116-478: Grays (or Grays Thurrock ) is the largest town in the borough and unitary authority area of Thurrock , in the ceremonial county of Essex , England. The town, which is both a former civil parish and one of Thurrock's traditional Church of England parishes , is located on the north bank of the River Thames . It is approximately 20 miles (32 km) to the east of central London, and 2 miles (3.2 km) east of
232-720: A language specialism and Thames Park Secondary School has specialisms in artificial intelligence and digital technology . Gateway Academy was formed in 2003 from a fresh start merger of Torells School in Grays and St Chad's School in Tilbury. The Torells School site has since been demolished and replaced by the sites of two special schools , Treetops School and Treetops Free School. Comedian Joe Pasquale and Olympic medallist Fatima Whitbread both attended Torells School. Footballers Chris Cohen and Max Porter went to William Edwards School. Actor, YouTuber and comedian Russell Brand attended
348-565: A "strange relationship" with his father, whom he saw sporadically and who took him to visit prostitutes during a trip to Thailand when Brand was a teenager. He made his theatrical debut at the age of 15 in a school production of Bugsy Malone , and then began work as a film extra. Brand attended Grays School and in 1991, he was accepted to the Italia Conti Academy , and had his first year of tuition funded by Essex County Council . After his first year at Italia Conti Academy, Brand
464-571: A Funeral . Thurrock can also be seen in 28 Days Later . Scenes from the films Alfie (2004), and Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade were shot at Tilbury docks. The opening scenes from Batman Begins (2005) were shot at Coalhouse Fort in East Tilbury. Some filming also took place for the film Essex Boys in and around the Bata estate at East Tilbury. The State Cinema , where Eddie met Roger in
580-543: A biographical documentary was released called Brand: A Second Coming . Brand's first presenting role came in 2000 as a video journalist on MTV UK : he presented Dancefloor Chart , touring nightclubs in Britain and Ibiza , and hosted the tea-time request show Select . Brand was dismissed several days after coming to work dressed as Osama bin Laden the day after the 11 September 2001 attacks and bringing his drug dealer to
696-491: A community based radio station. The Thurrock Gazette is the town's local weekly newspaper. The area's local football team is Grays Athletic , previously based in Grays but now in nearby Aveley, which plays non-League football and has won the FA Trophy twice. Thurrock Thurrock ( / ˈ θ ʌr ə k / ) is a unitary authority area with borough status in the ceremonial county of Essex , England. It lies on
812-480: A debate show called Russell Brand's Got Issues , on E4. The viewing figures for the first episode were seen as disappointing, being beaten by nearly all of E4's main multi-channel rivals, despite a big publicity and promotional campaign for the show. The poor ratings prompted the network to repackage the show as The Russell Brand Show and move it to Channel 4 . The first episode was broadcast on 24 November on Channel 4, and it ran for five weeks. Brand hosted
928-629: A further four dates that were performed in November were added to raise money for Focus 12, the drug charity for which Brand was a patron until it closed. In 2013, Brand presented and toured his comedy show Messiah Complex , in which he tackled advertising, the laws on drug addiction and the portrayal of his heroes, such as Gandhi , Guevara , Malcolm X and Jesus, and how he is, in comically contrived ways, similar to them. In January 2017, Brand announced his new tour Re:Birth , which debuted in April 2017 and
1044-535: A group of 18 parishes in southern Essex. Poor Law Unions subsequently formed the basis for later local government structures, with the Orsett Rural Sanitary District created in 1872 covering the same area. The parish of Grays Thurrock was made its own urban sanitary district in 1886. Urban and rural sanitary districts were converted into urban districts and rural districts in 1894. Two further urban districts were later created from parts of
1160-556: A late-night talk show on FX that received lukewarm reviews and middling ratings. The show was cancelled in 2013 after running for two seasons. In 1994, while still a teenager, Brand appeared in episodes of The Bill and the children's adventure series Mud . In 2002, Brand appeared on the TV shows Cruise of the Gods and White Teeth . In 2005, he played Tommy in the BBC sitcom Blessed , which
1276-476: A legal expert. I'm saying that, to a drug addict, the legal aspect is irrelevant. If you need to get drugs, you will. The criminal and legal status, I think, sends the wrong message. Being arrested isn't a lesson, it's just an administrative blip." Part of this testimony was included in a BBC Three documentary, Russell Brand: From Addiction to Recovery , that aired in December 2012. Brand said he felt compelled to make
SECTION 10
#17330859685451392-529: A new complex in Grays town centre in September 2014. The local sixth form college is USP College Palmer's Campus. Palmer's dates back to 1706, when the merchant William Palmer founded a charity school for "ten poore children" of the parish of Grays Essex. The school was located in the local churchyard and evolved into a boys' school. In response to the enactment of the Elementary Education Act 1870 ,
1508-620: A new low." His book Revolution , in which Brand develops his earlier ideas, was published by Random House in October 2014 and received much publicity. Nick Cohen of The Observer called Brand's writing "atrocious: long-winded, confused and smug; filled with references to books Brand has half read and thinkers he has half understood." On the other hand, Steve Richards in The Independent commented: "Brand writes and speaks with verve, words flowing effortlessly and musically. The contrast with
1624-495: A nomination for a BAFTA Award . Over the course of his career, Brand has been the subject of frequent media coverage for issues such as his promiscuity , drug use , political views , provocative behaviour at various award ceremonies, his dismissal from MTV , and his resignation from the BBC amid a prank call controversy . Since guest-editing an edition of British political weekly New Statesman in 2013, Brand has become known as
