Charles Bronson has high hopes of leaving prison before Christmas as he waits to secure a public parole hearing.
The notorious prisoner, who is currently at high-security HMP Woodhill in Milton Keynes, has become the first person to formally ask for his next review to be held in public.
Bronson, 70, has spent most of the last 50 years locked up, often being kept in specialist units or solitary confinement.
Now, in a letter written to Metro.co.uk, he said he "should be having a Guinness by Crimbo".
Bronson has previously said he "probably deserves a good 30 years caged up" but said the following 20 was "nothing but revenge".
Referring to his "jam roll" hearing on December 12, he wrote in the letter: "My legal team are up for it.
"We could, should, make history here. This mob have now run out of excuses on locking me up in a concrete coffin. It’s now just pure vindictiveness. Make believe crap."
The Parole Board said it has received an application for the hearing to be held in public, but no decision has yet been made. The process takes four to six weeks.
Bronson, who changed his surname Salvador after the surrealist artist, is one of the UK’s most notorious and longest serving prisoners.
He was born Michael Gordon Peterson in Luton, Bedfordshire, in 1952, and got involved with petty crime at a young age.
Bronson was first locked up in 1974 for armed robbery. He was sentenced to eight years but attacks on guards and fellow prisoners saw his sentence lengthened.
At one point he was moved to Parkhurst psychiatric facility, where he got to know the Kray twins. He later said spending time with Ronnie Kray was like "sitting with royalty".
While there he staged a rooftop protest, causing thousands of pounds worth of damage. He would only come down after staff agreed to his demand for fish and chips, a cup of tea and some apple pie and pink custard.
In 1987 he was freed but returned after 69 days following another raid. During his short stint of freedom he got into hard knuckle fighting and changed his surname to Bronson.
He was released again in 1992 but this time was arrested after only 53 days for planning a robbery.
While on remand, he took a librarian hostage and told police to bring him an inflatable doll, a helicopter, and a cup of tea.
In 1996, he took two Iraqi hijackers and another inmate hostage at Belmarsh Prison and kidnapped an art teacher who criticised a painting of his.
In a book about himself, called Bronson, he said: "I’m a nice guy, but sometimes I lose all my senses and become nasty. That doesn’t make me evil, just confused."
Today Bronson describes himself a "born again artist", and enjoys drawing, writing poetry and exercising. His art has raised thousands of pounds for charity.
He told Metro: "That’s where 90% of my artwork goes to. It makes me feel proud and worthwhile."
