A former British Airways pilot who bludgeoned his estranged wife to death has lost his parole bid for freedom.

Robert Brown, now 61, killed 46-year-old Joanna Simpson within earshot of their young children in their family home in Ascot, Berkshire in 2010.

Following a private two-day hearing last month, the Parole Board has ruled that Brown is not fit to be released into the public.

It comes after a three-year campaign to keep the violent killer behind bars which was led by Ms Simpson’s mother Diana Parkes CBE and her close friend Hetti Barkworth-Nanton CBE 

Brown will now remain in custody until the end of his full 26‑year sentence, unless and until the Parole Board is satisfied, he no longer poses a risk.

‘I am incredibly relieved that the Parole Board have decided not to release Robert Brown,’ said Ms Parkes.

‘We have all lived with the fear that this might not be the case but thank goodness it was unanimously agreed he should not be released.’

‘My daughter would have been 62 last Wednesday 6th May, and, of course, we remember her as the beautiful and vivacious woman she was at 46. That is how I will always remember her,’ she added.

Carrie Johnson, who has been a prominent supporter of the campaign, added that the decision was a ‘huge relief’.

‘Joanna’s loved ones have spent years fighting with extraordinary courage and determination to ensure justice is done,’ the wife of former prime minister Boris Johnson added.

‘They shouldn’t have had to fight as hard as they did - but today‘s verdict shows at least that it has been worth it.’

The former airline captain killed the mother of his two young children with a claw hammer before burying her body in Windsor Great Park.

He pleaded guilty to manslaughter on the grounds of diminished responsibility, claiming he was suffering from a stress-related 'adjustment disorder'.

Ms Simpson’s family has long argued that Brown should have been charged with murder due to what they considered was the premeditated nature of the killing

Brown was due to be released halfway through his 26-year sentence in November 2023.

However, following the campaign, former Justice Secretary Alex Chalk blocked his automatic release and referred the case to the Parole Board.

Brown challenged this with his own legal bid but a High Court judge ruled there were ‘reasonable grounds’ to believe he posed a significant risk of serious harm to the public.

Ms Barkworth-Nanton CBE said she was ‘profoundly relieved’ by the Parole Board’s decision following his latest bid for freedom.

‘Since the day Robert Brown was given a sentence that would have led to his automatic release in 2023, we have all lived under a cloud of fear - a fear that today, at last, has been lifted,’ she said.

‘This outcome is not accidental. It is the result of our preparedness to campaign, the extraordinary support of the public and the media, the willingness of politicians to listen, the scrutiny shown by the Ministry of Justice in their review of this case, and the independent rigour of the Parole Board’s investigation.

‘Each played a vital role in ensuring that public protection, not process, determined the outcome.’