A former Church of England priest who led an influential evangelical movement has been convicted of sexually assaulting nine women who were members of his congregation during the 1980s and 90s.
Chris Brain, 68, was found guilty of 17 counts of indecent assault at Inner London Crown Court on Wednesday, following a trial that exposed how the charismatic leader exploited his position to abuse female followers of the Nine O’Clock Service (NOS) in Sheffield.
The jury acquitted Brain, of Wilmslow in Cheshire, of 15 other charges of indecent assault. They are continuing to deliberate on four further counts of indecent assault and one charge of rape, with deliberations expected to resume on Thursday.
‘Lycra Lovelies’ Subjected to Abuse
During the trial, prosecutor Tim Clark KC revealed how Brain recruited women to a so-called “homebase team” tasked with looking after him and his family. The group became known among NOS members as the “Lycra lovelies” or “Lycra nuns” after witnesses reported seeing the defendant surrounded by attractive women in lingerie at his home.
The court heard these women were required to perform household chores at the home Brain shared with his wife and daughter, as well as “putting him to bed with sexual favours.” The prosecution alleged Brain ran NOS as a cult, sexually assaulting a “staggering number” of women followers whilst exerting control over their lives and isolating them from friends and family.
Wearing a black suit with a black tie, Brain showed no emotion as the jury foreman delivered the guilty verdicts. The anonymity of complainants is protected by law under the Sexual Offences (Amendment) Act 1992.
Rise of the Nine O’Clock Service
The Nine O’Clock Service began in Sheffield in 1986 as a youth-oriented alternative Christian worship service at St Thomas’ Church in Crookes. Under Brain’s leadership, the movement grew from about 10 people to nearly 600 members, attracting significant attention from Church of England leaders for its nightclub-style services featuring techno beats, strobe lighting and the Eucharist.
Brain, a former pop musician, created services that journalist Tim Wyatt described as “a kind of rave nightclub fresh expression of church… an alluring blend of rave culture, activism and worship.” The average age of members was 24, with many coming from non-church backgrounds.
By 1988, David Lunn, then Bishop of Sheffield, sanctioned a move to the city’s Ponds Forge leisure centre due to the service’s popularity. Brain was fast-tracked for ordination, becoming a priest in the Church of England despite initially having no religious qualifications.
Church Leaders Ignored Warning Signs
Evidence presented during the trial revealed that concerns about Brain’s behaviour were raised years before the scandal broke. Dr Mark Stibbe, a former curate at St Thomas’s Church, testified that he had written to the Bishop of Sheffield expressing concerns about oversight of NOS.
“It seemed to me that it had drifted so far away from being a Christian ritual and Christian service and there were elements of it that deeply disturbed me,” Dr Stibbe told the court. He recalled warning the bishop that without proper intervention “there would be disaster within one year.”
Another church official raised concerns about the “negative optics” of “scantily clad, lycra-wearing pretty young women” regularly visiting Brain’s home to perform “domestic duties,” but received a “roasting” for suggesting anything untoward, the court heard.
Scandal and Dissolution
The Nine O’Clock Service was dissolved in 1995 after multiple women came forward with allegations of sexual abuse. The scandal erupted just before a BBC documentary about the abuse was due to air, prompting Brain to resign and check himself into a psychiatric hospital.
The Archbishop of York subsequently banned Brain from acting as an ordained priest. At the time, Brain admitted to a BBC documentary that he had been “involved in improper sexual conduct with a number of women.”
During services at Christian festivals, the court heard, dancers in black Lycra bikinis performed in front of thousands of attendees. Dr Stibbe described witnessing “girls gyrating in scantily clad costume in a worship context” and finding it “extremely disturbing.”
Victims Speak of Manipulation
One victim told the court how Brain had made her believe she was at fault and needed “healing.” In a recorded police interview played to jurors, she said: “What Chris Brain said to me repeatedly was that I was sexually repressed and needed healing. I understood it was my fault – something to do with me that wasn’t right.”
When asked why she didn’t report the abuse at the time, she explained: “I didn’t have the wherewithal to confront what happened. You’re not allowed to question it because he represented God.”
Another former member described how Brain would “talk about how we were discovering a postmodern definition of sexuality in the church,” adding: “It’s just language – language covering up the fact of what was really going on: one bloke getting his rocks off.”
Long Road to Justice
Brain evaded criminal prosecution for nearly 30 years until South Yorkshire Police announced in February 2024 that he had been summonsed to court. The original charges included one count of rape and 33 counts of indecent assault against 11 women, later increased to 36 counts of indecent assault against 13 women.
During his defence, Brain’s barrister Iain Simkin KC suggested to victims that they had “freely engaged” in sexual relationships and were “retrospectively withdrawing consent.” Brain himself described NOS as an “evolving experiment” during a period of cultural liberation, claiming any sexual encounters were consensual.
The Diocese of Sheffield maintains a dedicated Nine O’Clock Service page for people to report past abuse or seek help in coping with their memories of the community. Current Bishop Pete Wilcox has acknowledged the “appalling conduct” that occurred, marking a stark contrast to the hierarchy’s initial response in 1995 when they claimed no responsibility for wrongdoing.
As the jury continues deliberations on the remaining charges, Brain’s conviction represents a significant moment of accountability for abuse within the Church of England during the 1980s and 90s.
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