AN ex-con at the jail where rapist Russell Brand is being held has warned the fallen star needs to “keep his head down” as he is a “marked man”.
The former HMP Wandsworth inmate said Brand, 51, “needed to survive” until he moves to a new prison, following his sentencing.
It comes after the disgraced actor was jailed for 10 years and six months for rape and sexual assault today.
An ex HMP Wandsworth lag, who was released last year, said Brand is now a “dead man walking” in Wandsworth.
He said: “If Brand stays in Wandsworth, he’s in real trouble – a dead man walking.
“He won’t be there permanently but needs to survive until he’s got his permanent move.
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“Wandsworth is violent, corrupt, dirty and noisy. He will be so far out of his comfort zone.
“When I was there staff paid prisoners to attack other inmates and violence would break out over the smallest thing.
“Brand will be a marked man while he is there and – if he is to stay safe – needs to move quickly.”
Brand has received visits by a prison chaplain while behind bars.
The pair prayed with each other as the fiend started his years-long stretch in jail.
Terrified Brand met the minister at his cell door after he was held following his dramatic rape and sexual assault conviction on Thursday.
Brand – who was strip-searched and scanned on arrival at the violence-plagued jail – was yesterday being kept apart from other cons and assessed by officers.
We can reveal that prison bosses have carried out a Cell-Sharing Risk Assessment (CSRA) on Brand – and have opted to house him on his own amid safety fears.
They have also opened up a care in custody document on former comic and TV star Brand, meaning they have to check him regularly and keep records on his mood.
Officers are understood to have blocked Brand from mixing with other cons to keep him safe from violence and extortion at the prison which has been hit by scandals and the 2023 escape of inmate Daniel Khalife.
Shamed tennis idol Boris Becker was held at the Category B nick for several weeks after he was jailed for hiding assets in 2022 – and described it as “really dirty and extremely dangerous”.
As former Hollywood star Brand took in his new surroundings, he was given an in-depth medical which saw his weight, BMI and blood pressure recorded.
Healthcare professionals also quizzed Brand – said in court to have had a ‘goal’ of bedding 5,000 women – about allergies, drug use and medication – and about his sexual history.
And he was given his visit applications, and allowed to list five people he wants to come to see him, plus 10 he wants to speak to on the phone.
Sources said his wife Laura, 39, and the couple’s three children would be allowed to visit – but that would happen when he moves to a new jail.
All visitors and callers have to undergo vetting and security checks, with each phone number he can call also assigned a PIN.
Brand was also handed a menu sheet where he can pick meals including lasagne, curries, shepherd’s pie and baguettes.
He was offered a cooked breakfast of bacon, sausages and hash browns and a Sunday roast style meal over the weekend.
Brand was placed on a “standard” jail regime which means the star – said to have a net worth of £15 million – will be given £19.80 to spend in the canteen plus be allowed a Freeview TV and DVD player plus phonecalls.
Speaking about his time in Wandsworth so far, a source said: “Brand’s first day in jail was a real shock to his system and a wake-up call.
“He looked shaken and was quiet. A horrible, noisy and dirty jail like Wandsworth is a world away from his previous glamorous, Hollywood lifestyle.
“Brand has been put in a cell and is being kept away from other inmates because he is in real danger due to his offence, his wealth and who he is.
“Some of the officers and inmates will be excited to have a celebrity in there – but a lot of the cons would want to do him some damage.
“The chaplain went to see him at his cell door as Brand is not allowed to go very far.
“And apparently they chatted and prayed together after the minister asked Brand about his wellbeing.
“Brand is openly Christian and tried to be a bit of a preacher – but that puts him in danger, especially in a London jail.
“There are a lot of extremist Muslim inmates at Wandsworth.
“And he is not just in danger from them.
“He is at risk of being attacked because of his offences, and because he is famous and flamboyant which can provoke jealousy.
“Brand is also really rich, which puts him in danger of extortion and blackmail.
“So he will not be allowed to mix while he is in Wandsworth, and it will be safer for him – and they will want to ship him out as soon as possible after he’s sentenced.
“While he is there he will be able to watch TV, make phonecalls and buy treats like cans of pop and chocolate from the canteen.
“He will find the prison food pretty awful and have to supplement it by buying stuff.
“And the officers will not be happy about having to record everything about him on the care in custody document as it makes a lot of work for them.”
Brand – found guilty of one rape and three sexual assaults – was jailed for 10 years and six months at Southwark Crown Court today.
Mr Justice Bennathan said Brand was a dangerous “sexual predator” who showed “staggering arrogance” and “contempt” for women.
The judge told Brand: “About 20 years ago, Russell Brand, you were becoming famous.
“You were clever – and in many people’s eyes, funny and charismatic.
“You had also become a sexual predator.”
He added that the comic had told a “series of lies” about the women he abused.
The predator showed no emotion while being sentenced but later mouthed “I love you” and “we will be OK” to his wife Laura Gallacher when being led away to the cells.
Gallacher became visibly upset as Brand was jailed and held back tears as she left Southwark Crown Court.
A prison van thought to be containing the disgraced star was targeted by members of the public as it drove away from the court.
The bystanders started banging on the side of the vehicle, with one man shouting: “Not so funny now Russell.”
After the jury delivered their guilty verdicts, Mr Justice Bennathan told him: “You’ve been convicted of a number of offences including rape.
“The consequence of that is inevitably a significant custodial term.”
Brand was convicted of raping a 21-year-old fan at his Hampstead home after they met at his stand-up show in 2009.
He also sexually assaulted a Channel 4 worker in 2009 and “sloppily” kissed a Capital Radio worker without her consent.
And the beast groped an MTV employee at a party in Soho in 2004.
His crimes had a devastating impact on his victims.
One of them, who was attacked by him at a radio station in 2005, said: “Russell Brand has managed to move on and even forget that he sexually assaulted me violently in a very public place and in front of people.”
Another of his victims said the attack on her forced her to take time off work and move back in with her parents.
She added: “I hope the court can understand the large and overarching impact this has had on me, and continues to have on me to this day.”
Brand was taken the seven miles to HMP Wandsworth after leaving court in a Serco prison van at 4.30pm on Thursday.
But he is only likely to be held there for around a week, with justice chiefs yesterday holding high-level talks on where the sexual predator should serve the rest of his time.
Prisons under consideration are Stafford, Usk in South Wales and Channings Wood, Dorset – where pop paedophile Gary Glitter, 81, is held.
Brand would be expected to serve two-thirds of his sentence under government rules but will only have time knocked off if he completes sex offender therapy.
Brand will have to finish courses for sex offenders. They include ones called ‘Building Choices’ – a cognitive-behavioural programme – and a ‘Thinking Skills’ programme aimed at making culprits question their own behaviour.
Our source explained: “Brand will be moved fairly quickly – probably within days of sentencing – because of who he is.
“The problem they have is that prison governors won’t want him and won’t want the spotlight on their jail.
“But they will have to find a place for him and safety will be on their minds.
“They do not want another Ian Watkins situation on their hands.
“So Brand will probably be moved to a specialist sex offender jail outside London.
“It will be a lot safer for him to be mixing with other middle-aged sex offenders than gangsters and killers.
“A location like that will be more suitable for Laura and their kids to visit if they want to as well.
“And if he wants even a day knocked off his tariff he will have to show remorse and complete the courses.
“Brand’s prison life will still be incredibly grim – but being in a softer jail will work in his favour.”
Paedophile former Lostprophets singer Watkins, 48, was killed in an attack at Category A Wakefield Prison in October, 2025.
A Prison Service spokesperson said they could not comment.