1740-584: A project that was picked up by Fox Studios in 2011 with Ben Stiller attached. As of October 2008, Brand's own production company is called Vanity Projects. The company's latest production, Russell Brand Doing Life , was released in 2009. Brand also established his own production company in 2011 with his friend Nik Linnen. Called 'Branded Films', the company operates from the Warner Bros. studios in Burbank, California , United States. The company's primary focus
1856-559: A public activist and campaigner, and has spoken on a wide range of political and cultural issues, including wealth inequality, addiction, corporate capitalism, climate change , and media bias. In 2014, he launched his political-comedy web series The Trews on YouTube , released a book entitled Revolution , and acted in the documentary The Emperor's New Clothes . During the COVID-19 pandemic , Brand's YouTube channel underwent an increase in activity and change in political direction, and
1972-453: A public house January 2023 Chadwell St Mary has one of the few examples of a "Sunspan" house designed by the architect Wells Coates . Although built in the 1950s, Woodside Primary School's architecture has been described as the slightly earlier "ocean liner" style of Art Deco. The building features a number of bricked curves and circular windows, while the wrought-iron banisters on the stairs are deliberately set to lean out at an angle. There
2088-483: A reference to Sachs' granddaughter Georgina Baillie , whom Russell had dated. The comments were broadcast on the pre-recorded show. After little initial interest, a media story about the calls by the Daily Mail generated a high number of complaints. Brand resigned from the BBC, while Ross was suspended without pay. The BBC was later fined £150,000 by Britain's broadcast regulator for airing the calls. On 21 November 2008,
2204-539: A result of the floods. In 2002, a partnership between Thurrock Council, Thurrock Heritage Forum and the Thurrock Local History Society began an initiative to place heritage plaques marking the famous people, events and organisations associated with Thurrock. By September 2021 plaques included: The borough has its origins in the Orsett Poor Law Union , which had been created in 1835 covering
2320-520: A riot ensued which was the catalyst for a mass protest across Essex and Kent . Later, in 1588 Elizabeth I addressed her troops not far from the Tilbury blockhouse as the Spanish Armada sailed up the English Channel . Between 1670 and 1682, the Tilbury blockhouse was substantially rebuilt into a much larger fortification ( Tilbury Fort ) and Coalhouse Fort was built further down river, close to
2436-514: A sister show to Big Brother 5 . The show gave celebrity guests and the public the chance to have their say on the goings-on inside the Big Brother house. For Big Brother 6 , the show's name changed to Big Brother's Big Mouth . Following Celebrity Big Brother 5 , Brand said he would not return to host the Big Brother 8 series of Big Brother's Big Mouth . In a statement, Brand thanked all
SECTION 20
#17330859685452552-588: A standup comedian and radio host before becoming a film actor. After beginning his career as a comedian and later becoming an MTV presenter in the UK, in 2004 Brand gained a role as the host of the television show Big Brother's Big Mouth , a Big Brother spin-off. He had his first major film role in British comedy St Trinian's (2007) before starring in the Hollywood comedies Forgetting Sarah Marshall (2008), Get Him to
2668-520: A £1.8 million two-book deal with HarperCollins in June 2008. The first book, Articles of Faith , examined Brand's philosophy and consisted of a collection of his columns from The Guardian that first appeared there in 2007 and 2008. The book was published on 16 October 2008, and also includes Brand interviewing Noel Gallagher, James Corden , and David Baddiel about football. The second book for HarperCollins, Booky Wook 2: This Time It's Personal ,
2784-522: Is adequate rainfall year-round. The Köppen Climate Classification subtype for this climate is " Cfb " (Marine West Coast Climate/ Oceanic climate ). At the census of 2011, there were 157,705 people, 62,353 households and 45,985 families residing in the borough. The population density was 9.7 people per hectare. There were 63,869 housing units. The racial makeup of the borough was 86% White, 3.8% Asian, 7.8% Black, 2% Mixed Race, 0.6% other. There were 62,353 households, out of which 30.5% had children under
2900-502: Is also Thurrock Adult Community College which is located in multiple venues and community hubs across Thurrock and used to be based from Richmond Road in Grays. Grays has good road links, being close to the A13 road and the M25 motorway . The A126 London Road is the main road which links Grays town centre with Lakeside Shopping Centre , Purfleet and Tilbury . Grays railway station runs through
3016-827: Is one multiplex cinema attached to the Lakeside Shopping Centre, and the Thameside Theatre in Grays . Live shows are held at the Circus Tavern in Purfleet . Open space includes Chafford Gorges Nature Park , Langdon Hills Country Park and Grove House Wood , managed by Essex Wildlife Trust . Museums and historic buildings include Coalhouse Fort at East Tilbury , Tilbury Fort in Tilbury , Purfleet Heritage and Military Centre, High House, Purfleet with its historic farm buildings,
3132-463: Is served with good communication links. The M25 London Orbital Motorway , the railway line between Southend and London Fenchurch Street which provides direct access to Central London, the Port of Tilbury, and the nearby London City Airport make Thurrock an important international trade centre. There is a grass airstrip south of Bulphan village. A ferry for passengers on foot connects Tilbury with Gravesend on
3248-470: Is some uncertainty as to whether his body was displayed at what is now called Coalhouse Point or at a site a few hundred yards up stream, close to the present Tilbury Docks. On 31 January 1953, the low-lying areas of Thurrock were inundated by the North Sea flood of 1953 . The Van den Berghs and Jurgens margarine factory, which manufactured Stork margarine , was forced to stop production for many months. Since
3364-523: Is to develop films that Brand stars in. Brand's radio career began in early 2002, when he hosted a Sunday afternoon show with Matt Morgan on London's Indie Rock station Xfm . Brand was dismissed from the job after reading pornographic material live on-air. In 2005, Brand co-hosted three one-off shows on BBC Radio 6 Music with Karl Pilkington . Brand then co-hosted The Russell Brand Show beginning in April 2006 on BBC Radio 6 Music . In November 2006,
