Age of Consent

Russell Brand says he did sleep with a 16-year-old ... but, he's clear that's the age of consent in the United Kingdom -- and he never sexually assaulted anyone.

The actor opened up about the charges he's facing in his home country during an interview with Megyn Kelly published Wednesday ... claiming he had consensual sex with the teen when he was 30 years old.

Brand admits he wasn't kind to women back in the day ... using fame, money and charisma to have sex with a ton of ladies -- and not applying any consideration to their feelings.