Charles Bronson: Britain’s most notorious prisoner launches art exhibition in hopes of new parole bid
The artist formerly known as Britain’s most violent prisoner is launching an exhibition which he hopes will boost his new bid for parole.
Hundreds of Charles Bronson’s cartoonish drawings are going on show and sale, with prices ranging from £700 to £30,000 for a multiple set of images.
Many depict the prisoner’s often nightmarish view of his own life through 47 years in jail, much of it in special secure isolation units.
Artist and curator Oliver Hammond said: “If we can show that Charlie does genuinely want to be released from prison to work on his art, there’s definitely a good chance this can help with his parole.
“You know, why would someone, after creating the works that he’s created behind the cell door, not want to continue that on a larger scale outside?
Artist and curator Oliver Hammond says there’s a ‘good chance’ the artwork will help Bronson’s parole
“It’s a little bit grim, but it’s grim to be in solitary confinement for 27 years and in prison for a total of 47 years. This is a man’s mind depicting his grim life.”
Bronson, who has changed his name to Charles Salvador after his artist hero Salvador Dali, has been drawing for many years. His work sells and has raised much for various charities.
He was jailed for armed robbery in 1974 and, but for two brief spells of freedom, has been locked up ever since because of his repeated violence inside jail, mostly towards prison staff.
Former Metropolitan Police Flying Squad detective Peter Kirkham questioned whether prisoners should be allowed to cash in on their notoriety.
Bronson was originally jailed for armed robbery in 1974
He said: “His life is his life and if someone wants to pay money for some version of that, then it’s up to them. But it scares me to say it, but how long before we see someone like this as the new guest on Big Brother? It’s wrong, because people simply shouldn’t gain from their crimes, directly or indirectly.”
At a hearing next month, the Parole Board will be asked to decide what level of risk Bronson is to the public. If it rules the risk is low and manageable the panel could free him.
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Hundreds of Charles Bronson’s cartoonish drawings are on sale, with prices ranging from £700 to £30,000
Demonstrating his ability to work and earn money as an artist, and so support himself, could help Bronson’s parole bid.
The exhibition at the Henarch Galleries in Spitalfields, East London, opens to the public on 23 February, though the artworks go on sale online from today (5 February).
Bronson, who has changed his name to Charles Salvador, has been drawing for many years
The show includes thousands of vivid digital images created by Hammond and inspired by Bronson’s art, writings, and interviews. They are being sold as non-fungible tokens (NFTs) or digital certificates of ownership.
A third of the profits will be donated to the Born For Art Foundation Hammond has set up with Bronson and one of the prisoner’s supporters. The foundation aims to supply art equipment for underprivileged children.
Angelina Jolie says although she appreciates being an artist, she would prefer for her legacy to be “a good mother” and to be known for her “belief in equality and human rights”.
The Oscar-winning actress stars as Maria Callas in the new Pablo Larrain film about the opera singer’s life.
Pic: StudioCanal
She has called Maria “the hardest” and “most challenging” role she has had in her career and put months of preparation into immersing herself into the world of opera.
Jolie, who recently reached a divorce settlement with actor Brad Pitt, told Sky News: “To be very candid, it was the therapy I didn’t realise I needed. I had no idea how much I was holding in and not letting out.
“So, the challenge wasn’t the technical [side of opera], it was an emotional experience to find my voice, to be in my body, to express. You have to give every single part of yourself.”
The biopic combines the voice of the Maleficent actress with recordings of Maria Callas.
Jolie believes it “would be a crime to not have [Callas’] voice through this because, in many ways, she is very present in this film”.
Who was Maria Callas?
Born in New York in 1923, Maria Callas was the daughter of Greek immigrants who moved back to Athens at the age of 13 with her mother and sister.
After enrolling at the Athens Conservatory, she made her professional debut at 17 and went on to become one of the most famous faces of opera, travelling around the world and performing at Covent Garden in London, The Met in New York and La Scala in Milan.
Callas’s final operatic performance took place at Covent Garden in 1965 when she was 41 but she continued to work conducting master classes at Juilliard School, doing concert tours and starring in the 1969 film Medea.
Written by Peaky Blinders creator Steven Knight, Maria focuses on the artist’s final years in the 1970s when she moved to Paris and disappeared from public view.
She died on 16 September 1977 at the age of 53.
Pic: StudioCanal
Jolie on changing motivations as an actor
Maria follows the life of an artist fully consumed by the art she creates and even remarks that “happiness never developed a beautiful melody”.
Reflecting on her own life in the spotlight, Jolie said she noticed her own career motivations change over the years.
“There’s this kind of study of being human that we do when we create, and we communicate with an audience because our work is not in isolation – it’s a connection.
“I think when I was younger, I had different questions about being human and different feelings and now as I’ve gotten older, I understand some things and now I have different questions.
“It’s a matter of life, right? And so maybe that’s interesting that this now is a character really contemplating death and really contemplating the toll of certain things in life that I, of course, couldn’t have understood in my 20s”.
Jolie at the New York Film Festival in September with three of her children (L-R) Pax, Zahara and Maddox. Pic: AP
A family affair
Two of Jolie’s children, Maddox and Pax, took on production assistant roles during the filming of Maria and witnessed their mother perform opera for the first time in public.
She says the film allowed them to create new experiences together and for her children to see her approach to playing a difficult role.
“Everyone in my home, we all give each other space to be who we are and we’re all different.
“I’m the mom, but I’m also an artist and a person and so my family has been very kind and gives me their understanding. They make fun of me, and they support me and just as you’d hope it would be.”
She adds: “When you play somebody who is dealing with so much pain, it’s very important to come home to some kindness.”
Maria is in cinemas now.
Tom Holland’s dad has confirmed his son’s engagement to Zendaya – revealing how the 28-year-old meticulously planned the proposal.
Zendaya, also 28, sparked engagement rumours when she attended last Sunday’s Golden Globes wearing a sparkling diamond on her ring finger.
Neither star has publicly addressed the rumours but Tom’s comedian father, Dominic Holland, has now confirmed the pair are set to wed.
He wrote in a post on his Patreon account: “Tom, as you know by now was very incredibly well prepared. He had purchased a ring.
“He had spoken with her father and gained permission to propose to his daughter.”
“Tom had everything planned out… When, where, how, what to say, what to wear,” he added.
Zendaya arrived at the Golden Globes with a noticeable piece of new jewellery. Pic: Invision/AP
Dominic also noted that while most men worry about being able to afford an engagement ring, he suspects his actor son was “more concerned with the stone, its size and clarity, its housing, which jeweller”.
Tom and Zendaya met on the set of Spider-Man: Homecoming in 2016, when they played the titular hero and his love interest MJ, respectively. Their romance was confirmed in 2021.
In his post, Tom’s father admitted fears over whether being in the spotlight could put a strain on the couple’s relationship.
He wrote: “I do fret that their combined stardom will amplify their spotlight and the commensurate demands on them and yet they continually confound me by handling everything with aplomb.”
“And even though show business is a messy place for relationships and particularly so for famous couples as they crash and burn in public and are too numerous to mention […] yet somehow right at the same time, I am completely confident they will make a successful union.”
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Zendaya rose to fame after landing a role in Disney sitcom Shake It Up, and became a household name after starring in Euphoria.
Holland – who has starred in three Spider-Man films opposite his now-fiancée – made his stage debut in Billy Elliot the Musical in 2008.
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