3480-502: The 2007 Brit Awards and presented Oasis with an "Outstanding Contribution to Music" award at the event. He also hosted one hour of Comic Relief . On 7 July 2007, he presented at the UK leg of Live Earth at Wembley Stadium , London. On 12 December 2007, BBC Four aired Russell Brand On the Road , a documentary presented by Brand and Matt Morgan about the writer Jack Kerouac and his novel On
3596-590: The 2007 Royal Variety Performance . His second nationwide tour, in 2007, was called Russell Brand: Only Joking and released on DVD as Russell Brand: Doin' Life . Brand began performing in the US, and recorded a special for Comedy Central titled Russell Brand in New York , which aired in March 2009. Brand began touring the UK, America and Australia from January to April 2009 on a tour called Russell Brand: Scandalous . In October,
Grays, Essex - Misplaced Pages Continue
3712-586: The 2009 G20 London summit protests . In January 2009, Brand participated in a celebrity letter to The Independent —as a supporter of the Hoping Foundation—to condemn Israel's assault on Gaza , and the "cruel and massive loss of life of the citizens of Gaza ". In February 2009, Brand and several other entertainers wrote to The Times in defence of leaders of the Baháʼí Faith , who were on trial in Iran at
3828-478: The BBC Trust said that the phone calls were a "deplorable intrusion with no editorial justification". Brand returned to radio when he and Noel Gallagher hosted a one-off football talk show on 19 April 2009 for Talksport . Brand returned to Talksport on 9 October 2010, with a Saturday night show that lasted 20 weeks. The show featured clips and backstage recordings from his Booky Wook 2 promotional tour. Brand
3944-595: The Diablo Cody film Paradise (2013), Brand went on hiatus from acting. His return role was as the villainous Creek in the DreamWorks animated film Trolls (2016), followed by his portrayal of God in the comedy Army of One (2016) with Nicolas Cage . In 2018 and 2019, he portrayed Sports X Network founder Lance Klians in a recurring arc In the last two seasons of the HBO series Ballers . Brand appeared as Tristan Trent in
4060-682: The Gestapo . Brand said of the Nazis , "They did look fucking fantastic, let's face it" before he goose stepped across the stage in a comical imitation of the Nazi march. Brand was eventually ejected from the event after GQ editor Dylan Jones confronted Brand with his view that the speech was "very offensive"—Brand replied by saying that the Nazis' treatment of the Jewish people was "very offensive". On 23 October 2013, Brand
4176-719: The Harris Federation and Ormiston Trust and the country's first cooperative academy trust. Since 2007, all secondary schools in Thurrock have had specialist school status. Some schools, such as William Edwards School and Orsett Heath Academy , utilise their right as specialist schools to select 10% of their pupils in specialist subject aptitude every year. Thurrock has no grammar schools , although Thurrock Council has tried to introduce them. Historically Thurrock had three grammar schools, Grays Thurrock School, Palmer's School for Boys and Palmer's School for Girls. In 1931,
4292-520: The M25 motorway . Its economy is linked to Port of London industries, its own offices, retail and the Lakeside Shopping Centre at West Thurrock . Archaeological evidence indicates that the area now occupied by Grays has been inhabited by humans since the Palaeolithic period. Samuel Pepys recorded in his diary that he visited Grays on 24 September 1665 and apparently bought fish from
4408-634: The Orsett Rural District : the Tilbury Urban District in 1912 covering the parish of Chadwell St Mary , and the Purfleet Urban District in 1929 covering the three parishes of Aveley , South Ockendon and West Thurrock . After 1929 the area therefore comprised four district-level authorities: one rural district, containing 13 civil parishes, and three urban districts: In 1936 the four districts were all abolished to create
4524-558: The River Thames . As well as Thurrock Yacht Club, Grays Beach is the site of the local landmark The Gull , a lightship built in 1860, which has lain on the foreshore for decades and is now in a serious state of dilapidation. The light from The Gull has now been removed, restored and installed on the foreshore of the yacht club. The Thameside Theatre was built in 1971 and is the only theatre in Thurrock. In July 2021 Thurrock Council declared it to be surplus to budget requirements and announced plans for its closure. The Labour opposition in
4640-472: The Romans and Anglo-Saxons . Thurrock has numerous archaeological sites including the major excavation at Mucking . The name "Thurrock" is a Saxon name meaning "the bottom of a ship". Horndon-on-the-Hill was the site of an 11th century mint as well as the 15th century woolmarket which gives an indication of the area's wealth in the 15th century. The narrowing of the river where Tilbury now stands meant it
4756-457: The Thames Gateway regeneration area, a corridor of opportunity that has been identified by central government as the area with greatest development and commercial potential in the country. Thurrock Development Corporation took over much of the borough's planning functions from its creation in 2005 until its demise in March 2011. Much of the population and commercial activity is centred along
Grays, Essex - Misplaced Pages Continue
4872-573: The Thurrock Adult Community College , Osborne Sixth Form and Ortu Sixth Form Centre Stanford & Corringham . The Tilbury and Chadwell St Mary Excellence Cluster brought together Chadwell St Mary Primary School, ORTU Corringham Primary School, Grays Convent High School, Hassenbrook Academy , Herringham Primary School, Landsdowne Primary School, Manor Infant School, Manor Junior School, St Mary's RC Primary School, Woodside Primary School and The Gateway Academy . Senior members of
4988-545: The Thurrock Urban District (subject to some minor boundary changes with surrounding areas, notably at North Ockendon). All the civil parishes within the area were merged at the same time to become a single parish called Thurrock. The present-day borough of Thurrock was created in on 1 April 1974 under the Local Government Act 1972 , covering almost the same area as the former Thurrock Urban District, which
5104-522: The purity rings worn by the Jonas Brothers , but apologised for the comments later in the show. His comments at the 2008 MTV VMAs led to Brand receiving death threats from some offended viewers. Brand claimed that MTV asked him to host the 2009 awards after the ratings for the 2008 show were 20 per cent higher than the previous year. Also in 2008, Brand hosted a one-off stand-up comedy show called Comedy Live Presents: Russell Brand and Friends , which
