The "FREE BRONSON" Protest at
HMP Wakefield went well yesterday. A full report
and photos will appear on the website tomorrow
evening.
24th January 2012
PROTEST DETAILS
The "FREE BRONSON" Protest starts at 1
pm. We will all be meeting in the Bronson Bar
from 12 noon onwards and walking down to the
prison just after 12.30 pm. Those of you who
don't know where it is, the address is The
Bolands Bar, 2 Union Street, Wakefield, WF1 3AD.
[MAP]
We hope to see as many of you as possible. This
is the year that Charlie needs your support so
please get personally involved and come and
swell the numbers. Photos and a report on the
day will appear here on the website next week.
7th January 2012
SOLITARY CONFINEMENT
Here's a 46 minute video by National Geographic
about solitary confinement. Although it's
centred on the American penal system it
demonstrates more or less how it operates in the
UK and the effects of solitary on prisoners.
Please take the time to watch this and remember
... Charlie has spent 34 years of his life in
solitary!
5th January 2012
NEXT FREE BRONSON
PROTEST
A date for your diaries. The next Free
Bronson Protest will be held on the
afternoon of Saturday 28th January 2012 outside
HMP Wakefield. If you can make it then please
come and show your support for Charlie's plight.
Remember: numbers DO make a difference. Further
details will be published in the coming days.
4th January 2012
The Charlie Bronson Appeal Fund
are auctioning off a signed paperback
copy of "Bronson" with a signed label
from Charlie inside. I can personally
vouch for the authenticity of the
signature. All monies raised will go
towards legal and report costs for
Charlie's 2012 appeal against his
sentence.
To take a look (and
hopefully bid on this rare treasure)
then please go to
The Bronson Ebay Auction.
If you're desperate to get your hands on
an authentic piece of Charlie's art then
take a look at what's currently
available
HERE.
1st January 2012
13th December 2011
Well, what a great night was had by all up at
the new FREE BRONSON BAR opening night in
Wakefield on Saturday.
Read all about the event HERE.
9th December 2011
Don't forget folks, it's the grand opening of
the FREE BRONSON BAR tomorrow night at
8.30 in the Bolands Bar, 2 Union Street,
Wakefield, WF1 3AD. Get yer arses down there and
show your support.
30th November 2011
CHARLIE’S LEGAL STANDPOINT AND APPEAL
Here are the reasons and points of law upon
which Charlie Bronson will be launching a fresh
appeal in early 2012.
The relevant sections of the Appeal paperwork
will appear here as a link in the next day. As
you will see, his legal team have pointed out
that Charlie suffered a mis-trial on the
following points of law:
1.
HHJ Moss, the trial
Judge, DISMISSED Charlie’s defence of
Duress. It is actually not permissible
for a judge to disallow a defendant’s
plead. It is for the JURY to decide
whether the plea put forward is
relevant. What Judge Moss did was left
the Jury NO OPTION but to find Charlie
guilty – as they were instructed his
PLEA could not be accepted. THIS IS
AGAINST THE LAW OF THE UK COURTS.
2.
Throughout the course
of Charlie’s trial, he was REFUSED the
right to call defence witnesses ; key
witnesses such as a Medical
Professional, a fellow prisoner who was
PRESENT at the time of the offence and a
Prison Officer who could have given an
account of Charlie’s treatment in Hull
Prison and the reasons behind his
actions leading up to the hostage
situation with Mr John Philip Danielson.
3.
Having dismissed his
legal team through frustration, Charlie
was clearly lost when the trial turned
to the legal points of his case. At this
point, HHJ Moss should have AT THE VERY
LEAST halted the trial and advised
Charlie to appoint a new legal team
before the trial could reconvene.
Charlie’s defence hinged on the plea of
Duress, which would suggest he was not
in the correct frame of mind and
potentially STILL not in the correct
frame of mind. If there was any doubt as
to his frame of mind, HE SHOULD NOT
HAVE BEEN ALLOWED TO CONTINUE TO
REPRESENT HIMSELF.
Charlie is looking to take his case back to the
Criminal Cases Review Committee on these FACTS
OF LAW. His trial and subsequent Life sentence
represent a serious miscarriage of justice. He
has now spent 11 years inside since this farce
of a trial – EIGHT YEARS over his recommended
tariff. This is the why the Charlie Bronson
Appeal Fund was established, to aid Charlie’s
legal team with external fees (medical
assessments, barristers’ reports). If we have to
PAY to get British Justice for Charlie, we will.
”I want the British public to see the
miscarriage of justice I suffered. I didn’t get
justice in that court. What they did was illegal
and I aim to expose it … and the Prison
Service’s continued treatment of me ”
16th November 2011
WANT
A GREAT BARGAIN?
The Charles Bronson Appeal Fund are offering a
paperback copy of 'Silent Scream', with a signed
sticker on the inside of the cover, signed by
Charlie himself. The book is as new. There is
also a signed, original piece of black and white
A5 art hand drawn by Charlie, a photo of Charlie
and a thank you letter from the Appeal Fund.
Although these aren't being sold by the website
I can assure everyone that THESE and ALL items
offered by The Charles Bronson Appeal Fund are
genuine. So, what are you waiting for? Get over
to Ebay and start bidding!
December
will see the launch of a unique calendar
featuring the artwork of Charlie Bronson, quite
unlike anything the public have seen before. In
support of the Dylan Foundation and with
sponsorship from The Charlie Bronson Appeal
Fund, a 2012 calendar entitled ‘Animal Magic’ is
being produced, which will feature incredible
animal cartoons from long term prisoner Charlie
Bronson.
Dylan Godfrey is an angelic little boy who
suffers from a rare form of Lissencephaly, a
rare form of brain disorder for which there is
currently no cure. He needs constant care and
support.
The proceeds from the calendar will go to the
Dylan Foundation to help provide some relief for
his family and carers.
"The reason the
Bronson Bar is opening is quite simple. As Peter
Kearns said 'Enough is enough.' It is to expose
the injustice of my incarceration. I am actually
being unlawfully locked up - now 8 years over my
tariff for no justifiable reason. My world is
constant solitary, from year to year. Not for
what I do - but for what I did years ago. I make
no excuses for my past behaviour, I was a
violent dangerous thug. I am not proud of my
past behaviour. My violence was directed at this
corrupt evil prison system. I fought it and it
cost me my life. I was never a danger to the
public, and my crimes outside do not warrant or
justify a life sentence.
"My problems started almost 40 years ago when I
stepped into the world of prison brutality. I
have lost count of the brutality I have endured,
the injections, the body belts, strait jackets,
multiple moves. And decades of solitary
confinement with psychological torture. They
cannot justify keeping me in a cage in solitary.
"What I want the public to realise is that I am
now nearly 60 years ago, I am a prolific artist,
I create poetry and write songs. Over the last
decade alone I have raised thousands for various
charities, something I am very proud of. If I
can achieve all this from a filthy cage, what
can I do outside? I am anti crime, anti drugs
and anti violence. I help youngsters stay away
from crime, I know because I get the letters
from parents.
"ARE THESE REALLY THE ACTIONS OF 'BRITAIN'S
MOST DANGEROUS MAN?
"Let me say this now, it is ME that is the
hostage. I am the one who is being denied human
rights. And it is time for the public to see the
truth behind the Bronson myth. I really am not
the man I have been portrayed as. I want to be a
free man now. I have paid the price. 38 years is
three life sentences. Considering that I have
never killed, raped or harmed anyone, that is
harsh.
"My mother is still alive and I want her to see
me a free man. I have a beautiful lady in my
life who I will marry when I am out. I have my
art and a future.
"My legal team are working on my third appeal
now and I believe I will walk out of the appeal
court a free man in 2012 because my conviction
and sentence were totally unjust. Cons that have
killed cons are not even kept in the conditions
I am kept in. They want to make an example of
me. But my family, friends and supporters are
helping me to expose this injustice. I have a
petition and an appeal fund. I hope you can help
expose this continued injustice and get the
media onside."
Charlie Bronson, November 2011
2nd November 2011
‘FREE BRONSON’ SALOON BAR TO OPEN IN WAKEFIELD
Wakefield
landlord and Charlie Bronson Supporter Peter
Kearns is planning to name part of his bar area
‘The Free Bronson Bar’, complete with artwork of
Charlie's adorning the walls, just minutes away
from Wakefield Prison, where Charlie is
currently held in solitary confinement.
To celebrate the launch, there is a special
evening on Saturday 10th December, at The
Bolands Bar, Wakefield, where supporters, family
and friends will attend to highlight the
injustice of Charlie’s continued imprisonment.
After 37 years inside, most of those years spent
in solitary confinement, he is now hoping to
launch a fresh appeal for freedom early in 2012.
With a new legal team in place and The Charlie
Bronson Appeal Fund established to help pay his
fees, Charlie aims to get his case back to the
Criminal Cases Review Committee. He said of his
position:
"I am serving a life sentence. Why? I am eight
years over the recommended 3 year tariff. Why?
I’ll tell you why. Because my name is Charles
Bronson. I have become an embarrassment to the
system. I was refused legal aid. Why? Even the
Yorkshire Ripper got legal aid. I’ve never
killed anyone yet I am treated like an animal.
But my family will never stop fighting for me.
And with the help of my supporters and friends,
I am going to expose this system for the cowards
they are.”
