Brand, 50, the former husband of US pop singer Katy Perry and once one of the United Kingdom's most high-profile comedians and broadcasters, had repositioned himself in recent years as an internet social commentator.
Police said Brand, who lives in Oxfordshire, southern England, was charged with one count of rape, one count of indecent assault, one count of oral rape and two counts of sexual assault, and that the charges relate to four separate women.
Brand is charged with the rape of a woman in 1999 in the Bournemouth area and the oral rape and sexual assault of a woman in 2004 in the Westminster area of London.
He has also been charged with indecently assaulting a woman in 2001 and sexually assaulting another woman between 2004 and 2005 - both offences are alleged to have taken place in Westminster, London.
"The Met's investigation remains open and detectives ask anyone who has been affected by this case, or anyone who has any information, to come forward and speak with police," the statement said.
Brand will appear at Westminster Magistrates' Court on May 2.
In 2023 the Sunday Times newspaper and Channel 4 TV's documentary show Dispatches reported that four women had accused Brand of sexual assaults, including a rape, between 2006 and 2013.
Brand has previously stated that he had never had non-consensual sex.
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