5220-537: The 2020 fantasy film Four Kids and It , and in 2022 played Linus Windlesham in Kenneth Branagh 's remake of Death on the Nile . Other projects Brand has been tied to include a remake of Drop Dead Fred , an Adam Sandler-produced film about a con man posing as a priest tentatively entitled Bad Father , co-written by Brand and Matt Morgan; and a film adaptation of the children's television programme Rentaghost ,
5336-680: The American media, as he was relatively unknown to the American public. Brand's appearance led to controversy for numerous reasons. He said the night "marked the launch of a very new Britney Spears era", referring to it as "the resurrection of [Spears]". He also said, "If there was a female Christ, it's Britney". Brand implored the audience to elect Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama and later called then–U.S. President George W. Bush "a retarded cowboy fella", who, in England, "wouldn't be trusted with scissors". He also made several references to
5452-483: The Grays School, making his acting debut at one of the school's Bugsy Malone productions. Grays Convent High School was attended by journalist and former Thurrock MP candidate Polly Billington and runner Jessica Judd . All of these schools are coeducational academies or free schools , with the exception of Grays Convent High School, which is instead a voluntary aided Catholic school for girls . A sixth form
5568-523: The Greek (2010), Arthur (2011), and Rock of Ages (2012). He has released several stand-up specials including Scandalous (2009), Messiah Complex (2013), and Brandemic (2023). He hosted his own radio show The Russell Brand Show (2006–2008, 2010, 2013, 2017) and also hosts the podcasts Stay Free with Russell Brand and Under the Skin with Russell Brand . He has received three British Comedy Awards and
5684-514: The MTV studios. After leaving MTV, Brand starred in RE:Brand , a documentary and comedy television program that aimed to take a look at cultural taboos. It was conceived, written, and hosted by Brand, with the help of his comic partner on many projects, Matt Morgan . The series was shown on the now-defunct digital satellite channel UK Play in 2002. In 2004, Brand hosted Big Brother's Eforum on E4 ,
5800-484: The Palmer's schools became public schools with boarding , reverting back to grammar school status in 1944 under voluntary control . Grays Convent High School was an independent day school from its formation until 1969. There were also two selective secondary technical schools , Grays County Technical High School which is now an academy status comprehensive and Aveley County Technical High School , which merged with
5916-473: The Palmer's schools in 1971 to form Palmer's College . Palmer's College, now one half of USP College , is Thurrock's local sixth form college for generalised further education , whilst the Thurrock Campus of South Essex College is the local sixth form college for vocational education . Palmer's also offers courses at higher education . Other institutions of further education in Thurrock include
SECTION 50
#17330859685456032-644: The Reindeer in Close Encounters of the Herd Kind . Brand appeared in a small role in the 2006 movie Penelope ; although his first major film role was as Flash Harry in the 2007 film St Trinian's . Brand achieved American fame when he starred in the 2008 film Forgetting Sarah Marshall , in which he played rock star Aldous Snow, the boyfriend of the title character (played by Kristen Bell ). Brand received rave reviews for his performance as Snow, and he revealed
6148-445: The Road . Brand returned to Channel 4 to host Russell Brand's Ponderland , in which he discussed topics like childhood and science through stand-up comedy. The show first aired on 22 October 2007 and continued for the next five nights. A second series began on 30 October 2008. The show ran for 12 episodes over the two series. Brand was later announced as the host of the 2008 MTV Video Music Awards (VMAs), which drew scepticism from
6264-462: The Royal Opera House's Bob and Tamar Manoukian Production Workshop, The Backstage Centre and ACME artists' studios, Thurrock Museum and Walton Hall Farm Museum. Next to Lakeside Shopping Centre is Arena Essex , a former motor sports complex, where speedway, banger and stock car racing took place. This site is now to be redeveloped for housing. Being on the river and close to London, Thurrock
6380-549: The Thameside Theatre, the Thurrock History Museum, Grays Beach, The White Hart , and the former State Cinema . The Dell was of the earliest houses in Britain to be built of concrete. It was built on the instructions of Alfred Russel Wallace , who lived in the town from 1872 until 1876. From the top of the Derby Road Bridge in Grays one can look down to Thurrock Yacht Club, Grays Beach children's playground and
6496-449: The age of 18 living with them, 72.7% were married couples living together, 52.5% of all households were made up of individuals, 10.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The median age in the borough was 42. 25.5% of residents were under the age of 18; 7.3% of residents were between the ages of 19 and 24; 30.3% were from 25 to 44; 24.2% were from 45 to 64; and 38.2% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of
6612-558: The allegations, a further report of an alleged sexual assault was made against him to the Metropolitan Police , dating from 2003. Brand has denied all of the allegations and promoted conspiracy theories regarding them. Russell Edward Brand was born in Orsett Hospital in Grays , Essex , England. He is the only child of Barbara Elizabeth ( née Nichols) and photographer Ronald Henry Brand. Brand's parents separated when he
6728-592: The amalgamations of failing infant and junior schools . Since then, both schools have received favourable grades from education watchdog Ofsted . Belmont Castle Academy was renamed in honour of Belmont Castle , a demolished gothic mansion that was located on the school site. The Gateway Primary Free School is situated on the site of Gateway Academy, and is the only primary school with free school status in Grays. Secondary schools in Grays include: Since 2007, all of these schools have had specialist school status. Gateway Academy and Hathaway Academy have specialisms in
6844-548: The area: Thurrock Yacht Club is based in the centre of Grays on the Thames foreshore. It offers a range of competitive and recreational boating opportunities. The following people and military units have received the Freedom of the Borough of Thurrock. Russell Brand Russell Edward Brand (born 4 June 1975) is an English podcaster and media personality. He established himself as
