Katy Perry and Russell Brand's marriage ended by text message on New Year's Eve, the Firework singer revealed.
The comedian took to his YouTube channel last night to issue a statement saying that he 'absolutely denied' serious allegations ahead of tonight's mystery Channel 4 Dispatches programme.
The 48-year-old is currently married to Scottish blogger Laura Gallacher and the pair have two children together, but Laura is his second wife as in 2010, Russell was married to singer Katy, after they met at the VMAs in 2010.
However, after 14 months, the pair's marriage ended with Katy saying that Russell ended things via text and asked her for a divorce just moments before she was due to perform on stage. The content of the text hasn't been revealed, but it's understood to have been a single message from Russell to Katy telling her he was filing for divorce, writes The Mirror.
Speaking about their relationship in 2013, Katy said: "He’s a very smart man, and I was in love with him when I married him. Let’s just say I haven’t heard from him since he texted me saying he was divorcing me December 31, 2011."
After their marriage ended, the Firework singer told the Sunday Times in 2013 she "got a good knock".
She said: "I was in bed for about two weeks. I was pretty f***ed, yes. It hurt a lot," explained the star, who reportedly retaliated by taunting vegan Russell with a picture of a half-eaten Big Mac. She continued: "Unfortunately, although I had the outward self-identity, I didn't have the inner kind, I hadn't built that up. My self-worth was in someone else's hands which is never a good idea, because it can be taken from you at any time. And it was, and it was shattered."
Katy claimed his attitude toward her changed after they got married and she invited him on tour, telling theLos Angeles Timesthat Russell "didn't like the atmosphere of me being the boss on tour".
She added: "So that was really hurtful, and it was very controlling, which was upsetting."
The singer also claimed she found out the "real truth" behind the reason for their split, saying: "I felt a lot of responsibility for it ending, but then I found out the real truth, which I can’t necessarily disclose because I keep it locked in my safe for a rainy day. I let go and I was like: This isn’t because of me; this is beyond me."
Russell previously opened up about his marriage to Katy saying she is an "amazing person". He also told his followers on TikTok in August, as reported by MailOnline, "I really tried in that relationship. I have nothing but positive feelings for her."
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Last night, Brand issued a lengthy statement denying serious mystery claims, which he claims are a 'co-ordinated attack by the media', ahead of Channel 4 Dispatches show, which is set to unearth the behaviour of a celebrity which is believed to be 'hugely damaging'.
Russell insisted this wasn't the type of video he usually made, before adding he had received an "extremely disturbing" letter and an email. Addressing the camera, he said: "I've received two extremely disturbing letters or a letter and an email. One from a mainstream media TV company, one from a newspaper listing a litany of extremely egregious and aggressive attacks.
"These allegations pertain to the time when I was working in the mainstream, when I was in the newspapers all the time, when I was in the movies. And as I've written about extensively in my books, I was very, very promiscuous. Now, during that time of promiscuity, the relationships I had were absolutely always consensual. I was always transparent about that."
Channel 4 Dispatches airs tonight at 9pm.
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