Russell Brand has crush on Samantha Barks

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Russell Brand

Russell Brand has a crush on Samantha Barks.

The comedian - who was previously married to Katy Perry - has taken a shine to the 'Les Miserables' breakout star and spent most of the post-Oscars Vanity Fair party in Los Angeles flirting with the "bedimpled angel".

He enthused in an interview with the Daily Mirror newspaper: "So many ladies caught my eye; it was like an assault on the senses. But I like that girl from 'Les Miserables', Samantha. We chatted and she's from the Isle of Man.

"She's like a bedimpled, little Manx angel. She was a lovely, beautiful young woman."

However, the long-haired lothario wants to shed his reputation for womanizing after being linked to a string of women including Geri Halliwell in the wake of his marital breakdown, and is trying not to be quite so forward any more.

Russell, 37, added: "I'm single at the moment actually and enjoying it. I'm trying not to roam the streets any more like the Terminator with a laser-sighted penis. I suppose I'm concentrating on work now and not especially looking for anyone."

The recovering drug addict and alcoholic - who has been clean for 10 years - only ever regrets not being able to drink when he's at big showbiz events like the Academy Awards celebrations last month because he finds them unnatural.

He said: "I think these kind of social situations are designed for people who have got some kind of artificial stimulant inside of them. Sometimes you do fancy a drink and can see why it's necessary.

"In a way it's a bit like a work do - it's not that different from the average Christmas party."