20th October 2011
A pub in
Wakefield is changing ownership and the landlord
is planning to call one of the saloons "The
Free Bronson Bar". He is planning a little
launch night on Saturday 10th December 2011, so
keep your diaries free if you'd like to attend
as it will also be a double celebration for
Charlie's 59th birthday. The venue will be
confirmed nearer the time, but it is within
walking distance of Wakefield Prison.
25th September 2011
A new website has
been launched to help raise funds for Charlie's
appeal against his conviction in 2000 which
resulted in his life sentence with a three year
tariff. The website is
The Charlie Bronson Appeal Fund and is
stuffed with information and ways to help, news
on the latest auctions etc. So, what are you
waiting for? Get over there and have a good
mooch around.
13th September 2011
You may remember
that, way back in October last year, I
introduced you to 71 Chain and "The Ballad of
Charlie Bronson."Well, now 71 Chain are
making a music video at the Crime Through Time
Museum at Littledean Jail in October to go with the track. More
news as soon as I get it.
11th September 2011
If you've got Sky
or Virgin then there's a documentary on Thursday
15th September that you won't want to miss.
"The Real Bronson" is on Crime and
Investigation channel (Sky 553, SkyHD 555 and
Virgin 237) at 9 pm and repeated on Friday at 1
am.
The blurb says:
"A look at the battle to control Charles
Bronson. Dubbed 'the most violent man in
Britain', he is held in 'The Cage' in HMP
Wakefield where he is less able to wreck, attack
or take hostages."
The makers of the
programme didn't bother to contact me when they
were making it, but I know that there are
interviews with both Charlie's mum, Eira, and
brother Mark.
3rd September 2011
Great review of Charlie's latest book, Prison
Diaries from a Concrete Coffin from
the September edition of Insidetime. You can read the full review
HERE.
30th August 2011
WANT
A REAL BARGAIN? The Charles Bronson Appeal
Fund are offering a signed copy of Heroes &
Villains and an original piece of Charlie's art
over on Ebay, with all profits going to the fund
to help Charlie's proposed appeal.
Although these aren't being sold by the website
I can assure everyone that THESE items are
genuine. So, what are you waiting for? Get over
to Ebay and start bidding!
Bronson look-alike Steve Swatton is raising more money
for charity. After his success with the thirty
mile "Bronson Challenge" walk earlier this year,
he now plans to swim the two and a half miles
from Plymouth Hoe to Plymouth Breakwater to
raise money for
The Plymouth Highbury Trust. As always,
Charlie is 100% behind Steve in all his
charitable endeavors, especially after Steve
organised the "Free Bronson Protest" outside
Buckingham Palace a couple of weeks back. The
money raised will go towards buying a specially
adapted mini-bus for people with severe learning
disabilities.
The event takes place on the 4th September at
1.00 pm. If you'd like to sponsor Steve in this
worthwhile cause then please ring him on
01752 344001.
15th August 2011
Today's edition of The Yorkshire Evening Post
features an article about Steve Swatton, the man
who organised the Free Bronson protest outside
Buckingham Palace last week. It's a rather
interesting piece which you can
READ
HERE.
11th August 2011
Apex
Publishing are now auctioning numbered limited
edition SIGNED copies of Charlie's new book
'Prison Diaries' on Ebay. There will only ever
be 100 of these books made available
They have Charlie's autograph inside (on a
sticker), with Apex's embossed stamp to prove
authenticity. All profits from the auction will
be donated to the Charlie Bronson Appeal Fund so
here's your chance to get yourself a rare signed
copy and help Charlie win his freedom at the
same time.
Get down to the EBAY AUCTION HERE ...
10th August 2011
Here's
your chance to bid on and win a framed A4 print
of Charlie's art, which has been personally
signed by Tom Hardy, who played Charlie in the
film 'Bronson.' This is a genuine signature and
there is a photo on the back (stuck to the back
of the frame) showing Tom at the signing,
signing the print!
The piece is
being auctioned on Ebay by the Official
Charles Bronson Appeal Fund to help raise
the funds needed to pay for Charlie's legal and
medical report fees. So, come on and bid
generously. You'll find the piece
HERE.
9th August 2011
Charlie has
donated three pieces of framed art, along with a
signed book to the
Indee Lee Trust, who help terminally ill
children. They are holding their annual
celebrity football event this Sunday 14th August
2011 at Concord Footbal Club on Canvey Island.
The event starts at 12.00pm, but gates open from
11.00am. Contact TKO Boxing Gym for more
details: 020 7474 3199.
This is the
sort of thing that DOESN'T get reported by the
press or get taken into account at parole
hearings!
8th August 2011
Saturday's
protest is reported in the Yorkshire Evening
Post. READ IT HERE ...
7th August 2011
BUCK HOUSE PROTEST AN
ENORMOUS SUCCESS
Saturday's
protest went off extremely well, attended by
about 50 to 60 staunch supporters with hundreds
of others getting involved. There's an account
of the day along with a letter from the
organiser, "Charlie lookalike" Steve Swatton and
photos.
READ IT HERE ...
28th July 2011
NEXT PROTEST - SLIGHT
CHANGE OF PLANS
The Royal Parks
have pulled a flanker on us. Three weeks ago
they stated on the phone there would be "no
problem" with holding the protest and book
launch at either St. James' or Green Park. But
today (ONE WEEK before the event) they
have contacted the organisers to say that they
need to write to them 21 DAYS in advance
to seek permission and that they would NOT give
permission for the book launch! They have also
informed us that if we hold the event on any of
their parks without their permission we will be
committing a criminal offence. Nice of them to
wait until the last minute to tell us that!
Well, their
efforts will not stop us. The Met Police have
said that THEY have no problem with us meeting
outside the gates of Buckingham Palace and we
will then make our way up The Mall to Trafalgar
Square (roughly a 7 to 10 minute walk).
Now the important
bit We are
meeting outside Buck House at 2.00 pm. This is a
100% PEACEFUL PROTEST.
If you support
Charlie and his struggle for freedom in the face
of a corrupt and malicious prison system then
please make the effort to come along and show
your support for a man who has been tortured for
long enough!
27th July 2011
EBAY CHANCE
Charlie's
brother Mark has very kindly donated his own
personal copy of the new book (one of Charlie's
author's copies) with all proceeds to go to the
Charlie Bronson Appeal Fund. It has a
signed sticker inside. Don't let this one get
away. Take a look NOW!
Charlie has
written an important statement explaining what
was behind his encounter with the Tornado Squad
on the 6th July. What pushed him to this place
for the first time in TEN months.
READ IT HERE.
25th July 2011
THE NEXT PROTEST AND
BOOK LAUNCH
On 6th August
2011 there will be a protest outside
Buckingham Palace, where Charlie's new book
"PRISON DIARIES FROM THE CONCRETE COFFIN" will also be launched.
The Metropolitan Police have been contacted and
had no objections, referring us the the Royal
Parks, who said that they have no objection to
the protest being held in either Green Park or
St. James' Park ... but not in front of the
Palace gates. We intend, therefore, to meet in
front of the gates and then move to either of
the parks across the roundabout in front of the
Palace.
At the same time,
we will be launching Charlie's new book "Prison
Diaries", published by Apex Publishing. The
book is dedicated to HRH The Queen, hence the
location for the launch and protest. You'll have
to buy the book to find out why!
I
received my pre-release copy today and all I can
tell you at the moment is that this is an
extraordinary work with a difference. I'll be
writing a review for you all in the next few
days.
24th July 2011
By 6th July 2011
Charlie had been goaded enough. HMP Wakefield
had stopped him receiving art card or blank
postcards on which to create his art. The
reason? As usual, none was given ... they just
did! I strongly suspect the reason for the
stoppage was the fact that we are selling his
art to raise money for his legal appeal PLUS the
fact that they seem to love winding him up.
READ MORE ...
22nd July 2011
14th July 2011
Here's a
heartwarming story from Wales about Charlie
helping his old friend John "Alfie" Lodge who
shared time with Charlie inside Long Lartin in
1989 and they became firm friends.
READ IT HERE ...
12th July 2011
IPP Sentencing to be
Replaced
An
interesting article has appeared in this month's
edition of Insidetime regarding IPP sentencing.
For the uninitiated IPP stands for Imprisonment
for Public Protection. Such
sentences are for an indeterminate amount of
time, so that the prisoner can be kept jailed
for as long as the authorities like! This is the
sentence that was handed to Charlie in 2000:
LIFE with a tariff (minimum amount of time that
must be served) of four years, reduced to
three on appeal. That is the equivalent of a SIX
YEAR sentence.. That tariff ran from 1999 and indicated the low
level of seriousness that the judge considered
to be the case. BUT NINE YEARS after the tariff
was up Charlie continues to rot in solitary
confinement ... a prisoner of the Prison System
NOT the Justice System!
Charlie has very
kindly annotated the article with his own
relevant comments.
READ IT HERE ...
10th July 2011
PRESS RELEASE
Within the last
few weeks, it has now become a ‘new rule’ that
Charlie is not allowed any paper, card or
postcards. Several supporters have had these
items either returned to them or stopped and
sent to Charlie’s property box.
Suddenly, after twenty years, it is no longer
possible for Charlie to have items as innocent
as blank postcards or paper. As always, there is
no explanation why. It’s just another thing HM
Prison Service can take from Charlie in an
attempt to make him react. And, as ever, these
pity, vindictive decisions are made by cowardly
people in high positions who remain faceless and
nameless, so they don’t have to account for
their reasons, however unreasonable.
