A former priest who led the Nine O’Clock Service, based in Sheffield and linked to the Church of England, has been found guilty of indecent assault against nine women. Christopher Brain, 68, from Wilmslow in Cheshire, led NOS from 1986 to 1995. A jury at Inner London Crown Court convicted him on 17 counts of indecent assault from that period. The jury cleared him on 15 counts, and they are still deliberating on four further indecent assault charges and one count of rape.

Prosecutors described NOS as targeting younger people and presenting itself to the outside world as a progressive force for good. They said the group became a cult in which Brain used his position to control followers and ostracised them from friends and family. Witnesses spoke of a ‘homebase team’ described as to ‘care for’ Brain, with the group known as the ‘Lycra Lovelies’ or the ‘Lycra Nuns’. Accounts also described Brain being surrounded by women in lingerie at his home.

Brain told jurors that some massages intended to relieve tensions could evolve into ‘sensual touching’, which he said was between friends and ‘no big deal’. He denied touching anyone’s breasts during his time with NOS in Sheffield, but said he did so after leaving the movement and that it was consensual. He rejected evidence that he tried to control people by making them wear the same clothing or lose weight, or by discouraging friendships. Jurors were told they would reconvene at 10:00 on Thursday to continue deliberations.