Speaking with The Times of London, an ex-guardsman to the palace has opened up about how he once mistook the 90-year-old monarch for an intruder on royal property.
It turns out Britain’s longest running monarch has a very simple cure for insomnia – a late-night stroll on palace grounds. During one such walk, however, The Queen almost lost her life as the ex-guardsman in question spotted a “figure in darkness” and immediately thought the worst.
The guard shouted, “Who’s that?” And to his surprise, he discovered it was the Queen.
“Bloody hell, your majesty, I nearly shot you,” he blurted out upon realising his mistake.
The guard, who was expecting quite the royal dressing down after speaking in haste, was surprised with The Queen’s calm response.
“That’s quite all right,” she answered. “Next time I’ll ring through beforehand so you don’t have to shoot me.”
The Times failed to indicate when the incident took place and Buckingham Palace had no comment on the report.
Sounds like it was a close call for the inscrutable monarch!
Meanwhile, the well-being of Her Majesty continues to make headlines as she slowly recovers from a “heavy cold.”
The monarch may have remained out of the public eye since she hosted the annual diplomatic reception at Buckingham Palace on December 8, but royal watchers have been quick to reveal that behind closed doors she’s kept an important engagement.
According to the daily dairy of The Queen’s activities, Court Circular, on Tuesday January 3, Her Majesty awarded long-serving staff member and servant Raymond Wheaton the Insignia of Lieutenant of the order at her Sandringham estate in Norfolk.
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.
Page chamber Raymond, who has worked for the Royal Family for 30 years, was received by The Queen so she could give him the award which she personally selected him for.
That same day, the monarch released a message to the Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan, sending her deepest condolences in the wake of the New Year’s Eve nightclub attack in Istanbul.
The Queen, who had to uncharacteristically skip church on Christmas Day and New Year’s Day because of her illness, is also believed to be tending to her red boxes and official documents.
While no official outings for Her Majesty have been announced, speculation is swirling that she may step out on Sunday, January 8 for a local church service at Sandringham.
