Russell Brand Writes Op-Ed About ‘GQ’ Awards, Hugo Boss ‘Nazi’ Joke

Russell Brand has rubbed salt in the wound for British GQ. 

The comedian has elaborated on his blisteringly sarcastic takedown of the corporate sponsors at the magazine’s Men of the Year awards, held Sept. 3 at the Royal Opera House. 

Honored with the Oracle award at the gala, the comedian proceeded to mock the prize (“It sounds to me like something that has recently been made up”), and made quips about sponsor Hugo Boss’ sordid past making uniforms for Nazi Germany (“They did look f–ing fantastic, let’s face it,” he joked).

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U.K tabloids then fanned the flames of what would become a viral video by reporting that he had been shown the door early at an exclusive event afterparty. 

On Friday, in an op-ed in The Guardian, Brand seemed to express his distaste for award shows in general and this Men of the Year gala in particular. “I could see the room dividing as I spoke. I could hear the laughter of some and louder still silence of others. I realized that for some people this was regarded as an event with import,” he wrote. 

Other honorees during the awards evening included Michael Douglas (Legend award), London mayor Boris Johnson (Politician award), Oasis frontman Noel Gallagher (Icon award), Piers Morgan (TV Personality award) and The Who’s Roger Daltrey (Editor’s Choice award). 

In the op-ed, Brand cleared up his quips about Hugo Boss, noting that he wasn’t trying to campaign against the designer. But he still included a dig about the brand. 

“The jokes about Hugo Boss were not intended to herald a campaign to destroy them,” he wrote. “They’re not Monsanto or Halliburton, the contemporary corporate allies of modern-day fascism; they are, I thought, an irrelevant menswear supplier with a double-dodgy history.”

The comedian went on to voice his general disillusionment with media, government and corporate sponsors. “[T]he glamour and the glitz isn’t real, the party isn’t real, you have a much better time mucking around trying to make your mates laugh,” Brand wrote. “I suppose that’s obvious. We all know it, we already know all the important stuff, like: don’t trust politicians, don’t trust big business and don’t trust the media. Trust your own heart and each other.”

Brand’s speech: