Notorious prisoner Charles Bronson has treated his ex-wife to a “luxury” hamper for Christmas – including wine, cheese and chocolate.
The hopeless romantic sent his ex-wife Irene Dunroe, 71, a “luxury” hamper from inside HMP Woodhill. Bronson, 70, divorced from Irene in 1976 but stayed in touch – they met up for the first time in 50 years in August.
Irene says Bronson – Britain’s most notorious prisoner – wants to rekindle their relationship when he’s released. And, he showed his affection this Christmas by sending her a hamper, complete with a big gold bow.
The mum-of-three Irene, who works in Ann Summers, said she returned home to find the present waiting earlier this week.
She said: “I received his lovely hamper on Wednesday. It’s done in a great big gold bow – he’s very generous and he always wants to know if I need something. He’s a gentle giant and wants to make people happy.
“It had a lovely bottle of red wine, two great big wheels of cheese, chocolate, peanuts, crisps, biscuits, some lovely jams and marmalades and some pickles. It was like a lucky dip of luxury stuff!”
(Image: SWNS)
Irene and Bronson met when they were teenagers and married soon after. She said she was taken by his dapper dress sense and Cockney accent. Then known as Michael Peterson, Irene still affectionately calls him Mick.
They married in 1971 and have a son, also called Michael, now aged 51, but the pair divorced just five years later while Bronson was serving time for armed robbery. Both remarried, Bronson twice and Irene once. She also had two other children with her second husband.
Irene says she’ll be thinking of Bronson this Christmas and is looking forward to his potential release in 2025. She said: “He will get his freedom in this next parole in March 2025 and I know he’ll be getting out then.
“They can’t keep him inside for nothing anymore. A lot of the songs we used to sing together all came out in December. My mum always used to do a stocking for me when I was little. One Christmas I was telling Mick this.
“And the last year before he went inside he did a stocking for me and he filled it up. It had a lovely purple negligee which was all frilly – it was gorgeous. I’ll never forget that. He just wants to make me happy.”
(Image: CHRIS NEILL/MAVERICK)
Irene visited Bronson in August to talk in person for the first time in almost five decades after exchanging phone calls and letters. She had hoped to see him again before Christmas but couldn’t make it work.
She said: “We were going to see him again before Christmas but I just couldn’t get the time off from work. We’ll be going after Christmas so that’ll be nice – no later than February.”
Bronson has spent most of his life behind bars. He was first jailed in 1974, aged 22, when he was given seven years for armed robbery.
But bad behaviour inside gave him a reputation as a dangerous inmate, and he wasn’t released until 1987. Bronson then spent just 69 days as a free man before being rearrested and jailed again after robbing a jewellery shop.
He was sentenced to another seven years and, bar another brief spell of freedom in 1992, has been in prison since. He was last denied parole in March 2023.
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