NOTORIOUS for wreaking havoc with one-man riots, Britain’s most violent inmate Charles Bronson has a fearsome reputation.
During his 50-year incarceration, the thug – real name Michael Peterson– has launched 10 sieges, attacked at least 20 prison officers and held 11 people hostage including a prison governor.
His vicious rampages caused in excess of £500,000 worth of damage and left scores of victims traumatised in his wake including art teacher Phil Danielson.
“Take your last breath, you’re going to die,” Bronson told him after stabbing him in the leg during a 44-hour ordeal where he was held at knifepoint with a makeshift spear.
Incredibly Bronson – who now uses the last name Salvador – claimed last year, during an eighth failed attempt to gain his freedom, that he had “never been a danger to the public”
Originally convicted of armed robbery in 1974 before being held for decades due to multiple violent offences, the lag defiantly insists, in a new book, that he has no remorse.
The Sun was granted an exclusive preview to Charles Bronson: 50 Years Of Porridge, co-written by the crook and his pal Richard Booth using letters and interviews.
In it, the 71-year-old denies committing any crime to “be ashamed of” and takes several unprovoked pops at celebrities including Michelle Keegan’s husband Mark Wright, the Furys and Matt Hancock.
He also reveals prison guards turned a blind eye while he romped with a girlfriend and he had a gay experience as he shares anecdotes about Britain’s most notorious serial killers.
In one extract, Bronson takes a jab at the father of legendary boxer Tyson Fury, describing John Fury as “embarrassing” at weigh-ins and mocking his “great big beer belly”.
He said the Gypsy King’s dad was making the sport “a f***ing circus” and warned against calling out Mike Tyson, suggesting it would lead to him “arranging his [son’s] funeral”.
“Come on Tyson, you’re the champ of the world, have a word with him,” Bronson complains.
“Everyone I know says the same as me, your dad’s a complete muppet. With a belly like his, he should stick to belly dancing.”
Later he slams former TOWIE star Mark Wright, branding him “a muppet” and argues he is no match for wife of nine years Michelle Keegan.
Bronson says he would “cut a finger off” to take her a cuppa in the morning and predicts she “will end up a Dame, a top movie star and legend”.
“Michelle Keegan [is] married to that muppet Mark Wright,” he snipes. “That won’t last, he’s probably in the bathroom twice as long as her. Real women don’t want that!
Describing her as one of the best actors in showbiz, he goes on to compare her to Dame Joan Collins whom Bronson bizarrely dedicates his book to.
“She is the ultimate lady in my eyes… she has it all, personality, class, glamour, stardom and charisma,” the inmate adds.
‘Strictly’s No1 fan’
Many would be surprised to discover the hard man’s favourite TV show is… Strictly Come Dancing, with him branding it “my all-time No 1”.
“I f***ing love it, the glitz, the glamour, and the whole set up is brilliant,” Bronson says.
However, the longterm inmate complains about same-sex pairings on the BBC show and makes vile remarks about Ellie Simmonds.
“F*** me, it’s like Billy Smart’s Circus! No, it’s a bloody panto”, Bronson spat in one of his attacks.
He couldn’t even stay loyal to his own wife, he never gave a s*** about you lot. F***ing wake up.
Charles Bronson
After complaining about modern times, he says: “F*** Strictly, you lost your biggest fan!”
He goes on to moan about discussions over having a black or female actor take over the part of fictional character James Bond, which he felt would leave Ian Fleming“turning in his grave”.
Another show, Bronson is clearly not a fan of is I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here! due to them hiring disgraced lockdown-rule-breaking health secretary Matt Hancock in 2022.
He fumed over the former MP, who stepped down after The Sun’s exclusive photos of his affair with aide Gina Coladangelo, making Covid rules and then breaking them.
Urging the public not to trust him, Bronson writes: “Wake up public, a c**t’s a c**t.
“He couldn’t even stay loyal to his own wife, he never gave a s*** about you lot. F***ing wake up.”
Sex in prison
Bronson has been incarcerated in notorious prisons including Monster Mansion HMP Wakefield and psychiatric hospitals like Broadmoor.
He describes his journey as “hell fire” and “a bumpy ride” but concedes it was “a lot of fun too” and claims to have had “an amazing life”.
Bronson details sexual encounters behind bars – including a male performing a sex act on him while he looked at erotic photos of his then-girlfriend Kelly Anne.
He also claims prison guards “turned a blind eye” so that he could have sex with a girlfriend, from Luton, while he was in HMP Albany.
Bronson, who has been married twice since being in prison, claimed the nuptials to Saira Ali Ahmed, which spanned four years until 2005, was never legal.
That’s because he tied the knot as Charles Bronson, which is not his birth name, the marriage was not consummated and there was no imam present for the Muslim service.
Loads of birds wrote to him and visited him. I’ll say now to all those muggy birds, you’re all a disgrace to womanhood
Charles Bronson
Having spent 50 years in jail, he moans about how things have changed and that prisoners are more focused on getting spice, a synthetic cannabis, than trying to escape.
Bronson notes that lags get TVs, CDs, DVDs, PlayStations and kettles yet still “whinge like little tarts”.