Charlie is very unhappy about this. Not only
were the postcards a way for him to keep in
touch with family, friends and supporters, he
used a great deal of them to write to fellow
prisoners, urging them to box it clever and stay
out of trouble. Obviously, not allowing Charlie
the paper and card means they are even taking
away his art. What else does he have that they
haven’t already taken from him?
Charlie said this about the situation:
"The Governor is saying no. When I’ve had them
for years, same as the A4 card. I’m actually
starting to go back to a very dark place, first
time in ages. Nobody else on the unit gets this
nonsense. All their mail is being censored by
the unit censor. It now seems I’m being dug out
every week. What next?
"My mother has sent me postcards for over twenty
years, with no problems. Everybody has. Now it’s
stopped. The postcards were such a small thing
but a massive treat to me. Now you see why at
times I give up hope of ever progressing, every
week becomes a bigger struggle. I foresee this
escalating now, because I’ll not be able to
accept it. I can add that all the wing screws
say it is wrong. This is coming at me from high
above, a deliberate wind-up. I’m not happy and
everybody knows why."
We say "Enough is Enough!
It’s time to free him!"
13th June 2011
THE NEXT FREE BRONSON
PROTEST
The next "Free Bronson" protest will be held at 2:00 pm
on 6th August 2011 outside Buckingham Palace in London.
I will publish further information just as soon as I
hear from those organising it.
9th June 2011
BRONSON
EBAY AUCTION
CLICK THE PICK TO GO TO THE EBAY AUCTION
This is an extremely rare, limited edition Zippo
lighter, silver, inscribed 'LTD EDITION 11 OF 1000'.
These lighters are extremely hard to find and this is in
mint condition. It is unused and comes in its
presentation box with accessories as per the photos.
Engraved across the front is Charlie Bronson's
autograph. To accompany this is another rarity; a piece
of colour Charlie Bronson art, on A4 card and signed
'Charles Bronson.'
The Fund would like to thank Andy & Loraine Salvage for
their extremely kind donation and continued support of
Charlie.
100% OF THE PROFITS FROM THIS SALE GO TOWARDS THE
CHARLIE BRONSON APPEAL FUND
3rd June 2011
WIN * WIN * WIN * WIN
Attention
All Charlie Bronson Supporters. For everyone who
donates to the Appeal Fund during the month of June, you
will be entered into a draw. The Winner will receive
Charlie's Book 'The Good Prison Guide' and an A5 piece
of original Charlie art (picture left) worth over one
hundred pounds! Get donating and you could be the lucky
winner. You can donate via the Paypal link on the
Home Page or
directly into his Appeal account using account no:
71804014, sort code 40-02-03.
The winner will be contacted at the end of June.
GOOD LUCK
1st June 2011
BRONSON
ART SHOW
Some of Charlie's art work will be on display at The Old
Abattoire, 187-211 St. John Street, London EC1V 4LS as
part of an exhibition called MODERN PANIC, courtesy of
GUERRILLA ZOO. The exhibition starts on Friday 4th June
and runs until Sunday 12th June. If you haven't seen
Charlie's art "in the flesh" then get yourselves down to
Clerkenwell for this rare opportunity. Read more about it
HERE.
26th May 2011
THE CHARLES BRONSON
APPEAL FUND
I am absolutely delighted to be able to tell you that
The Charles Bronson Appeal Fund is now up and
running. This fund will help to pay for legal fees,
independent doctor's reports and everything else
required to fund his appeal, to get his case back before
the Appeal Court. If you would like to donate, cheques
can be made payable to The Charles Bronson Appeal Fund.
Alternatively, you can make a transfer by
emailing me for details. Thank you for your
continued support.
There are NO OTHER funds for Charlie and as I said, NO
ONE OTHER THAN CHARLIE'S SOLICITOR is dealing with legal
matters for him. He has asked me to repeat this message
to all his loyal supporters and friends.
25th May 2011
Charlie has raised £1,500 to help the young victims of
particularly ferocious criminal attacks :
20th May 2011
Charlie has been knocked back again by the Category 'A'
review. Read all about their decision
HERE.
12th May 2011
NEW MESSAGE FROM
CHARLIE
Charlie has been refused the right to an oral appeal
against the
latest Parole Board decision. You have already seen
just how one-sided that was. Charlie wasn't even allowed
to attend in person to put his side to the Board
who only seemed to consider negative aspects of Charlie
... some of those aspects being 25 years out of date and
wholly irrelevant his current situation! Where was any
shred of real evidence that Charlie represented
any sort of danger to the public?
This latest decision is nothing short of denying a human
being his right to both legal and natural justice and
demonstrates, once and for all, the lengths to which the
prison system will go to carry on their personal
vendetta against the man. It is obvious that, left to
the prison authorities, Charlie will only leave solitary
confinement in a coffin!
Whatever side of the fence you're
on, this can only be seen as an absolute
unlawful liberty!
They have denied me any chance of even
being represented. My case is one sided.
My side is not even mentioned.
This is another 2 years of my life
sucked away. My next parole hearing will
be 2013. I will be 61 years of age ...
After several
people contacted us regarding problems
encountered when trying to sign the online Free
Bronson Petition we have launched a new
petition. Please sign the new petition by
clicking HERE.
28th April 2011
CHARLIE'S APPEAL HITS
A PROBLEM
Charlie and his
legal advisers are planning to appeal against
his original conviction for holding a prison art
teacher hostage, for which he was handed a Life
Sentence. New evidence has come to light and a
top barrister has advised that a successful
appeal could now be launched. I have looked at
the basis for the proposed appeal and have to
say that it looks rock solid, but I am not at
liberty to divulge any of the details.
However, Charlie's
appeal against his life
sentence has hit a financial problem since
he was refused access to Legal Aid. We need
to raise funds to pay for expert reports,
legal fees, etc.
I have my own personal collection of
Charlie's Art and am willing to sell some of my pieces to help
raise the funds needed to pay for a successful appeal. Money
raised will be held in trust by Charlie's legal team and
used as required to pay for specialist medical reports,
legal costs and so on.
If you are interested in purchasing one of
Charlie's pieces then please click here: Charlie's
Art
24th April 2011
NEXT "FREE BRONSON"
PROTEST
As previously
announced, he next "Free
Bronson" protest will be held outside HMP
Wakefield on Sunday 1st May 2011. Meeting at
The Henry Boon (WF2 9AG) at 1.00 pm. Bring
your banners and wear your t-shirts. We will
also be collecting for a worthwhile childrens'
charity while we have people's attention.
14th April 2011
IMPORTANT MESSAGE FROM
CHARLIE
The parole hearing was a serious
blow; every two years they knock me
back. In fact it's soul destroying. My
next parole review I'll be 61 years old.
It's all really pointless and
vindictive. But what makes it even worse
for me, I am even knocked back for legal
aid to sue the evil swines. I am not
allowed any legal aid. When every day in
your national papers you read about
paedophiles and rapists suing the
prisons for a lumpy mattress or cold
porridge, all on legal aid ...
Over the next
couple of weeks I'll be putting some helpful
suggestions on how you can help Charlie,
including who to write to and the sort of thing
you should say
31th March 2011
NEXT "FREE BRONSON"
PROTEST
The next "Free
Bronson" protest will be held outside HMP
Wakefield on Sunday 1st May 2011. Full details
will be published here as soon as I get them.
30th March 2011
2011-PAROLE
REFUSED AGAIN
A Closed Session Parole Hearing for Charlie was held on
17th March 2011 and refused him parole again. That meant
that Charlie was not allowed to attend and make any attempt
to disagree with any of the "facts" used by the Parole Board
to arrive at their decision. In my book that is totally
UNJUST!
The BRONSON CHALLENGE, a grueling 30 mile walk across
Dartmoor from HMP Exeter to HMP Dartmoor organised by
Steve Swatton, was completed on Sunday. The eight souls
who braved it raised over £1,000 for Cancer Research.
Read all about it HERE.
Here's a video of US Bronson Supporter Nick B in California
receiving his Bronson t-shirt. Thanks Nick!
... and here's Nick ... still wearing his
beloved t
22nd February 2011
FREE BRONSON T-SHIRT
ORDERS!!!
After two months of receiving hardly any emails I received
over 2,500 today! It seems that someone sent a "blocker"
that prevented my mail box from sending me ANY new emails
from the beginning of the year. It is going to take me
several days to go through all the emails, but I have
already noticed some orders for Free Bronson T- shirts in
there ... along with enquiries regarding the whereabouts of
these orders.
FEAR NOT! Over the next few days I will plough through ALL
of the emails, locate the orders and dispatch them as
quickly as possible. YOU HAVE MY MOST SINCERE APOLOGIES FOR
THE DELAY.
Also, if you've written to me this year I will get
round to reading your email eventually, but I am unlikely to
be able to reply to all but the most urgent. I trust you
will understand.
19th February 2011
Steve Swatton, who is organising the
Bronson Challenge, is
taking the Prison Service to The European Court of Human
Rights. Steve, a staunch friend of Charlie's, was banned
from visiting him, although he has no prison record and no
reason has been given. This is obviously the way to go for
any of us that have been banned. Read more here
...
25th January 2011
PROTEST THIS SUNDAY
Just a reminder that there will be a peaceful FREE
BRONSON protest outside HMP Wakefield this Sunday.
Arrangements are as follows:
The last one went
off very peacefully and we developed amicable
relationships with the local police. The protest
will last two to three hours. I hope to see ALL
of the people who have been banned from visiting
Charlie there, so that we can make our feelings
known at this injustice!
