Russell Brand has admitted he has avoided paying for public transport.

Speaking at a recording of a podcast in east London, he said: "From someone that's gone from no wealth to wealth, I know that money doesn't make me happier.

"Like I jumped the train yesterday when I had to go to Chelmsford. I could have got a ticket but I couldn't be bothered with the rigmarole of getting one.

"I realised all I had to do was get over a barrier so I did that and then slid out the other end behind someone."

Although a spokesman for Greater Anglia - the company which runs the route from London the Chelmsford - declined to comment on Russell skipping the £14.90 rail fair, they did say they take the issue "very seriously".

They said: "We take fare evasion very seriously as it is in the interest of everyone that travels."

Russell is said to be worth £15 million, and recently confirmed he is releasing his own collection of children's books, starting with an adaptation of 'The Pied Piper of Hamelin',

He announced: "It's the first of series called 'Russell Brand's Trickster Tales', where I do interpretations of fairy stories and folk tales, believing them to be the code to unlock aspects of our consciousness and to affect and impact the way we see the world.

"Once we start changing the way children see the world... we can do all sorts of stuff."