Ronnie Biggs Details 'Regrets' In New Book

Ailing Ronnie Biggs has expressed remorse over the crime that made him infamous as he made a rare public appearance to launch his updated autobiography.

The Great Train Robber, who communicates by using a word and letter board following a series of strokes, said he wanted the British public to think of him as a "loveable rogue".

Launching his book, Odd Man Out: The Last Straw, Biggs expressed sorrow over the fate of mail train driver Jack Mills, who died in 1970 after never fully recovering from the attack he suffered during the robbery.

But when asked whether any proceeds from the work would go to Mr Mills' family, the ex-fugitive's son Michael said: "That has not been discussed yet."

The book updates Biggs' 1994 autobiography and has chapters covering his later years, including his return to the UK, his time in prison and his release on compassionate grounds in 2009 .

The 82-year-old writes how he is a "very different man to the one who went on the run from HMP Wandsworth back in July 1965".

"I lay no claim to having been a perfect man who has led a faultless life, and never have, but I am a better man for the experiences of the past 50 years, a period in which I spent over three quarters of my life trying to honestly maintain my family and myself as best I could.

"It has been said by those who don't know me - and who have never even met me - that I have no regrets, but that simply isn't true.

"I have always regretted the hurt I caused by my actions, and especially to my own family and friends."

Biggs first suffered a stroke in 1998 and has been left unable to walk or talk, with his son telling reporters: "This is probably the first and last time he is holding a press conference."

Originally from Lambeth, south London, Biggs was a member of the gang that made off with £2.6m from a Glasgow to London mail train in 1963.

He was given a 30-year sentence but escaped from the capital's Wandsworth Prison in a furniture van after spending 15 months in jail.

He was on the run for more than 30 years, living in Spain, Australia and Brazil before returning to the UK voluntarily.