24th January 2011
LOVE IS IN THE AIR
(Part 2)
My sincere apologies for the delay in relaying Charlie's
statement about his future marriage, but my PC caught a
serious cold that took a while to clear up. Here, at last,
is
Charlie's statement.
15th January 2011
LOVE IS IN THE AIR
It is my enormous pleasure and privilege to announce that
Mr. Charles Bronson is engaged to be married. I am NOT at
liberty to reveal the identity of the lovely lady in
question. Charlie has sent a message which I will place on
the website in the next 24 hours.
I know that one or two ladies who write to Charlie may feel
slightly disappointed that it is not them, but I'm sure you
will all join me in congratulating Charlie and his "Mystery
Lady."
Those of you who know me will know that I always keep
a confidence to myself. To those of you who don't know me:
please refrain from asking me who the lady is. Her identity
will NOT be revealed unless or until both are ready.
The lady in question is not mentioned anywhere on this
website, so there is no point in speculating, as 100% of
guesses (however educated) will be wrong and probably result
in people who have nothing to do with it getting upset.
Trailwalker was originally started by the Queen's Gurkha
Signals Regiment over 30 years ago as a training exercise to
test soldiers’ stamina and teamwork skills. The Challenge is
to complete the 100km Trailwalker trail, across the South
Downs, in under 30 hours in teams of four. It's a tough and
grueling
course! Is it worth it? Absolutely.
Charlie said: "I have enormous respect for the
Gurkhas. They've been loyally fighting alongside the rest of
the British
Army for two hundred years now and it's time we really
recognised their spirit, courage and the debt this country
owes to them. I'm very proud to be able to make this
contribution to an incredible group of people and wish the Quantock Veterinary Hospital teams good luck in their
endeavour."
6th January 2011
LEGAL AID KNOCK BACK
Charlie has been refused legal aid to pursue a case against
HMPS for the diabolical treatment and inhumane conditions he
suffered at HMP Long Lartin, HMP Woodhill and now HMP
Wakefield. If you've been following the news on this site
for the past couple of years then you'll know all about the
systematic abuse that he has had to put up with since the
release of the film "Bronson."
You can read
the Legal Aid story HERE.
16th December 2010
THE BRONSON
CHALLENGE
Steve Swatton, who runs the Flex Fitness Gym in
Plympton, is organising a sponsored walk to raise awareness
of Charlie's situation and to raise money for the Cancer
Research charity.
The event is a 30 mile walk from HMP
Exeter to HMP Dartmoor (I believe using the B3212 which runs
through Dartmoor National Park) and will be starting at 7:30
am on the 5th March 2011 at the small park opposite Exeter
Prison. Steve says he is staggered at the amount of interest
already being shown.
For more information and official sponsor forms
please contact Steve on 01752 344001 (Mon to Fri 9:00
am - 4:15 pm).
8th December 2010
NEXT FREE BRONSON
PROTEST
The date for the next FREE BRONSON PROTEST has been
provisionally set for Sunday 30th January 2011 outside HMP
Wakefield. The last one was a small tester and went off
peacefully and without a hitch. We gained the full
co-operation and trust of the local police and want to keep
it that way.
I will publish more information as soon as I receive it, so
keep your eyes on the website.
7th December 2010
ABSOLUTE 100% BOLLOCKS
An Open Letter To The Daily Mirror
Yesterday The Daily Mirror printed a story about Charlie.
The story was an "Exclusive" by Jeremy Armstrong
(
jeremy.armstrong@mirror.co.uk - PLEASE FEEL FREE TO
EMAIL HIM YOUR THOUGHTS ON HIS PIECE OF GARBAGE) and claimed
that the whole of HMP Wakefield was put on ALERT because
they believed Charlie was going to make an escape bid on his
birthday. Read
more ...
6th December 2010
H A P P Y B I R T H D A Y
C H A R L I E
I spoke with Charlie this evening and he was incredibly
upbeat. After regaling me for two minutes with a rendition
of "I'm 58 today" he asked me to thank each and
every one of you for the birthday cards you have sent him and
also for your continued support. Charlie said that when he
woke up this morning he really couldn't remember
whether he was 48 or 58, such is the monotony of his
existence in solitary (currently he has not been out of
solitary for more than TEN years!) He was also very pleased
that the
Christmas Cards and
T-Shirts
were so popular and being taken up around the world. Charlie
needs your support if he is to EVER gain his liberty, and
showing your support to the World helps to counteract the
terrible lies that the tabloid press continue to print (more
about that tomorrow!)
From my own point of view I would like to thank every one of
you for your continued support of Charlie. Your generosity
of spirit humbles me. I am only sorry that there are not
enough hours in the day to reply to all the emails that
flood in daily, but you ALL have my undying gratitude.
24th November 2010
Over 1,000 people a day visit freebronson.co.uk and
the world is spreading around the world about Charlie's
plight. So far this month alone we have been visited by
residents of the United Kingdom, the United States of
America, Australia, Canada, Germany, Netherlands, France,
Poland, Denmark, Sweden, Belgium, Finland, Norway, Ireland,
Italy, Austria, Switzerland, New Zealand, Romania, the Czech
Republic, Greece, Hungary, Mexico, the Russian Federation,
Portugal, Brazil, Spain, the Slovak Republic, Bulgaria,
Israel, Japan, Thailand, Argentina, Singapore, Belarus ,
China, Estonia, Croatia, Latvia, Malaysia, Peru and the
United Arab Emirates!
To all of you, a very big THANK YOU: Sukran,
Shur-Nur-Ah-Gah-Lem, Blagodaria, Hvala, Gràcies, Dekuji, Tak,
Dankon, Aitäh, Kiitos, Merci, Madlobt, Danke, Efharisto,
Mahalo, Toda, Dhanyavaad, Shukriyaa, Köszönöm, Þakka Þér
Fyrir, Takk, Moteshakeram, Go Raibh Maith Agat, Grazie,
Arigato, Kamsa Hamaida, Paldies, Achu, Terima Kasih, Abarka,
Kia Manuia, Kiaora Koe, Aguije, Dziekuje, Muito Obrigado,
Bhala Hove, Multumesc, Spasiba, Gracias, Nandri, Khop Khun
Mak, Thuk Ji Chhe, Tesekkurler, Dyakuyu, Rahmatkam Ouen,
Diolch!
23rd November 2010
Charlie has sponsored a page of a charity calendar with a
difference. The calendar is A3 Glossy 12 month Workout
themed calendar ... 13 Sexy girls to make each and every
month hot and sweaty! Last year the calendar raised over
£1400 for MS charities and this year it's raising money for
SANDS, the Stillbirth And Neonatal Death charity (Registered
Charity Number 299679). 17 Babies a DAY die in the UK in
spite of medical advances. Sand believe that many of those
deaths are potentially avoidable! But vital research is
needed and this takes money.
Oh, and if you want to see the December page that Charlie sponsored
just click on the calendar image to the left. It opens in a
new window, so just close that window when you've finished
oggling!
21st November 2010
When I spoke with Charlie last Wednesday he was a much
happier man and I can now reveal why. During that day he was
visited by the governor of HMP Wakefield for a chat. During
the chat the governor told Charlie that some mistakes had
been made when screening his potential visitors and that all
of those that were turned down (seventeen) would be looked
at again. I have already heard from Spencer and Dan Wilder,
who were originally turned down and who have now received
the green light to visit Charlie. That is fantastic news!
In addition, the prison are reviewing the cases of those who
have been banned from visiting him, including myself.
Personally, I can't see any difference (in security terms)
between me chatting with Charlie on the phone and chatting
face-to-face, but we'll have to wait and see.
16th November 2010
You've read the newspaper "reports" quoting an unnamed
"prison source." Well, they are complete works of fiction.
Here is the report from the horse's mouth:
On Friday Charlie was very upset. After many months of
having his letters, phone calls and visitors disrupted by
the prison authorities he was feeling considerably unhappy.
It was the day that his old friend Cliff Fields was being
laid to rest and he received a heart-wrenching letter from
young Dan
Wilder, the kick boxer who has just been turned down for
visitation rights.
Charlie was in the CSC Unit gym. I have seen that gym and
it's a small, barred cage with some gym equipment/machines
in it which stands alone in an area just outside of the
cells. He covered himself in half a pound of butter (the
rags got that bit right at least) and started shouting to
the effect that he'd had enough of all the crap. He broke
the lights in the gym because they were hurting his eyes,
but did no damage to any of the equipment. The regular
prison officers were ordered to leave the unit.
Some time later a special outside team called "The
Tornadoes" arrived on the scene. They were dressed in black
SAS style uniforms, wearing black balaclavas, gas masks and
wielding round riot shields. Some twenty of them surrounded
the cage and they started shouting abuse at Charlie. One
yelled "Bronson, you're gonna die in jail and today might
just be the day!" Another shouted that they were going to
break his arms and legs and another yelled: "We're gonna gas
you!"
With that they discharged a PAVA spray at Charlie from close
range through the bars which hit him full in the face. PAVA
is said to be much stronger than CS. Charlie was immediately
blinded and was in great pain when the squad rushed in. He
was kicked and beaten for several minutes and received
another jet of PAVA spray, most of which went into his
mouth. He says that he was totally blind for two to four
hours afterwards.
Brutally subdued he was dumped in The Box and left. He was
suffering palpitations, shakes, dizziness and vomiting
blood. His balance had gone and he was totally disoriented.
He said he thought he was dying, but no doctor came. No one
came to talk to him about the effects of PAVA and he does
not seem to have been decontaminated. Four days later he
still has not received a visit from a doctor. Unbelievable!
