Russell Brand calls Cambridge students ‘Harry Potter poofs’ in rambling speech at debating chamber

Comedian Russell Brand has revealed he took drugs because he was “alienated, lonely and sad inside.”

The controversial star made his confession at the historic Cambridge Union Society where he mocked students as ‘Harry Potter poofs’.

Speaking about his struggle to stay clean, he added: “My mother’s life is better now.”

And he added: “I think that drugs should be made completely legal and regulated. I think that people’s freedoms are their own business.”

Brand’s comments came during a rambling and wide-ranging talk to 800 students in the university’s famous debating chamber.

He condemned today’s politicians and told the students: “Use this education that you are receiving to bring about ideas that can benefit not just you but all of us.”

Asked about encouraging people not to vote he said: “Voting is an act of compliance. I’m not complying with you.

“Give us something to vote for then we will vote for it.”

He added: “Give us a system that is truly representative.”

He cited the number of students who voted for Nick Clegg when he promised to abolish tuition fees only to break his word.

Brand said the current system was “ripping people off” in their day-to-day lives.

He said he “broadly agrees” with the Green Party but added: “If the answer was the Green Party we wouldn’t have a f***ing problem.”

He added: “The current system is not serving us.”

The comedian revealed he has met with Wikileaks founder Julian Assange and joked “I said come and meet me but he was difficult about it.”

He said Assange told him he didn’t believe in conspiracies – and he disagreed and felt there was ‘a shadowy conspiracy’.

Brand’s latest love Jemima Khan was one of the celebrity backers that put up bail money for Assange.

He also tore into Hollywood, labelling it a “vacuous pointless illusion” and said the film industry served “capitalist interests”.

He said fame is “currently a blinding a white light to distract us.”

At one point he singled out different college crests on the walls of the debating chamber and when students cheered he told them: “Shut up you Harry Potter poofs”.

The Cambridge Union Society, which was founded in 1815, is famed for inviting international politicians and academics to its regular debating sessions.

Previous speakers include the Dalai Lama, Winston Churchill, Ronald Reagan and actors Sir Ian McKellen and Clint Eastwood.

Besotted student Theodora Tavener admitted to dressing up as Brand at school and gave him a “personal” letter she had written him.

Cheeky Brand threatened to read it allowed, but managed to control himself.

Theodora, a second-year theology and religious studies, said: “I’ve been waiting to meet him my whole life.

“To hug him was brilliant. I thought he was going to read my letter out andpanicked because it was so personal, but he only read half a line luckily.

“I just wrote the letter to tell him what he’s done for me, mostly about all the spiritual stuff he’s helped me with. I left my number and address for him.

“I hope he reads it and I hope he gets back to me. It would be amazing to get a reply.”