LONDON: Ronnie Biggs, whose role in the 1963 "Great Train Robbery" made him one of Britain's most famous criminals, was freed from jail due to ill health on Friday, a day before his 80th birthday.

But Biggs' family said the, fax, which confirmed his freedom, won't change much. The so-called "Great Train Robber" will likely stay where he is - in bed, seriously ill.

An inmate at Norwich Prison in eastern England, Biggs has been admitted to a hospital for chest infection.