6960-436: The arts . In the case of Hathaway Academy, these include digital media and the performing arts . Gateway Academy also specialises in design and engineering . William Edwards School and Orsett Heath Academy share a sports specialism , with both schools utilising the ability to admit 10% of their intake by academic aptitude in this subject, an ability granted to all sport specialist schools. Grays Convent High School maintains
7076-725: The arts. From 2006 until 2009, Brand wrote a column for The Guardian sports section that focused on West Ham United and the England national football team . A collection of the columns from 2006 and 2007 was released in 2007 in his book Irons in the Fire . Brand's first autobiography, My Booky Wook , was released on 15 November 2007 and received favourable reviews. Andrew Anthony from The Observer commented that "Russell Brand's gleeful tale of drugs and debauchery in My Booky Wook puts most other celebrity memoirs to shame". Brand signed
SECTION 60
#17330859685457192-424: The borough is designated as Green Belt . The neighbouring districts are the London Borough of Havering , Brentwood , Basildon and Castle Point . On the opposite side of the Thames are Gravesham and Dartford in Kent . Mammoths once grazed in the Thurrock area and archaeologists unearthed the remains of a jungle cat. Humans have lived in the area since prehistoric times and the land has been farmed by
7308-466: The borough, with the whole borough being an unparished area . The local authority is Thurrock Council . Elections are held in three years out of every four. Thurrock is covered by two parliamentary constituencies. Thurrock includes most of the borough while South Basildon and East Thurrock includes some wards in the east of the borough. Thurrock has a population of 175,500 people living in 90,500 homes. The Metropolitan Green Belt covers 70% of
7424-478: The borough. There are 494 acres (200 ha) of land available for industrial use. There are seven conservation areas , 19 scheduled monuments , including the dovecote at High House Purfleet , and 239 listed buildings . The borough contains ten Sites of Special Scientific Interest : Despite much of the borough being protected Green Belt land, Thurrock provides localised opportunities for further industrial and commercial development. The borough forms part of
7540-687: The centre of the built-up core and is served by c2c services to London Fenchurch Street to the west and Shoeburyness to the east. The typical journey time into London is 35 minutes. Grays bus station, outside the railway station, is a hub for most bus services in Thurrock. The bus services are operated by Ensignbus , First Essex and NIBS Buses . The town is served by BBC London and ITV London with television signals received from Crystal Palace TV transmitter, BBC South East and ITV Meridian can also be received from Bluebell Hill TV transmitter. Local radio stations are BBC Essex , Heart Essex , Radio Essex , Gateway 97.8, and Thames Delta Radio,
7656-446: The character was changed from an author to a rock star because of his audition. Brand starred alongside Adam Sandler in the Disney film Bedtime Stories , which was released on 25 December 2008. In 2010, he reprised the role of Aldous Snow for a buddy comedy titled Get Him to the Greek , co-starring Jonah Hill , which also reunited him with Forgetting Sarah Marshall director Nicholas Stoller and producer Judd Apatow for
7772-463: The charity Gorkha Learning for Life, which was founded by a member of school staff. Thurrock is served by BBC London and ITV London with television signals are received from Crystal Palace TV transmitter, BBC South East and ITV Meridian can also be received from Bluebell Hill TV transmitter. Radio stations that broadcast to the area are: The area is served by these local newspapers: Thurrock has several Non-League football clubs in
7888-426: The city was 49.3% male and 50.6% female. This is a chart of trend of regional gross value added of Thurrock at current basic prices published (pp. 240–253) by the Office for National Statistics with figures in millions of British Pounds Sterling . Thurrock has been the scene of several major films. St Clement's Church and street scenes at West Thurrock were used in the making of the film Four Weddings and
8004-422: The classic Who Framed Roger Rabbit , can be found in Grays. There are a number of examples of Art Deco architecture in Thurrock. The baggage hall at Tilbury was opened in 1930. It has an art deco interior, designed by Sir Edwin Cooper and is a grade II listed building. The State cinema is also a listed building and dates from 1938. It is one of the few surviving examples of 1930s cinema architecture. It has
8120-525: The college was based in parts of the site of Grays County Technical High School (which would become Grays School) and Grays Hall. In 1960 it reopened on Woodview Road, later establishing a second campus in Aveley. The college later merged with Basildon College to form Thurrock and Basildon College , with the Woodview Campus remaining in operation. The college then amalgamated with South East Essex College of Arts and Technology in 2010, forming South Essex College . The Thurrock Campus relocated from Woodview Road to
8236-447: The council opposed the plans and an online petition calling for its preservation was signed by over 1000 residents. Grays native Russell Brand gave his support to saving the theatre on an Instagram post and pledged to perform a show there to help prevent its closure. In January 2022 Thurrock Council announced that they supported a counter proposal that will see the theatre remain open under community ownership . A group dedicated to saving
8352-527: The coverage about him in the tabloid press. The show was released on DVD as Russell Brand: Live . Brand appeared in a sketch and performed stand-up at Amnesty International 's Secret Policeman's Ball in 2006 and again at the 2012 edition at Radio City Music Hall. In March 2007, Brand co-hosted an evening of the Teenage Cancer Trust gigs with Noel Fielding . In December 2007, Brand performed for Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip as an act in
8468-544: The film after the 2011 death of close friend Amy Winehouse , and he also used the opportunity to question how British society "deals with addicts and addiction". Brand has frequently campaigned for political issues. In June 2013, he appeared in a video in support of Chelsea Manning . Brand was ejected from the GQ Awards show on 3 September 2013 after receiving the "Oracle" award. In his acceptance speech, he mentioned sponsor Hugo Boss 's former business making uniforms for
