Charles Bronson breaks into song just moments after being denied parole

31 March 2023 , 09:50

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He sang down the phone to a friend then called his mum (Image: Liverpool Echo)

Britain's most notorious prisoner Charles Bronson broke into a song moments after finding out he had been denied parole again.

The inmate called author Dave Courtney and sang Englebert Humperdinck's 'Please Release Me', before he called his mum Eira, his ex-wife Irene Dunroe has said.

Bronson, who has spent almost 50 years behind bars, learned of his fate to remain behind bars from a letter from the Parole Board.

They concluded he lacks the "skills to manage his risk of future violence". He was also denied a transfer to an open prison.

In a document detailing the decision published on Thursday, the Parole Board said: "After considering the circumstances of his offending, the progress that Mr Salvador has made while in custody and the evidence presented at the hearings, the panel was not satisfied that Mr Salvador was suitable for release.

UK's most notorious prisoner creates new art in bid to be released

Bronson will remain behind bars (Lindsey Parnaby/Shutterstock)

"Nor did the panel recommend to the Secretary of State that he should be transferred to an open prison."

The parole judges said they were "mindful of his history of persistent rule breaking and that Mr Salvador sees little wrong with this.

"He lives his life rigidly by his own rules and code of conduct and is quick to judge others by his own standard.

"His positive progress has to be assessed in the context of him being held in a highly restrictive environment", the document said, adding that it was "unknown exactly what is containing Mr Salvador's risk.

"It is unclear whether the strong external controls of custody are mainly responsible or whether his attitudes have genuinely changed".

“The panel could not be satisfied that Mr Salvador has the skills to manage his risk of future violence until he has been extensively tested outside of his current highly restricted environment.

"The movement and categorisation of prisoners are entirely a matter for the Secretary of State, and parole panels will not ordinarily comment on such matters.

"However in the particular circumstances of this case the panel observed that there is an identified pathway for Salvador in custody and the evidence supported such a move within a closed prison."

He will be eligible for another parole review in about two years.

Bronson, changed his surname to Salvador in 2014, was the second inmate in UK legal history to have his case heard in public after rules changed last year in a bid to remove the secrecy around the process.

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His ex-wife Irene Dunroe said she was "devastated" and "shocked" by the decision, adding: "It's disgusting and very, very upsetting. I can't believe it".

Kelly-Ann Mills