Ripper’s fangirls
Having mixed with the UK’s most notorious prisoners he says Moors murderer Ian Brady “made my skin crawl” and described having “never in my life wanted so badly to attack any man”.
But Bronson felt the child killer and abuser’s partner Myra Hindley was “worse” because women should have “love in their heart for children”.
He details how serial killer Dennis Nilsen would stop prisoners from mocking him – by threatening to name them as “my lovers” in the press.
Bronson also describes being appalled that Yorkshire Ripper Peter Sutcliffe, who murdered 13 women, had a number of fangirls – some of whom visited him.
He says: “Loads of birds wrote to him and visited him. I’ll say now to all those muggy birds, you’re all a disgrace to womanhood… you’re as sick as that b******.”
Bronson claimed Sutcliffe’s wife Sonya Szurma would visit him “with her sexy outfits on” regularly and she stood by him for years before divorcing him for cheating.
He recalls Dr Harold Shipman, Britain’s most prolific serial killer, who killed at least 284 victims over three decades, being mocked for turning down an apple offered by a prison guard.
Recalling the ‘dark humour’ moment, Bronson claims the ‘screw’ responded: “I bet you wouldn’t complain if it was a Granny Smith!”
“The whole wing cheered. It wa so funny,” he adds.
The book is full of praise for Ronnie and Reggie Kray and the ‘Great Train Robbers’, who stole £2.61million from a Royal Mail train in 1963.
While Bronson often glamourises crime, he warns people against committing crime now stating: “Don’t f*** with the criminal fraternity.”
These f***ing idiots want me to say sorry! They want me to have regrets. I don’t think so.
Charles Bronson
He says there are “no gentleman robbers left” and warns: “Nowadays they just blow your head clean off.” He claims that life is “too violent for me”.
‘No remorse, it was war’
Despite the harm Bronson has caused over the years, he remains unrepentant. When pondering whether he’s remorseful or regretful, he writes: “Am I f***!”
He claims he has “never committed a crime to be ashamed of” and retired his belief that he can’t have regrets because “it was war to me”.
This will fly in the face of victims like Phil Danielson, who suffers PTSD and has not been able to return to work after being kidnapped by Bronson in 1999.
The art teacher was “terrified out of my mind” during the attack, suffered a nervous breakdown and said Bronson “left my career prospects in ruins”.
“The damage that was caused by him has moulded my whole life… it’ll be with me for the rest of my days,” Phil added.
Bronson’s extracts are littered with violent language including saying he would have “shot your face off” about one ‘screw’, and he discusses wanting to stab others and wishes death on many.
Instead of regret he boldly states: “Hey, I should be free now with a million-pound compensation and given the biggest apology of all time for what they’ve done to me.
“And these f***ing idiots want me to say sorry! They want me to have regrets. I don’t think so.”
‘Son’s a lying rat’
In March last year, Bronson’s eighth bid for freedom before a parole board was rejected and he in part blamed George Bamby, a man who claimed to be the crook’s son.
In 2023 Bamby, who calls himself a PR agent, revealed their father-son story was a six-year publicity stunt from which he made “loads of money.”
But Bronson partly blames Bamby for the latest parole denial, after the panel found the lag was not suitable for release, because he “lives by his own rigid rules” and had a “history of persistent rule-breaking”.
I’m now convinced I will die in jail. I’ll never get out… And I’ve never said that in half a century
Charles Bronson
In a Channel 4 documentary, Bamby claimed: “I don’t know if my dad’s just manipulating me.
“I don’t know if he will kick the s*** out of me or stab me with a bread knife.”
Bronson fumed it was “a complete load of rubbish” and said it helped him “like a hole in the head”, believing it caused problems for his release.
Now he states: “I have disowned the f***ing rat… He manipulated me into thinking he was my son and it is now clear that it was all lies.”
He fumes over his supposed son “fat lying b****** trying to bury me” in the documentary and calls Bamby’s wife a “hypocrite” who was “lying through her teeth”.
The crimes of Charles Bronson
By Kieran Davies
CHARLES Bronson has served 50 years in prison – but why has he been kept behind bars for so many years?
The crook – real name Michael Peterson – was first sentenced to seven years in jail after being convicted of armed robbery in 1974 – 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.
The serial criminal was eventually released in 1987 – it was then he changed his name to Charles Bronson on the advice of his bare-knuckle boxing promoter.
But it was not long before he was back in jail, after robbing a jewellery shop in 1988 and sentenced to seven more years inside.
Bronson was released early from his sentence in 1992 – but was back behind bars 53 days later for intent to commit robbery.
After holding three men hostage in his cell, the Luton lad saw another seven years added to his sentence – although this was cut to five on appeal.
Following further incidents, he was finally given a life sentence after kidnapping prison teacher Phil Danielson in 1999, causing destruction to the prison.
After being held at a number of prisons across the country – including Belmarsh – he returned to HM Prison Woodhill in 2018, where Bronson is still incarcerated.
In a definitive statement, Bronson describes having always been positive about his chance of release until now – after fighting the system and wardens for years, he’s finally finished.
Bronson states: “I’m now convinced I will die in jail. I’ll never get out… And I’ve never said that in half a century.”
Charles Bronson: 50 Years Of Porridge by Charles Salvador and Richard Booth is available to buy on Amazon for £26.67.