8584-472: The film's protagonist E.B. Hop opened at number one at the Friday box office in the US, earning $ 11.4 million. The same month, he played the title character in a remake of Arthur , written by Peter Baynham , which was a box office disappointment . Brand starred as Lonny in a film adaptation of the 1980s-set musical Rock Of Ages , released in cinemas in June 2012. After appearing as William Carr in
8700-592: The film. Brand starred in Julie Taymor 's 2010 version of William Shakespeare 's The Tempest , as Trinculo. In 2010, Brand voiced Dr. Nefario in the Universal movie Despicable Me , and reprised the role in the 2013 sequel. Brand also guest starred in The Simpsons episode " Angry Dad: The Movie " as himself. Brand also starred in the April 2011 live action/CGI animated film Hop with James Marsden , voicing
8816-481: The living incarnation of Buddha and I thought, if you're around the Dalai Lama, that can only be good for your spiritual quest through life. He's an amazing diplomat, an incredible activist, a wonderful human being and an inspiration to us all." In April 2012, Brand testified in front of a parliamentary committee about drug addiction, sharing his experiences and view that drugs should be decriminalised. He said, "I'm not
8932-652: The local fishermen. Parts of Grays and Chafford Hundred are set within three Victorian chalk pits; the largest two being the Lion Gorge, and the Warren Gorge. Another area of the Chafford Hundred residential development is built on a Victorian landfill site. Thurrock Town Hall on New Road in Grays was built in the 1980s; work on an extension began in January 2020. In 1931 the parish had a population of 18,173. On 1 April 1936
9048-646: The name "Grays Thurrock" comes in two parts. Thurrock is a Saxon name meaning "the bottom of a ship". The element "Grays" comes from Henry de Grai , a descendant of the Norman knight Anchetil de Greye , who was granted the manor of Grays Thurrock in 1195 by Richard I . Grays contains the wards and residential areas of Grays Riverside, Grays Thurrock, Stifford Clays, Little Thurrock Blackshots, Little Thurrock Rectory and Chadwell St Mary. Parts of Chafford Hundred and North and South Stifford are also in Grays. The nearest places to Grays are: Local sites of interest include
9164-753: The north bank of the River Thames immediately east of London and has over 18 miles (29 km) of riverfront including the Port of Tilbury , the principal port for London. Thurrock is within the London commuter belt and is an area of regeneration within the Thames Gateway redevelopment zone. The borough includes the northern ends of the Dartford Crossing . The local authority is Thurrock Council , based in Grays . The borough also includes Purfleet-on-Thames , South Ockendon , Stanford-le-Hope and Tilbury , as well as other villages and surrounding areas. More than half of
9280-575: The north bank of the River Thames and 2 miles (3.2 km) east of the M25 motorway . Its economy is linked to Port of London industries, its own offices, retail and Lakeside, West Thurrock . Its variously used riverside (from homes through wild bird-habitat marshland to importation, storage and distribution) faces Broadness Lighthouse in Kent. Primary schools in Grays include: Quarry Hill Primary and Pre School and Thameside Primary School were formed from
9396-596: The original cinema organ which can still be played. However, in the early 21st century the building became disused and faced dereliction. In September 2015 it was announced that J D Wetherspoon had bought the property for conversion to a public house.( Building of the Bata Shoes estate in East Tilbury was begun in 1933, and this is now a conservation area.JD Wetherspoon have since put the State Cinema building up for sale after announcing they would no longer be converting it to
9512-424: The output of this factory constituted one third of the country's ration allocation, this led to a severe strain on the supply of margarine in the UK. Most schools in Thurrock were closed, either as a direct result of the flooding or in order to use them to help the relief effort. More than 1300 people in Tilbury and other low-lying areas were evacuated to schools on the higher ground. Chadwell St Mary Primary school
9628-552: The parish was abolished to form Thurrock. On 23 October 2019, the bodies of 39 people were found in the back of a lorry at Waterglade Industrial Park in Eastern Avenue. They are believed to have been victims of human trafficking , or migrants being smuggled into Britain. The vehicle, registered in Bulgaria , was thought to have travelled to the UK through Purfleet from Zeebrugge . A 25-year-old lorry driver from Northern Ireland
9744-404: The producers for "taking the risk of employing an ex-junkie twerp" to front the show. Of his time presenting the show, he said: "The three years I've spent on Big Brother's Big Mouth have been an unprecedented joy". Brand hosted a one-off special called Big Brother According to Russell Brand , in which Brand took a surreal, sideways look at Big Brother through the ages. On 8 January 2008, Brand
9860-515: The reader up at every turn" and adding that Chris Riddell's illustrations "give the book a beauty it does not deserve and a coherence the text does not deliver". Nicholas Tucker , in The Independent , noted the book's "wearingly offensive" language, and commented: "Brand's take on The Pied Piper of Hamelin is the first of a series of riffs on traditional fairy and folk tales. If they are all as bad as this one, British children's books will have hit
9976-436: The riverfront. This includes many large and important industrial sites, including two large oil refineries, manufacturing industries, a container port, cruise liner terminal, distribution warehousing and one of Britain's largest refuse disposal sites at the appropriately named settlement of Mucking. Thurrock is also home to the Lakeside Shopping Centre . Climate in this area has mild differences between highs and lows, and there
10092-403: The root causes. Brand made his children's book debut in November 2014 with Russell Brand's Trickster Tales: The Pied Piper of Hamelin . It is the first instalment of an intended series, featuring illustrations by Chris Riddell . In The Guardian , reviewer Lucy Mangan noted: "The on-Brand need to be noticed is there on every page, his unwillingness to get out of the way of the story tripping
