The Queen was once almost shot at by a Buckingham Palace guardsman, a journalist for The Times has revealed.
According to journalist Grant Tucker, her Majesty is “a fan of late-night walks”.
“When she struggles to sleep she will sometimes put on a mac and walk around the palace grounds, an ex-guardsman told me,” he writes.
The Queen reportedly is a “fan of late-night walks” around the palace grounds.
“On one occasion he was patrolling inside the perimeter of the palace walls at 3 am when he spotted a figure in the darkness. Thinking that he had come across an intruder, he shouted: ‘Who’s that?’ To his surprise it was the Queen.”
According to this ex-guardsman’s account, the monarch then proceeded to have quite the humorous conversation with him. The man said, “Bloody hell” and told Queen Elizabeth he had “nearly” shot her.
“That’s quite all right,” she reportedly replied. “Next time I’ll ring through beforehand so you don’t have to shoot me.”
The news comes after weeks of the Queen keeping out of the spotlight, after suffering a heavy cold which forced her to skip her usual church service on Christmas Day and New Year’s Day.
While the royal has not been seen out in public since she hosted a diplomatic reception at Buckingham Palace on December 8, the rumour mill is buzzing with talk that she may step out on Sunday, January 8, to attend a church service in Sandringham.
The Queen has also been keeping busy behind closed doors at her Sandringham estate, according to Court Circular, the official record of royal engagements. On January 3, Her Majesty was noted as having awarded long-serving staff member and servant Raymond Wheaton the Insignia of Lieutenant of the order, an honour she personally selected him for.
Raymond, a page chamber who has worked for the royals for 30 years, was received by the Queen herself to be awarded the prestigious honour.
Unstoppable! The Queen, pictured with His Excellency Mr Kristof Szalay-Bobrovniczky the Ambassador of Hungary in November, has been working from behind closed doors at Sandringham.