He was left in the silence of the concrete Box for three
days and only had a male nurse visit him with two codeine!
Today he is still suffering from palpitations and sounded
weak. His eyes are still troubling him.
Charlie says the screws in the unit are a good bunch of lads
but that some of them were still coughing two days after the
altercation because of lingering PAVA. Of course, he has
multiple bruises and cuts from the "good kicking" he
received, but he says he isn't going to cry about that.
I have been warning that the prison authorities were
deliberately and disgracefully pushing Charlie hard to get
this kind of response from him and they have finally
succeeded in part! I believe they would have preferred to
see something much more serious!
I have no doubt whatsoever that you WON'T read this
account in the Daily Rags. It doesn't make Charlie out to be
a maniac! More soon.
15th November 2010
Charlie was involved in an incident at HMP Wakefield on
Friday afternoon. Here's how the prison saw it:
"At 1:20pm on 12 November a prisoner was involved in a minor
incident in the gym association area at Wakefield prison.
Staff intervened at 4:37pm and the incident was resolved at
4:40pm. No injuries were sustained."
And here's the newsrag's headlines:
Daily Mirror
- "Naked Charles Bronson covered himself in
butter in latest jail rage "
Daily Mail -
"Britain's 'most dangerous prisoner' injures
four guards after smearing himself in butter
and launching attack"
Yorkshire
Post - "Notorious lifer Bronson attacks
guards in gym at Yorkshire jail"
Both Mirror and Mail quoted a "prison source" that four
screws were injured but it seems that their "prison source"
was actually an old inmate who was repeating scuttle butt.
For some reason the Mail Online pulled the story early this
afternoon. Fortunately I copied it before it disappeared
along with comments made by Mail readers (which make very
sad reading.)
Read all about it HERE.
More on this when I get it.
14th November 2010
A HUGE
HAPPY BIRTHDAY
TO EIRA PETERSON
(CHARLIE'S MUM)
13th November 2010
Yesterday morning two ordinary people (I hope they will
forgive me for calling them "ordinary") were en route
to HMP Wakefield with a VO to visit Charlie in the
afternoon. As they drove to the pre-arranged visit they
received a phone call from the prison, telling them that
their visit had been CANCELLED! No explanation was offered;
they were simply told not to continue their journey.
I will tell you more just as soon as I can find out what the
hell is going on.
11th November 2010
Well, the figure I quoted below is wrong already. It's now
FOURTEEN people turned down to visit Charlie. I have
just received the following from Spencer Wilder, who's son
Dan is the young kick boxer that Charlie sponsors:
Hi
Mal, just a quick text to let you know
that for some unknown reason both me and
Dan have been turned down by the guvnor
of Wakefield to visit Charlie. I have no
idea why? I have never committed any
kind of criminal offence and have an SIA
badge
to prove it. Charlie had written to Dan
for the past 3 months saying how he was
looking forward to meeting |Dan and me
around Crimbo! Dan is absolutely
distraught for the past 4 months all he
has spoken about is how excited he was
seeing Charlie. Dan has suffered with
his dyslexia and bullying and Charlie
was the person who gave Dan inspiration
and a great friendship - Dan thinks of
Charlie as his best friend. I intend to
write to the home secretary today to
state Dan's case for visiting Charlie
and explain what Charlie has done. I’m
so angry at the moment and hated hearing
Dan in tears thinking he’d done
something wrong. They are not getting
away with it which is why I’m writing to
Theresa May. Dan is a totally different
person since Charlie has been in his
corner and Charlie must be so upset too
as he was excited bout us visiting him.
I thought rehabilitation was all about
teaching, helping and providing family
and friend support to Charlie - guess
not! Politics and that’s it - will let
you know if I receive a fob off letter from
May. Take care m8
10th November 2010
Things never seem to get any better for Charlie. So far in
the past month SEVEN of Charlie's friends have been
denied permission to visit him and one existing visitor has
been removed from his visitor's list! AS far as I can gather
these seven have NO criminal records and are ordinary,
hardworking everyday people who have been writing to Charlie
for some time. Of course, no reason is ever given, even
though they have all been through the interview process with
their local CID for between one and two hours (this is
normal procedure for visiting a Cat 'A' prisoner.) Ifty
tells me that the reason given for his daughter (Charlie's
God-Daughter) when pressed was that she had "never met with
him before." If that's their reasoning these days then poor
Charlie won't be seeing many people in the future. Certainly
not any new faces and there are so many of us who were
on the approved visitor's list butare banned now
that his actual list is becoming a very short one.
As I have said before, contact with family, loved ones and
friends has been conclusively shown to reduce reoffending.
The Home Office's own research in 2003 showed that prisoners
who received family and friends visits were far more likely
to have somewhere to live and to get a job when they left
prison. Also, prisoners who did not receive visits from
family and friends were more likely to reoffend than those
who did. Here are a couple of extracts from a piece in
Inside Times:
All
concerned have begun to realise that if you
simply 'warehouse' a convicted person,
keeping him locked in a kennel for
twenty-three hours a day, speak to him in
the most demeaning and disrespectful manner
and use force at the slightest provocation
to impose your will, it is unlikely to
result in any sort of positive
rehabilitation and very likely to instil
resentment and anger against the very
society he will be re-entering at some time
in the future.
One
elementary and basic issue which has a
statistically proven, positive and direct
effect on the reduction of reoffending
behaviour is that of family (or 'outside')
contact. Those who maintain good family
contact throughout their sentences are
invariably the same ones who do not
re-offend. In fact, it is national
government policy supported by the Human
Rights Act that contact between prisoners,
their family, loved ones and friends is
sacrosanct and must be respected and
actively encouraged by the prisons. Any
disruption to that contact by the prison
must be handled sensitively, proportionately
and then only as a last resort. This
directive naturally stands to reason.
Another outrage: Every year at this time Charlie's
mum, Eira, sends her son a blank diary for the following
year. But this year the prison stopped the diary from
reaching him! There is NO logical reason for this change in
their attitude. It now seems that HMP Wakefield have
disgraced themselves by falling into line with Long Lartin
and Woodhill in the attempt to push Charlie to (and over)
the edge. They know exactly what they are doing. Charlie's
fuse is a great deal longer than it was a few years ago and
he is showing great restraint for a man who has been
involved in ten hostage situations and climbed on nine
prison roofs. But the prison hierarchy know that it is only
a matter of time before they succeed in goading him into
reacting and they have to get that reaction before Charlie's
next parole hearing in 2011 to screw up his chances of
release. Push! Push! Push! Bang!
3rd November 2010
Well, it just doesn't stop. In the past couple of weeks
Charlie has had three law-abiding friends refused visitor
status without any reasons given and an outward bound VO
stopped! My own mail to Charlie has been stopped again and
who knows how many others. If you'd asked me a few months
ago I would have said that HMP Wakefield would NEVER have
sunk to such low depths. In the past they have always been
as good as gold and looked after Charlie well, so it becomes
obvious that the instructions to destabilise Charles comes
from higher up in the chain of command than the prison
governor.
Why? Why would the powers that be want to push Charlie to
the edge? It's obviously calculated to try to make him snap
and react in a negative way. There seems to be nothing more
the authorities would like than a violent outburst ... maybe
even a hostage situation! No one can be in any doubt now
that HMPS will stop at nothing to provoke Charlie into a
(nowadays) uncharacteristic act and so justify keeping him
inside. Especially now that the police have failed to bring
charges over the incident in Woodhill and not forgetting
that Charlie has a parole hearing in 2011.
Someone with power somewhere must really HATE our Charlie!
1st November 2010
Yesterday's little protest outside HMP Wakefield went off
really well. There were only a dozen and a half of us, but
that was what we wanted for this first Wakefield protest as
a tester for the attitude of both prison and police. When we
arrived we were greeted by half a dozen police officers and
a paddy wagon. After a brief discussion with the Sarge they
could see that we weren't there for trouble, advised us
where to set up our banners so that we would be safe from
traffic and stationed a single beat officer to look after
us. The prison placed a security officer outside to observe
us, but that was all.
We received a lot of support from visitors to the prison and
passing motorists, who sounded their horns and gave us the
thumbs up.
As the protest went without a hitch we are now ready to
escalate to larger protests outside the prison every two
months until Charlie's demands are met. These are quite
simple:
a visit from
the Home Office to discuss his release date
his personal
and legal mail stops being tampered with,
stopped and/or withheld for unacceptably
long periods of time
he is moved
on to the wings and allowed to mix with
other prisoners
his visitors
are given justifiable reasons for being
taken off his visitors list or for being
denied altogether
It is time to
make a stand and demand that Charlie be treated
like the human being that he is. It is time that
the prison began a planned, structured
rehabilitation programme for Charlie, rather
than simply keep him caged like some wild
animal. Charlie has NEVER presented any threat
or danger to the public. He is far more of a
threat to the prison system which holds and
goads him.
They let
convicted murdering nutters like Gregory Davis
(murdered a 48 year old mum by stabbing her 31
times and disemboweled her 19 year old son in a
children's playground in 2003 and received an
indefinite sentence) out on twice-weekly
two-hour unsupervised trips around Oxford after
only six years! Or Zulfar Hussain, a Pakistani
paedophile, who sexually abused two young girls
and was released from jail after serving only
half of his lenient 5 years and eight month
sentence! The vile killer of Sarah Payne, Roy
Whiting, whos sentence was recently slashed from
50 to 40 years! Craig Sweeney, jailed for three
years for indecent assault on a six year old
girl was released after serving only half of
his lenient sentence and went on to kidnap
and sexually abuse a four year old girl; he was
sentenced to life with a FIVE YEAR tariff!