10208-428: The school reopened on a new site on the hill above the town in 1874. A girls' school opened on the site in 1876. Both schools were grammar schools , operating on the same site until 1931, when the girls' school relocated to Chadwell Road. From this time, Palmer's became a public school . This meant that students were no longer admitted on academic performance regardless of background and were instead admitted by fee. This
10324-525: The schools' councils also sat on the cluster's student council before its dissolution. ORTU Gable Hall School has had a long partnership with Pro Arte Alphen Park School in Pretoria, Gauteng, South Africa for almost 10 years – the two schools have held exchange programmes with each other and the students sampling life in each other's respective countries. Woodside Primary is linked with a school in Nepal , through
10440-453: The second blockhouse. The importance of the forts in defending the country continued through Napoleonic times and into the two world wars. The land where Tilbury Town now stands was farmland and marsh grazing until the building of the docks in the 1890s. Thurrock includes the Bata village , built for workers of the shoe company in 1933. Eight homes and the factory are listed. Historically, the area
10556-428: The show transferred to BBC Radio 2 and aired on Saturdays from 9–11 pm. The show regularly drew about 400,000 listeners. The BBC Radio 2 show was available as a podcast. On 18 October 2008, on The Russell Brand Show , Brand and Jonathan Ross broadcast the recording of a series of lewd phone messages for then-78-year-old actor Andrew Sachs . This infamously included Ross saying, "He fucked your granddaughter",
10672-782: The southern bank of the River Thames. Rail transport in the borough is provided by c2c with stations at: Bus services within the Thurrock urban area are mostly provided by Ensignbus . Other operators are First Essex, Stagecoach London and NIBS Buses. Thurrock has 55 schools; 39 of them are primary schools , 13 are secondary , two are special and one is alternative . All but one have free school or academy status , with Grays Convent High School instead having voluntary aided status. Five schools, including Grays Convent High School and four primary schools, are Catholic faith schools while two primary schools are Anglican faith schools. 44 schools in Thurrock are operated by one of 13 multi-academy trusts , which include major chains such as
10788-514: The stand-up show Pablo Diablo's Cryptic Triptych , alongside ventriloquist Mark Felgate and Anglo-Iranian comic Shaparak Khorsandi . In 2004, Brand took his first one-man show, the confessional Better Now , to the Edinburgh Festival, giving an account of his heroin addiction. He returned the following year with Eroticised Humour . He launched his first nationwide tour, Shame , in 2006. Brand drew on embarrassing incidents in his own life and
10904-641: The tame wooden prose of elected politicians is marked." In September 2017, Macmillan published Brand's book Recovery: Freedom from Our Addictions . His book, Mentors: How To Help and Be Helped , was published in January 2019. It deals with the people who have had a positive impact on his life and encourages us to look to others to become better individuals. In 2024, Brand promoted a "magic amulet" that he claimed protected against "corruption" by "evil energies" and "lethal signals", citing in particular Wi-Fi . Claims that Wi-Fi signals are harmful are not supported by any scientific evidence. In 2009, Brand attended
11020-574: The television documentary, Monty Python: Almost the Truth (Lawyers Cut) . During a live show at the Royal & Derngate theatre in Northampton in 2008 Brand made a hoax call to police saying he had seen a man responsible for a number of assaults. He pretended to be a witness to assaults named Sarah. Northamptonshire Police decided not to prosecute and said they would discourage making such calls. The call
11136-400: The theatre began negotiating with the council, and had to provide it with an affordable business plan for the theatre by 13 July 2022. However, after an unnamed organisation expressed interest in buying the theatre, the council has delayed the deadline to September to allow it to put forward an alternative business plan. The town is approximately 20 miles (32 km) to the east of London on
11252-584: The time. In April 2009, he attended the 2009 G-20 London summit protests and spoke to the press. Brand was selected by the Dalai Lama to host the Buddhist leader's 2012 youth event in Manchester . The Dalai Lama's representatives explained that Brand was selected because he had proved "the power of spirituality to effect change in his own life", while Brand stated to the BBC after the event: "I said yes because he's
11368-514: Was expelled for illegal drug use and poor attendance. Brand has said that he was sexually abused by a tutor. Brand performed stand-up at the Hackney Empire New Act of the Year final in 2000. Although he finished fourth, his performance attracted the attention of Bound and Gagged Comedy Ltd agent Nigel Klarfeld. That year, he also made his Edinburgh Festival Fringe debut as one-third of
11484-503: Was Brand's second autobiography and was released on 30 September 2010. Brand has written articles for The Guardian that offer his perspectives on current events and pop culture, including the deaths of Amy Winehouse and Robin Williams . Following the 2011 London riots , Brand wrote a column in which he criticised the government's response to the riots in Summer 2011 as a failure to address
11600-434: Was a lower-tier district authority, with Essex County Council providing county-level services. Thurrock was made a unitary authority on 1 April 1998, taking over the county-level services. Thurrock remains part of the ceremonial county of Essex for the purposes of lieutenancy . There is only one tier of local government in Thurrock, being the unitary authority of Thurrock Council . There are no civil parishes in
11716-422: Was abolished, with just a minor change on the border with Basildon to place the whole designated area for Basildon new town in that district. The civil parish of Thurrock was also abolished as part of the reforms and the area became an unparished area . The reformed Thurrock district was given borough status at the same time, allowing the chair of the council to take the title of mayor. Until 1998 Thurrock
