Charles Bronson prison officer makes cryptic comment on notorious lag’s future in jail during parole board showdown
A PRISON officer for Charles Bronson said it was a mystery why the notorious lag had not “progressed” out of high security prison.
Britain’s most notorious prisoner, 70, has been in court for a parole hearing this week as he bids for freedom after 50 years behind bars.
Bronson has held 11 people hostage over the years including prison governors, doctors and even his own solicitor.
He was jailed for life for taking an art teaching hostage for 48 hours, when he marched him around the prison on a lead.
Yesterday a prison officer, described as Bronson’s personal officer, told the panel that he no longer needed to be in the close supervision centre.
He said: “I think everyone knows he’s ready to progress and it’s just not happening for whatever reason.”
An independent psychologist told the panel, at the Royal Courts Of Justice, that Bronson should be moved to a low security jail.
She said: “He would be less of a risk in a community environment than a prison environment.
“I stand by that assessment.”
Wearing a dark t-shirt and dark sunglasses, Bronson has mocked the hearing, comparing it to an episode of The Apprentice.
Bronson admitted he had no remorse about taking a governor hostage, had won £1,500 placing football bets behind bars and loved fighting in jail house brawls.
Bronson said: “I was born to have a rumble, I love to have a rumble.
“But I’m 70 now. It can become embarrassing. You have to grow up sooner or later.”
He also described one fight, when he greased himself up with Lurpak spread while naked in a 2018, as the “rumble of my life, adding: “I f*g loved it.”
The hearing was told how Bronson was first sent to jail in 1974 at the age of 21 – and it’s been his lifestyle ever since.
He spent time in solitary confinement and specialist units for his violent outbursts towards other inmates.
In 1974 he was jailed for seven years after being convicted of armed robbery – which was extended by nine months after he attacked a fellow prisoner with a glass jug.
He later attempted to strangle Gordon Robinson while at Broadmoor, before causing £250,000 worth of damage when he staged a three-day protest on a rooftop.
He was released in 1987 but soon returned a year later for intent to commit robbery.
Following further serious incidents, he was finally given a life sentence after kidnapping prison teacher Phil Danielson in 1999, who he led around on a lead for two days.
The hearing will assess whether he presents a danger to others. If the risks are deemed low, there is a possibility he could be released on a life licence.