We will be
announcing all future meetings and protests as
far in advance as we can in future, so please
return to the site frequently for updates.
28th October 2010
FREE BRONSON GATHERING: There will be a gathering in Wakefield on Sunday 31st October 2010 to
highlight Charlie's treatment. There was to be a "Free
Bronson" banner over-flying the prison, but unfortunately
the Governor intervened and requested that the contracted
flying company cancel ... which they did! This is said to be
the first in a growing series of events which will be
announced in due course.
Meeting commences at twelve noon at
Reflections
Bar, 29 Westgate, Wakefield, West Yorkshire, WF1 1JZ
[MAP].
16th October 2010
Take a listen to 71 Chain and "The Ballad of
Charlie Bronson"
15th October 2010
GOOD NEWS: The Sun has changed the wording of the
Tom Hardy article to "The ace character actor, who played
violent robber Charles in the recent Bronson biopic, is
strongly-tipped to land a part in the latest instalment of
the comic book franchise." Many thanks to all of you
who wrote or rang The Sun to complain. Of course, they
had to use the word "violent", none of the comments of
complaint were allowed and no apology was forthcoming. They
sure don't like to admit their mistakes, do they?
14th October 2010
INCOMPETENT SUN GETS IT BADLY WRONG
The Bungling Sun
has printed a piece about actor Tom
Hardy today, but included the following words:
No doubt their "ace reporter" has mixed him up with Charles
Manson again! Ace reporter? More lie Arse Reporter!
As soon as I saw it I fired off the following email to the
Sun's ignorant editor:
Dear Editor,
I was disgusted to read in the article
regarding Tom Hardy and the new Batman
movie that he had played "serial killer
Charles in the recent Bronson bio." My
disgust is not aimed at Tom but at the
crasse ignorance of the writer of the
article. Charles Bronson has NEVER
killed ANYONE and your article is
therefore libelous.
I will be taking with Mr. Bronson's
legal representatives tomorrow and shall
bring this matter to their attention for
them to act on unless the article is
amended and an apology printed.
I have also telephoned the Sun (020 7782 4000) and
was promised by a Harry Hayden that it would be dealt
with. It might be a good idea if you do the same, just to
emphasise the point.
This is the second time in recent months that a newspaper
has falsely claimed that Charlie is a multiple murderer. Do they care
about the damage that such remarks do to someone's life, let
alone their chances of winning their freedom? Of course not!
Circulation and money are the only things these rags
understand and the TRUE FACTS will never be allowed
to come between them!
Perhaps the current editor is following the example of the
former Editor, David Yelland, who admitted that he was often
drunk on the job.
The problem is that the public believe the shit they print
... and it sticks. If it's in the paper then it must
be true! Well, we'll see what Charlie's solicitor has to say
about the matter.
IN THE MEANTIME, PLEASE FEEL FREE TO PHONE, EMAIL (
exclusive@the-sun.co.uk or
letters@the-sun.co.uk ) OR WRITE TO THE EDITOR OF THE
SUN (The Editor, The Sun, 3 Thomas More Square, London, E98
1XY) AND TELL HIM WHAT YOU THINK OF THE ARTICLE.
14th October 2010
I am reminded that in any incident in prison they now
dispatch a prison officer with a video camera as well as the
twenty odd CCTV cameras that monitor the seg block. So why
have HMP Woodhill only supplied the police with the footage
of Charlie doing damage to the gym and not the dog attack?
Charlie maintains that he was only wearing gym shorts and
trainers (a fact backed up by the footage that the police
do have) when they sent the dog in. He says that the dog
attacked him and that he only defended himself.
The police only have until Monday week to charge Charlie, so
they'd better get hold of that footage, but it's beginning
to smell of a serious stitch-up on the part of HMP Woodhill,
using the police to do their dirty work! Any half decent
copper would see through that and demand to see ALL the
footage of the incident. We shall see.
Unfortunately, it also looks as though Charlie's post is
being disrupted again. I know of at least three letters that
have been stopped in the past week or so. In all of the
years that I have known Charlie, HMP Woodhill have never
interfered with his communications with the outside world,
so why do they appear to be starting now?
I am not normally one to believe in conspiracy theories, but
if I review all of the treatment dished out to Charlie over
the past two years, I have little choice than to conclude
that the prison service mean to chip away at Charlie's
patience until they goad him into giving them the reaction
that they want: violence. That is vindictive and it's
psychological entrapment. They succeeded in Woodhill and now
it's beginning to look like good old Monster Mansion is on
the same bandwagon. I hope most sincerely that I'm proven
wrong.
Incidentally, Charlie has warned me that, in his opinion, a
lot of the pieces of his art currently being sold on Ebay
are probably fakes after I sent images of some of the pieces
to him. None of the pieces come with "Certificates of
Authenticity" and questions that I have sent the sellers
about the provenance of the pieces have met with stony
silence! You have been warned.
12th October 2010
Charlie was visited by the Milton Keynes Constabulary
yesterday. They wanted to interview him about the damage he
did to the gym in HMP Woodhill after he was told that his
own brother had been banned from visiting him because he
dared to talk to the press. This was on top of being told he
could no longer send art out of the prison, his mail being
delayed and stopped, his phone list being deleted and a
whole raft of other friends (me included) being banned from
visiting!
They turned up, set up their tape recorder and told him that
they had CCTV footage of him breaking things in the gym and
were also considering charging him with attacking a prison
dog. Charlie asked where the CCTV footage of the dog
attacking him was and they said they didn't have it.
At this point Charlie reached through the bars, turned the
tape off and said "Interview over! Now go away!" They left.
So, we have to ask the question: Where is the footage of the
encounter with the dog that was set on a 57 year old man
wearing only gym shorts? Has it been "lost" or were the
cameras turned off during the incident? Watch this space.
10th October 2010
CHARLIE AND FACEBOOK
I want to make this perfectly clear to everyone so please
read the following:
Charlie does NOT have, nor has he EVER had any access to the internet from
Prison, so if you find anyone online (especially Facebook,
Myspace, Twitter, etc.) claiming to be Charles Bronson then
they are lying and doing Charlie a great disservice. Read More ...
22nd September 2010
CHARLIE AND KO1 PROMOTIONS HELP DYLAN
Dylan Godfrey is a cute little five year old boy who has
suffered from a rare form of brain disorder called Lissencephaly
from birth. I'm afraid there is currently no treatment for
this condition and most children only survive into their
teens before succumbing to respiratory problems. He can't walk or talk or understand language and
needs 24 hour care and attention. Dylan is the son of Darren
Godfrey, Charlie's cousin, so Charlie decided to do
something for them. Charlie's good friend Ian Frost of KO1 Promotions set up a
night of Championship Semi-Pro Boxing, attended by many of
Charlie's family, friends and supporters and an auction was
held of art donated by Charlie and other goodies from
Charlie's family and friends which raised over £1,500 to help care for young Dylan. Read all about it HERE.
20th September 2010
STAMP SCAM?
Some
tosser has put a
video on
Youtube, accusing me of scamming people over stamps of
all things! The stamps in question are for supporters
overseas to be able to send a stamped addressed Airmail
envelope to Charlie so that they can receive a reply (NOT to
write to Charlie you halfwit). To buy one 97p stamp costs
them four quid and this is thought to be a scam.
Well, Mr/Miss/Mrs Angrypants, it's true that the stamps are
97p each, so that's 97p for the stamp and 97p for the stamp
that I buy to send it out. My post office is a fifteen
minutes drive and it costs one pound to park in the nearby
carpark, so with driving, parking, walking, queuing, being
served, walking and driving I don't see much change out of
an hour OR a couple of quid!
You will also note that additional stamps are only one pound
each. Hell's Bells ... I make 3p on each one! At that rate
I'll possibly be rich by 2165!!!!! Oh, I forgot, I run this
site for free. I pay the domain name bill every year and
foot the bill for hosting. I spend hundreds of hours every
year working on this site and associated projects, trying to
answer all of the hundreds of emails that come in. I spent
some considerable time researching ways that overseas
supporters could get replies from Charlie and this method
was the most effective to cover ALL countries.
I'd suggest to
TheAnimal509 that you direct your anger at the
"supporters" who write to Charlie just so they can sell his
letters or art on ebay and make money off the back of a man
in a concrete coffin.
TheAnimal509has other video uploads showing that he
is a Bronson hater. Need I say more?
12th September 2010
I came across an excellent piece of music the other day by a
band called 71 Chain. The piece is titled
"The Ballad of Charlie Bronson" and you can listen to it
by clicking on the link. Anyone else creating music with a
Bronson theme?
The gallery of art by artists inspired by Charlie is growing
... you can take a look at it
HERE. Now is
the time for all of you with an artistic bent to create
something in your own style to add to the gallery.
Finally, I've just added a gallery of people wearing "Free
Bronson" T-Shirts. It's
HERE and if
you want to add yourself to the gallery then you need to buy
a T by clicking
T-Shirt
Shop and photographing yourself in one when it arrives.
Then just email me the pic and I'll add you to the gallery
for all to see.
