Former priest accused of assaulting 'staggering number’ of women in evangelical church 'cult'
1 July 2025, 15:04
A former priest sexually assaulted a “staggering number” of female members of an alleged cult church group he led, exerting control over their lives and ostracising them from friends and family, a court has heard.
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Christopher Brain, 68, from Wilmslow, Cheshire, was leader of the evangelical movement the Nine O’Clock Service in Sheffield between 1986 and 1995.
Brain sat in the dock at Inner London Crown Court on Tuesday for the opening of his trial in which he is accused of one count of rape and 36 counts of indecent assault between 1981 and 1995 against 13 women.
Prosecutor Tim Clark KC told jurors that the Nine O’Clock Service (NOS) church group was aimed at younger people and “presented itself to the outside world as a progressive force for good”.
“In truth NOS became a closed and controlled group which the defendant dominated and abused his position first as a leader and then as an ordained priest to sexually assault a staggering number of women from his congregation,” he alleged.
He said evidence will show NOS became a cult where members were encouraged to separate themselves from their families and friends, even those loved ones involved in the group, and ultimately became “dependent” on NOS and “desperate for the attention and praise” of its leader, Brain.
“The defendant was seen by a number of witnesses to be surrounded by attractive women at his home,” Mr Clark told jurors.
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“They were noted to be wearing lingerie or otherwise revealing clothing whilst apparently employed to look after the needs of the defendant.”
The prosecutor also said that Brain would “suddenly appear” in the lives of female members of NOS, “often picking them up in his car whilst they were walking along”.
Women who did not keep the defendant happy would find themselves estranged from the group, Mr Clark said.
TV programmes were made and books written about NOS after some allegations were made in 1995 around Brain’s alleged abuse of position, the court heard.
Brain appeared in one of the documentaries and made admissions to the filmmaker of sexual contact with a number of the female members of NOS, jurors were told.
“It is the Crown’s case that the women named on the indictment who were involved in sexual acts with the defendant did not consent to those acts,” Mr Clark said.
“Any capacity they had to consent had been removed by the domineering nature of the defendant, by his control over their entire lives and by their absolute terror of being ostracised and that’s what he intended.
“It is the Crown’s case that the complainants in this case either expressly made it clear that they did not consent to the sexual acts with which the defendant is accused or that there was no real legal consent due to the cult-like domineering nature of the defendant’s control over them.
“At best, many of the complainants in this case the Crown say merely submitted to the defendant’s actions but they did not, in law, consent to them. Their will had been overborne.”
The court heard Brain accepts he engaged in sexual activity with some of the complainants but that it was consensual.
The prosecutor said: “In short, the defence case appears to be, to quote from the Life Of Brian, Brian Cohen’s mother: ‘He’s not the Messiah, he’s just a very naughty boy’.
“The Crown state it was more than that, the defendant created the atmosphere that allowed him to abuse a series of women.”
Jurors had been warned by the judge to cast emotion aside after the full list of charges was read to them ahead of the opening.
Judge Freya Newbery said: “It may be that what you have heard has initially upset you or perhaps revolted you or touched a nerve of some sort.
“Any emotion that you feel, it really needs to be put to one side while you focus on your crucial work as a jury.”
Brain denies the 37 charges against him and the trial continues.
