Piers Morgan praised for asking Russell Brand telling question during 'excruciating' interview

Warning: This article contains discussion of rape, sexual assault and sexual harassment which some readers may find distressing.

On Friday evening, Piers Morgan sat down with Russell Brand for an interview on his YouTube show, Piers Morgan Uncensored.

Following the chat, Morgan has been praised for how he handled the 'excruciating' interview, with viewers honing in on one question in particular which Morgan asked Brand, who is currently facing trial on three counts of rape, three counts of sexual assault and one count of indecent assault.

Brand has always denied all charges against him.

During the interview, Morgan asked Brand about the Bible that he had taken into court. At the time, the comedian was seen reading it, but it was later confiscated by an officer.

"Can I go back to asking you a question about your Bible? Was that the one you took into court?" Said Morgan.

"What was your thinking in taking it into court? You were seen looking at some passages, what were the relevant passages to you?"

Brand is then seen flicking through the pages of the Bible, looking for one passage in particular. However, it was a moment that viewers found 'painful' after 90 seconds passed without Brand able to find what he was looking for.

Morgan remains totally silent during the minute and a half, resisting interjecting and filling any kind of awkward silence - something which has reaped him praise online.

In the end, Brand couldn't find the verse in question, but eventually found one he felt was similarly applicable.

The moment has earned Morgan praise online, and from some of his critics, too.

One person wrote on X: "If @piersmorgan hadn't blocked me, I'd happily tell him that his judgment here was impeccable; a masterful silence. I'm astonished that @rustyrockets, with his capacity as an actor and spontaneous verbiage, didn't have the presence of mind simply to extemporise. He most have known the gist of the verse from Isaiah, and could (I'd have thought) have paraphrased with conviction. Piers wouldn't have been any the wiser."

Another said: "The discipline of @piersmorgan to just sit there silently for the excruciating 90 seconds of page turning without interjecting at all... props."

While a third added: "Superb! Absolutely electrifying. The cringe factor was off the scale!"

And a fourth said: "No one, and I do mean no one, has said more critical things about Piers Morgan than me, but silently letting this play out was broadcasting genius."

And a fifth wrote: "Piers Morgan giving a masterclass here."

Brand will stand trial in October at Southwark Crown Court in London.

In an earlier interview on The Megyn Kelly Show podcast this week, Brand admitted he had had sex with a 16-year-old girl when he was aged 30.

He said: “In Europe and in the United Kingdom where I’m from, the age of consent is 16. And I did sleep with a 16-year-old when I was 30.

“But when I was 30, I was a very different person. I was a lot younger and I was an immature 30-year-old.”

If you've been affected by any of the issues in this article, you can contact The National Sexual Assault Hotline on 800.656.HOPE (4673), available 24/7. Or you can chat online via online.rainn.org