11832-486: Was accused of promoting COVID denialism and conspiracy theories . In September 2023, following a joint investigation by The Times , The Sunday Times and Channel 4 's documentary series Dispatches , five women publicly accused Brand of sexual assault and sexual and emotional abuse . The allegations concern incidents between 2006 and 2013 and were featured in the episode Russell Brand: In Plain Sight . Following
11948-465: Was arrested by Essex Police on suspicion of murder and pleaded guilty to manslaughter in April 2020. Essex Police launched an investigation afterwards and the lorry was moved to the nearby Port of Tilbury. It is the biggest murder investigation in the history of Essex police. On 26 May 2020, a total of 26 further suspects, most of whom Vietnamese nationals, were arrested in Belgium and France. The origin of
12064-471: Was condemned by Lynda Yorke of Leicester Rape Crisis Centre, who said: "I don't think that's particularly amusing. It's in very poor taste. The issue of sexual assault is often belittled and such callous behaviour is extremely hurtful to the victims." James Donaghy of The Guardian said it showed "catastrophically poor judgment". Brand apologised for the call. He has incorporated many of his controversial public acts into his comedic material. In March 2015,
12180-409: Was displayed in Thurrock. He had been convicted of piracy and hanged on 23 May 1701, at ' Execution Dock ', Wapping . His body was gibbeted — left to hang in an iron cage over the Thames at Tilbury Point — as a warning to future would-be pirates for twenty years. Some sources give the location where his body was exhibited as Tilbury Ness, but this may be an alternative name for the same place. There
12296-507: Was important in the defence of London , and Henry VIII built three blockhouses, two on the Tilbury side and another on the Gravesend side of the river, following the end of his marriage to Catherine of Aragon . In 1381, villagers from Fobbing , Mucking and Stanford-le-Hope instigated the Peasants' Revolt when they were called to Brentwood to pay the poll tax . When they refused to pay,
12412-488: Was joined by a host of guests, including Noel Gallagher and Jonathan Ross . On 25 February 2015, Brand launched a twice-weekly podcast called The Russell Brand Podcast through audioBoom . The podcast reunited Brand with his radio presenting team of Matt Morgan and poet Mr Gee. The podcast ended after 24 episodes. In 2017, Brand launched a new podcast called Under the Skin with Russell Brand in which he interviewed guests from areas such as academia, popular culture and
12528-725: Was meant to go through November 2018. However, on 30 April 2018, he was forced to cancel the remaining dates after his mother was critically injured in a hit-and-run accident. Russell Brand: Re:Birth , which was filmed in London in April 2018, was released as a standup comedy film on Netflix on 4 December 2018. Over the years, Brand has named Richard Pryor , Bill Hicks , Peter Cook , Lenny Bruce , Tony Hancock , Jack Kerouac , Stewart Lee , Tenacious D , Eddie Murphy , and Monty Python among his comedic influences. In choosing one comedy film among his five favourite movies he picked Monty Python's Life of Brian . In 2009, he appeared in
12644-473: Was operated by Gateway Academy before 2014, but it closed that year. In 2011, Ofsted deemed the sixth form as satisfactory, which meant it required improvement. This was primarily because of concerns over the number of students dropping out, which was above average. Hathaway Academy intended to open a sixth form some time before the 2014/2015 academic year, but this never came to fruition. Thurrock Technical College opened in 1952 on Dell Road. Between 1954 and 1957
12760-672: Was renowned for mineral extraction, including clay, aggregates and notably the digging of huge amounts of chalk from the West Thurrock area for use in the now defunct cement industries. When chalk extraction ceased one of the disused pits was redeveloped as Lakeside Shopping Centre. A number of former pits have been used to form the Chafford Gorges Nature Reserve, managed by the Essex Wildlife Trust. The body of Captain Kidd
12876-462: Was reversed in 1944, however wealthier students were still prioritised, even if they failed the 11+ exam required for enrolment. In 1971 the girls' school began its conversion into a sixth form college, reopening as Palmer's College in 1972 after it amalgamated with the boys' school and Aveley County Technical High School . The college merged with Seevic College in August 2017, forming USP College. There
12992-533: Was shown on Channel 4 on 25 January 2008. Brand returned to host the 2009 MTV VMAs , on 13 September 2009, at Radio City Music Hall in New York City. The ratings for the 2009 show were the best since the 2004 VMAs. On 12 February 2011, Brand guest hosted an episode of the hit American sketch comedy series Saturday Night Live . In 2012 he hosted the MTV Movie Awards and Brand X with Russell Brand ,
13108-460: Was six months old, and he was raised by his mother. When Brand was 8, his mother was diagnosed with uterine cancer and then breast cancer one year later. While she underwent treatment, Brand lived with relatives. When he was 14, he developed bulimia nervosa . At age 16, Brand left home because of disagreements with his mother's partner. He then started to use illegal drugs such as cannabis, amphetamines , LSD , and ecstasy . Brand says he had
13224-568: Was the fifth celebrity to "hijack" the Big Brother house, in the E4 show Big Brother: Celebrity Hijack . Brand next returned to MTV in early 2006 as presenter of the chat show, 1 Leicester Square , which had its broadcast time revised to allow for a more adult-oriented theme. Guests included Tom Cruise , Uma Thurman , The Mighty Boosh , and Boy George , and a second series began in September 2006 on MTV. After Big Brother 7 finished, Brand presented
13340-478: Was used as the main welfare centre for the homeless. By 15 February, most schools had returned to normal. The last to resume were the Landsdowne school in Tilbury and the newly opened Woodside Primary School – then called Tyrell Heath School. On Friday 13 February, the flooded areas were visited by the young Queen Elizabeth II Despite severe loss of life in nearby Canvey Island , only one person in Thurrock died as
13456-615: Was written and directed by Ben Elton . Brand auditioned for the part of Super Hans in the Channel 4 sitcom Peep Show ; the role eventually went to Matt King . In 2007, Brand appeared in Cold Blood for ITV , playing an ex-con called Ally. Brand played a recovering crack addict named Terry in the pilot for the ITV comedy The Abbey , written by Morwenna Banks . He voiced an Earth Guardian in Robbie
#544455