7th September 2010
DON'T FORGET
6th September 2010
MISTAKES LIKE THIS PERPETUATE THE MYTH
THAT CHARLIE IS A MASS MURDERER
I am indebted to Dan Connolly for bringing the following to
my attention. This article appeared on Wales Online on 19th
March 2009 and is still showing:
A story about CHARLES MANSON but with the headline MASS
MURDERER CHARLES BRONSON! I have written the following email
to the editor Tim Gordon:
Dear Mr. Gordon,
It has been brought to my attention that
your Wales Online website is carrying a
story with the title "New picture of
mass murderer Charles Bronson released"
on page
This was a story about mass murderer
CHARLES MANSON, correctly identified
in the body of the story, but
incorrectly identifying CHARLES
BRONSON as a mass murderer in the
headline. Would you please rectify the
headline as it is not only incorrect,
but is also libellous to Mr. Bronson and
perpetuates the myth that Charles has
actually killed someone (which he
emphatically has NOT).
I understand that mistakes do happen and
would like to thank you in anticipation
of your prompt action in this matter and
would appreciate an apology for the
error to be printed on the website.
Yours sincerely,
Mal
www.webmagik.co.uk
Web Manager
www.freebronson.co.uk
26th August 2010
FREE BRONSON T-SHIRTS AVAILABLE
At last you can show your support for Charlie by buying and
wearing the official "FREE BRONSON" t-shirt. Stand up and be
counted
HERE.
15th July 2010
Well, wonders will never cease! My phone rang this morning -
not unusual - except for the voice at the other end asking
me to confirm my name. It was HMP Wakefield! "Prisoner
Charles Bronson has requested that you be put on his PIN
phone list" he said. RESULT!
3rd July 2010
Bit of a knock back today. I received a
letter in
the post this morning informing me that Prison HQ have
reviewed my status with regard to visiting Charlie ... and
it still stands. I will write an appeal within the next 24
hours.
21st June 2010
It seems that the orders from Woodhill have followed Charlie
to HMP Wakefield, as I am still denied contact with Charlie.
However, Stuart Godfrey, Charlie's cousin, visited him at
the weekend and emailed me the following:
Mal,
I went to see Charlie on Saturday with
my wife Karyn. We got there nice and
early to check in; sat there waiting
then we got called to the desk. There
was a bloke telling us we might not be
able to have the visit. Bearing in mind
we had travelled 160 miles to get there
I was not best pleased! The reason for
this farce was an admin cock up with our
photo IDs. Charlie was told in the
morning about 10 am and we were driving
on the motorway. He wasn't happy.
Anyway the problem was solved and we
went over to the prison and went through
the normal checks; went to get some
stuff from the canteen etc. then we were
led into a room where, to my shock and
horror ,there was a bloke sitting in the
corner with guards in the room and it
was
Roy Whiting. I felt sick! He was
having an open visit! We were led on
through other doors to this CSC unit;
went in this room and to my disgust I
saw Charlie behind bars in another room.
This was our visit: bars in between us.
We are family. It was shocking: I've
just seen Roy Whiting on an open visit
and then walk in to see our visit with
bars! I am so disgusted this is not
right. What are they playing at? This is
outrageous!
And with this Charlie still managed to
raise a smile and we had great visit. He
is trying so hard to work towards a
release date and get on with his life.
It is clear to me that the system know
he needs to be rehabilitated but they
won't let him. He's in a unit with 5
people who will never be released
because of murder and more. He should
have been in the visiting room with the
rest by now. Shocking!
Anyway, we had a great visit said our
goodbyes and he told me I had to pick up
two bags of stuff from the prison to
take with me. So I asked the prison
warden for them. She said haven't I had
already. I said no because Charlie had
only just told me about them. She said
they were in reception in the morning
and I should have been given them then.
So I said that I would wait so she could
get them and she said she couldn't do
that, as if it was my fault and told me
I will have to get them next time! So I
protested: I live 160 miles away and it
wasn't as simple as that and still
didn't get them. It's another simple
little thing that will wind him up - and
that's "helping him"????
Anyway I would like you to put this
email on the website so people can read
it.
22nd May 2010
CHARLIE MOVED FROM HMP
WOODHILL!
On the night of 20th May 2010 Charlie was suddenly told to get
ready for a move and led out to an awaiting van at HMP Woodhill. He wasn't told where he was going but he didn't
mind, so long as it was away from Woodhill. On route he saw
a sign for Wakefield and spontaneously started singing "I'm
Going Home!"
I spoke at length to his mum Eira this morning, who is so very happy
about the move. She said he phoned her from HMP Wakefildl
last night to tell her all about it and was in very high
spirits. Apparently even her last few letters to her
son were stopped by the vindictive regime at Woodhill.
Charlie was well treated while he was at Wakefield up until
the latest set of moves, so let us all hope that things will
now change back for the better. If they let him have all the
letters that were stopped at Woodhill he should have a
couple of weeks just reading and catching up with people.
20th May 2010
I’m afraid that I have to let you all know that Charlie is
in a bad way at the moment. Visitors that have not been
banned are saying that he has dark circles around his eyes
and that they have never seen him so stressed out. He’s now
on basics and I’ll let Charlie tell you what that means:
READ HERE
19th May 2010
RESPECT AND REPUTATION: On the
Doors, in Prison and in Life
by Robin Barratt and
Charles Bronson
RESPECT
AND REPUTATION by Robin Barratt and Charles
Bronson is released in two weeks time on 4th June 2010,
published by Apex.
In this increasingly violent and troubled world, people
demand to be respected. But what exactly is respect? Is
it learned or earned? How do you go from being a
'nobody' to a 'somebody'? How do you respect others and
equally how can you get other people to respect you? Can
you only be truly respected if you have a reputation?
There is probably no one more qualified to talk about
respect and reputation in prison than Charles Bronson.
Tagged one of the most violent prisoners in the UK,
Charlie has spent over thirty years in solitary
confinement, is respected by both prisoners and wardens
alike and has a fearsome and frightening reputation. In
complete contrast, although he has spent much of his
life surrounded by violence, former bouncer and
bodyguard Robin Barratt would now prefer to take a
passive path away from any conflict. In this fascinating
book, Barratt and Bronson examine in detail respect and
reputation including how to behave in prison, how to
treat other prisoners, how to be a great door
supervisor, when to show respect, how to gain the
respect of others and ultimately how to develop an
awesome reputation both in prison, on the doors and in
life generally. With lots of real life anecdotes as well
as contributions from many other hard men (and a few
women), this gripping book takes its reader into the
psychology of a world rarely explored,
A fascinating insight into the minds of the Men In
Black. This book shows how Britain’s small army of club
security men think about their job, their punters and
themselves, with an emphasis on respect and decency.
It’s a long way from the popular stereotype of bouncers
as knuckle-scrapping nutters who punch first and ask
questions later. Garry Bushell, Daily Star Sunday
A riveting book written by two men who are eminently
qualified to do so. Robin Barratt and Charles Bronson
are both graduates from the University of Hard Knocks,
and understand the crucial relevance of "respect and
reputation" in the worlds they inhabit. Brutal, honest,
wickedly funny at times and even shrewdly philosophical,
Respect & Reputation provides a fascinating insight into
lives that few of us could accurately imagine and are
even less likely to experience. Not to be missed. Mike Hallowell, The Shields Gazette
17th May 2010
The wait is over ... the fantastic Bronsonwear
shirts are now available to purchase from
BRONSONWEAR. Be one of the first to sport
one of these fine shirts and help support the
campaign to win Charlie his freedom.
10th May 2010
Yesterday's Star carried a (belated) story
about Charlie "attacking" a prison dog. The
incident actually happened over a week ago and
was a result of Charlie being told that his
brother Mark, who was due to visit him the next
day, had just been banned for life from visiting
or communicating with him. The reason given was
that Mark had dared to speak to the press about
Charlie. There you go ... you thought we had
freedom of speech in this country, didn't you?
Well, not when it comes to telling the nation
the truth about Charles Bronson and his work for
charitable causes.
The article
conveniently forgets ... or just didn't know ...
that Charlie was dressed in only a pair of gym
shorts when they set the alsation on him and
that he was bitten before he got the better of
the ferocious attack dog. Most of the article is
credited to a "source in Woodhill." Now, I'm
sorry to anyone out there who believes the vast
range of shite that's printed in the tabloid
rags, but whenever they mention unnamed
"sources" or "insiders" it means that they are
invariably making it up.
To any "rational"
journos (if there is such an animal) out there:
please imagine that you are dressed in a pair of
shorts and a police dog is set loose on you. It
attacks you. Do you:
a) Stand
there and allow it to shred you alive until
a kindly warden eventually pulls it off?
b) Allow it to chew your arms/bollocks off
while calling for your lawyer and your
mummy?
c) Shit yourself while saying a last prayer?
d) Do what you can to beat off the attacking
dog?
Remember, it's
multiple choice, so you have a one in four
chance of getting it right!
8th May 2010
I have felt
compelled to write a piece about the recent
treatment of Charlie at the hands of the Prison
Service and give the reasons, as I see them, for
their vindictive actions. Please read the piece
with an open mind:
Recent
Treatment of Charles Bronson. I fully expect
Charlie to be moved to another prison (probably
HMP Long Lartin) again very soon.
7th May 2010
Charlie has told
his prison guards that he will not shave again
until he is able to see his brother Mark
Peterson. I hope that's not going to save him
from buying too many razors.
6th May 2010
Today I finally
received the letter from HMP Woodhill informing
me that I was banned from visiting Charlie
because I might talk to the media! Read it
HERE.
1st May 2010
MORE BANS!
