Prison governor taken hostage by Charles Bronson opposes his release

EXCLUSIVE: Prison governor who feared he would die when Charles Bronson took him hostage, tied him up and beat him for five hours says he’s concerned about the possible release of Britain’s most dangerous inmate

• Adrian Wallace was taken hostage by Bronson, tied up and beaten for five hours
• He fears Bronson won’t be able to comply with conditions imposed upon release

A former prison governor once taken hostage, tied up and beaten during five hours of hell at the hands of Charles Bronson says the violent lifer will struggle to adjust to life outside jail if he is freed.

Adrian Wallace recounted his terrifying ordeal as Britain’s most dangerous inmate waits to learn if he will be released from prison.

Mr Wallace, who as former deputy governor of Hull Prison, feared he would die when he was taken hostage in 1994, accepts that Bronson, 70, – born Michael Peterson – cannot be caged forever, despite spending 50 years behind bars.

But the retired officer, who gave a statement to the Parole Board, fears Bronson will not be able to comply with whatever conditions are imposed if he is freed on licence.

Adrian Wallace (pictured) was once taken hostage, tied up and beaten during five hours of hell at the hands of Charles Bronson. He says the violent lifer shouldn’t be freed from jail yet

Mr Wallace, who as former deputy governor of Hull Prison, feared he would die when he was taken hostage in 1994, accepts that Bronson, 70, – born Michael Peterson – cannot be caged forever, despite spending 50 years behind bars. Bronson is pictured in 2001

Speaking exclusively to MailOnline, Mr Wallace, 82, said: ‘Mr Bronson, it would be true to say, has created mayhem on an industrial scale during his time in prison.

‘He appears to revel in his own notoriety and has absolutely no comprehension how his behaviour and violent actions have affected others.

‘It is also evident he has shown absolutely no remorse whatsoever for the numerous amounts of assaults on members of staff. I thought this was a prerequisite part of the parole application process.’

He recalled the day when he spent five hours of sheer terror at Bronson’s mercy after being dragged into a TV room, tied up and beaten repeatedly.

Bronson – who changed his name to match his idol, the Hollywood star of the Death Wish movies – was first locked up for armed robbery in 1974, but during his time inside he has taken hostages in 10 prison sieges and attacked at least 20 prison officers.

In 1994 Mr Wallace, then with 23 years in the prison service, was deputy governor of Hull Prison, and in charge of a ‘special unit’ for violent prisoners at the jail.

He said ‘This unit was specifically designed to locate violent and disruptive Category A prisoners from across the prison estate.

‘At one meeting I agreed to have Mr Bronson accepted into the special unit. At the time I was fully aware of his propensity for violent and aggressive behaviour towards staff, and that he had taken a member of staff hostage in HMP Woodhill special unit.

‘The staff at Hull special unit were exceptionally skilled in dealing with prisoner behavioural issues and I was fully confident that they could effectively manage Mr Bronson.’

But the plan to move Bronson to Hull did not go down well with other inmates, said Mr Wallace.

‘When news spread of his impending arrival, all the prisoners showed their displeasure by setting off fires in the unit.

‘When Mr Bronson eventually arrived, he personally thanked me for accepting him into the unit and he assured me he would not let me down.

Mr Wallace, who gave a statement to the Parole Board, fears Bronson (pictured in 2023) will not be able to comply with whatever conditions are imposed if he is freed on licence

Bronson (pictured in 1997) received seven extra years on his sentence for the incident involving Mr Wallace, but the officer suffered suspected PTSD which saw him leave the prison service on a disability pension some years later 

‘His promise was to be short lived.’

Over the next few weeks, Bronson became ‘surly and aggressive’ with the prison staff, said Mr Wallace.

‘On one of my regular visits to the unit, he grabbed me in a neck chokehold, dragged me in to a small association room and barricaded the door with furniture.

‘I was then tied up, assaulted, and constantly threatened to have my head crushed if I moved.’

He told MailOnline: ‘He got me in a neck hold, and he was powerfully built, so when he warned the other staff that he’d break my neck, they took him seriously.

‘Once he’d got me in the room, he didn’t really know what to do next. He punched me a few times, and slapped me a bit. He tied my hands together with my tie and threatened to batter my head to a pulp with the iron which was on a board in the TV room.’

Bronson’s demands became more and more bizarre, at one point asking for a blow-up doll, as well as cups of tea for the deputy governor and himself, then later steak and chips for them both.

When the tea came, he untied Mr Wallace’s hands but warned him he would have his neck broken if he tried anything.

‘He demanded a helicopter, and seized my radio and started singing the hymn Jerusalem and telling people what he wanted on his gravestone,’ added Mr Wallace.

‘That’s when I began to think “S***, I might actually die here!” I thought that if I was going to die, I’d do so on my terms and I thought tactically, deciding that if I got a chance, I would take it.’

After five hours, as Bronson began to move him into another room, possibly to kill him, Mr Wallace saw his chance when his captor was struggling with a door and pushed him off balance enough for him to fall, at which other officers moved in and overpowered the inmate, pinning him to the ground.

Bronson received seven extra years on his sentence for the incident, but Mr Wallace suffered suspected PTSD which saw him leave the prison service on a disability pension some years later.

As he told the Parole Board: ‘I can assure the board that being taken hostage does have a significant effect on one’s mental stability long after the actual incident.

‘Post-traumatic stress disorder does kick in at regular intervals and flashbacks and other issues are not uncommon. ‘

In one of Bronson’s frequent outbursts in the Parole hearing, he made it clear he certainly had no remorse in the case of Mr Wallace. The prisoner is pictured in 2004 

He pointed out that Bronson has often stressed that he never killed anyone, but added: ‘He might wish to reflect on the lives that he has ruined, with particular attention being paid to the teacher at Hull special unit whom he took hostage and whose career and lifestyle was dramatically changed as a consequence.’ 

In 2000, Bronson was handed a life sentence for kidnapping prison art teacher Phil Danielson in Hull Prison the previous year. In a 43-hour ordeal, Mr Danielson was beaten and stabbed, and was left with panic attacks and PTSD and has never worked again.

In one of Bronson’s frequent outbursts in the Parole hearing, he made it clear he certainly had no remorse in the case of Mr Wallace, shouting out: ‘Governor Wallace was an a*****e, is an a*****e and will die an a*****e.’ 

Mr Wallace told the hearing in his statement: ‘It is true that he has spent a long time in custody. Perhaps he should look in the mirror and ask himself who is to blame for such a long custodial sentence?’

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