as 10 weeks.

Among the specific allegations previously outlined in court hearings, Mr Brand is accused of raping a woman in a hotel room during the Labour Party conference in Bournemouth.

He is further alleged to have grabbed a television worker by the breasts and coerced her into a sexual act inside a toilet.

A separate accusation involves the kissing and groping of a woman who worked at a radio station.

Born in Essex, Mr Brand first made his name on the stand-up circuit before his career accelerated when Channel 4 selected him to present its Big Brother companion programmes.

During the 2000s, he established himself as one of Britain’s most recognisable comedians, landing high-profile hosting duties at the 2007 Brit Awards, Comic Relief and the MTV Music Video Awards, alongside his own BBC Radio 2 programme.

Hollywood followed, with Mr Brand taking roles in Forgetting Sarah Marshall, a remake of Arthur and the 2012 musical comedy Rock of Ages.

More recently, he has turned his attention to podcasting and online content creation, and is now based in Florida.

High Court judge Mr Justice Bennathan is presiding over the case.

Mr Brand attended a pre-trial hearing at the same central London courthouse last Tuesday, arriving in a black Mercedes with his wife Laura Gallacher by his side.

As he departed the court that afternoon, a bystander called out: “Praise the Lord, Russell Brand,” to which he responded: “God bless you for saying that.”

He offered no further comment on that occasion.

Mr Brand continues to be on bail as the trial gets underway.