Word has reached us today that more people have been
banned from communicating with Charlie. The list
includes myself, Robin Barrett (who has a book "Respect
and Reputation" being released that was co-written with
Charlie), Dave Taylor, the mind behind Bronsaonwear, and Mark Williams, the artist of the Limited
Edition pewter Door.
30th April 2010
CHARLIE'S BROTHER
BANNED!
Mark Peterson, Charlie's brother, has been banned from
communicating with him the day before he was due to
visit Charlie in HMP Woodhill. In another move designed
to press Charlie's buttons the prison telephoned Mark
today to tell him that he is banned from visiting or
writing to Charlie because he has dared to speak to the
media about Charlie's plight. This is an absolute
outrage and Mark is fuming. He is now awaiting
confirmation by letter from the prison of the ban and
the reasons given. WE don't know at this point if the
prison have told Charlie of the ban. Watch this space.
29th April 2010
Well, that didn't take long. The poster of Charlie's art
on the Angel tube station has been stolen! It seems to
have disappeared yesterday some time, but Transport for
London say that they did not have it removed and the
police say that no theft has been reported. The only
news source that I am aware of that has reported on the
matter is
the BBC. Anyone out there know what happened to it?
28th April 2010
One
of Charlie's pieces of art is now being proudly displayed on the
London Underground as part of the "Art Below" project.
This means that tens of thousands of ordinary members of
the general public will get a chance to see an example
of his work.
So far it has only been reported by BBC
News (read the story) along with criticism by the
National Victims Association, who seem to think that it
is wrong to display it because the artist is a criminal
and is being "allowed to engage with the British
public." Well, I'm truly sorry you feel like that NVA
but art is art and we haven't yet become repressed
enough to censor art because of the background of an
artist! Charlie's art and poetry are his way of
expressing his thoughts and feelings and are a unique
insight into how the prison system has affected him.
12th April 2010
AT LONG LAST - YOU CAN
BUY CHARLIE'S ART HERE
There is now a ban imposed on Charlie by prison officials forbidding him from sending his art out of the jail, so his pieces are becoming harder and harder for collectors to find (you may have noticed that you never see his art for sale on
Ebay these days.) We don't have very much left ourselves, but what we do have is now being offered at what are currently bargain prices. A collector recently snapped up a few pieces for which he was prepared to pay £5,000!
I receive a lot of emails
asking where people can buy Charlie's art and be sure
that it is genuine. There have been many cases of people
paying for mere copies and even forgeries, believing that they were paying for original art. Well, the only way of being sure is to buy it from here, Charlie's only Official Website. Art bought from here is not only guaranteed to have been crafted by the man himself, but comes with a Certificate of Authenticity and his personal permission for the sale.
Take a look at Charlie's art which is for
sale on this site by clicking
BUY
CHARLIE'S ART.
6th April 2010
Now here's something you don't see every day of the
week: a brand new photo of Charlie with family and
friend, taken with the permission of HMP Woodhill.
Ironically, Charlie isn't allowed to have a copy because
it includes an image of himself!
Left to right: Charlie's brother Mark, his mother Eira,
Charlie and good friend Dee Morris
1st April 2010
I have just added a new page which details a complaint
from Charlie's cousin Stuart Godfrey to HMP Woodhill and
the answer he received.
Read it
here.
30th March 2010
I have added a new page which features emails from
people who have benefited and been inspired by Charlie
at People
Inspired by Charlie's Spirit.
25th March 2010
Today I received a letter from Charlie. That usually
brightens up my day, but when I examined the letter I
found that he had written it on 17th February! I then
inspected the envelope: date stamped 24th March. Well
done the post office for getting it to me in 24 hours
... but what the **** are the prison doing holding it up
for FIVE WEEKS!!!!!!!! So, another letter to the
prison governor, Nigel Smith (which you can read by
clicking on
this link), goes in the post by Recorded Delivery
today.
In Charlie's five week old letter he mentions the News
Of The World article which accused him of perving over
the TV programme Loose Women (see 31 January 2010
below). He says, quote: "I've no TV so I sure can't
watch that shit." So, proof now that it was just a pack
of made-up lies from start to finish. Put that in your
imaginary pipe and smoke it NOTW! An insider at
the NOTW said: "We are just a bunch of lying arseholes
who like to make up things about people who cannot
defend themselves just to sell our silly rag to the
gullible people in this country."
I will bet that NO national newspaper will be interested
in printing the story below!
23rd March 2010
For
anyone who doubts that Charlie has a truly compassionate
human side to him, please read the story
Charlie Changes
Lives of the Poor and Homeless, written by his good
and long-time friend Mohammed Iftkhar ("Ifty"). This is
the start of a new section of the website, aimed at
raising awareness of all the good things that Charlie
does ... but that you don't seem to be able to read
about in your Daily Rag.
22nd March 2010
TO ALL OUR FRIENDS IN
THE USA
Since the film
"Bronson" was released in America I have
received an increasing number of emails asking
how to write to Charlie from the States.
According to the US Postal Service, their
"Recorded Delivery" service is their
international equivalent of your domestic
"Certified Mail." The cost is $2.40 plus the
cost of postage. I'm afraid I can't find a way
to enable you to send a "self-addressed stamped
envelope" to Charlie for a reply. The closest
thing is the USPS International Business Reply
Envelope, but I don't believe Charlie could use
these, as he doesn't have access to a post
office. If you know different then please let me
know.
Watch the videos:
Bronson The Movie Official Trailer [HD]
Tom Hardy lifts the lid on Bronson
Moviebeat EXCLUSIVE - "Bronson" Tom Hardy interview
Bronson - Interview With Tom Hardy
Bronson - Interview With The Director - Nicolas Winding Refn
David Edwards review: Bronson
Bronson movie causes controversy
Bronson, The Prison Drawings - Courtesy of the Princess
CLICK HERE
to read all the older news
that has appeared on the Home Page
December
will see the launch of a unique calendar
featuring the artwork of Charlie Bronson, quite
unlike anything the public have seen before. In
support of the Dylan Foundation and with
sponsorship from The Charlie Bronson Appeal
Fund, a 2012 calendar entitled ‘Animal Magic’ is
being produced, which will feature incredible
animal cartoons from long term prisoner Charlie
Bronson.
If you've got Sky
or Virgin then there's a documentary on Thursday
15th September that you won't want to miss.
"The Real Bronson" is on Crime and
Investigation channel (Sky 553, SkyHD 555 and
Virgin 237) at 9 pm and repeated on Friday at 1
am.
WANT
A REAL BARGAIN? The Charles Bronson Appeal
Fund are offering a signed copy of Heroes &
Villains and an original piece of Charlie's art
over on Ebay, with all profits going to the fund
to help Charlie's proposed appeal.
Bronson look-alike Steve Swatton is raising more money
for charity. After his success with the thirty
mile "Bronson Challenge" walk earlier this year,
he now plans to swim the two and a half miles
from Plymouth Hoe to Plymouth Breakwater to
raise money for
Apex
Publishing are now auctioning numbered limited
edition SIGNED copies of Charlie's new book
'Prison Diaries' on Ebay. There will only ever
be 100 of these books made available
Here's
your chance to bid on and win a framed A4 print
of Charlie's art, which has been personally
signed by Tom Hardy, who played Charlie in the
film 'Bronson.' This is a genuine signature and
there is a photo on the back (stuck to the back
of the frame) showing Tom at the signing,
signing the print!
On 6th August
2011 there will be a protest outside
Buckingham Palace, where Charlie's new book
"PRISON DIARIES FROM THE CONCRETE COFFIN" will also be launched.
The Metropolitan Police have been contacted and
had no objections, referring us the the Royal
Parks, who said that they have no objection to
the protest being held in either Green Park or
St. James' Park ... but not in front of the
Palace gates. We intend, therefore, to meet in
front of the gates and then move to either of
the parks across the roundabout in front of the
Palace.
Attention
All Charlie Bronson Supporters. For everyone who
donates to the Appeal Fund during the month of June, you
will be entered into a draw. The Winner will receive
Charlie's Book 'The Good Prison Guide' and an A5 piece
of original Charlie art (picture left) worth over one
hundred pounds! Get donating and you could be the lucky
winner. You can donate via the Paypal link on the
All
concerned have begun to realise that if you
simply 'warehouse' a convicted person,
keeping him locked in a kennel for
twenty-three hours a day, speak to him in
the most demeaning and disrespectful manner
and use force at the slightest provocation
to impose your will, it is unlikely to
result in any sort of positive
rehabilitation and very likely to instil
resentment and anger against the very
society he will be re-entering at some time
in the future.
Dylan Godfrey is a cute little five year old boy who has
suffered from a rare form of brain disorder called Lissencephaly
from birth. I'm afraid there is currently no treatment for
this condition and most children only survive into their
teens before succumbing to respiratory problems. He can't walk or talk or understand language and
needs 24 hour care and attention. Dylan is the son of Darren
Godfrey, Charlie's cousin, so Charlie decided to do
something for them. Charlie's good friend Ian Frost of KO1 Promotions set up a
night of Championship Semi-Pro Boxing, attended by many of
Charlie's family, friends and supporters and an auction was
held of art donated by Charlie and other goodies from
Charlie's family and friends which raised over £1,500 to help care for young Dylan.
RESPECT
AND REPUTATION
One
of Charlie's pieces of art is now being proudly displayed on the
London Underground as part of the "Art Below" project.
This means that tens of thousands of ordinary members of
the general public will get a chance to see an example
of his work.
For
anyone who doubts that Charlie has a truly compassionate
human side to him, please read the story
