He reportedly told a friend that he spent his 30th birthday last year with his pals as they tied the knot.  "They asked me and I thought it was a great idea and said yes," he said. "I thought it was a good way to celebrate my birthday and a nice thing to do."

It is easy to obtain the qualification needed via the internet. 

Russell now joins the ranks of other celebrity who have been ordained, such as Robbie Williams, Sharon Stone and Joe Pasquale.  And not to forget Matt LeBlanc’s character Joey on Friends, who presided over more than one wedding on the show.  Do we sense a celebrity trend?

Russell has the last laugh - Oct 4, 2020
Charlotte Church and Russell Brand took the top gongs at the Loaded Laftas Comedy Awards today. see photos

Russell was crowned Funniest Man following the success of his cult E4 shows, Russell Brand’s Got Issues and Big Brother’s Big Mouth.

Charlotte won favourite TV Personality following the launch of her new Friday night Channel 4 show.

The Loaded Laftas Legend award went to The Royle Family star Ricky Tomlinson.

Ricky, 67, said: "I’m well chuffed. It’s gear. I’d rather get a pat on the back than a smack on the chin.

"I think it’s lovely and I’m made up. I’m quite a sex symbol as you know."

He joked of last year’s winner, Bruce Forsyth: "Well we’re very similar aren’t we?

"We’re both very very versatile, we’re both very good looking and we’re both over the age of 85. We can both sing, dance.

"But no, I feel very flattered actually to be in the same category as Bruce Forsyth, I think he’s a wonderful entertainer."

Chris Moyles, the self-styled saviour of Radio 1, won the award for the Funniest Radio Show.

Funniest Woman went to Extras star Ashley Jensen (Maggie Jacobs).

Jimmy Carr picked up this year’s award for Best Stand Up, having walked off with the title of Funniest Man last year.

Duo Justin Lee Collins and Alan Carr took Funniest TV Show for the Friday Night Project, and Funniest Double Act.

The awards, held in London restaurant Sketch, were voted for by readers of Loaded Magazine.

Russell’s show branded flop - Sept 14, 2020
Wild-haired comedian Russell Brand has had a disappointing start to his new talk show career. The funnyman’s show Russell Brand’s Got Issues was broadcast for the first time on E4 on Tuesday night, after an intense advertising campaign.

But the former Big Brother presenter failed to pull in as many viewers as rival channels. Only around 148,000 people tuned in for the much-hyped talk show, roughly half the average for the late-night slot. In contrast, 259,000 viewers watched comedy sketch show Little Miss Jocelyn on BBC Three.

It’s a blow for Russell, who has been enjoying a high profile in the media after receiving glowing reviews for his stand-up comedy at the Edinburgh Festival this summer. He was also recently voted the country’s most stylish man by GQ magazine.