The crack security guards at Britain's Buckingham Palace are sporting a bit of fresh egg on their faces today amid reports that they detained a man on palace grounds on Wednesday, may or may not have pointed weapons at him, and forced him to verify his identity. No big deal, except that man was Queen Elizabeth's second son, Prince Andrew, reports the BBC. How it went down, as per the Sunday Express report being widely circulated: Guards spotted Andrew in the palace gardens about 6pm local time, drew their weapons, and ordered him to "put your hands up and get on the ground," in what the paper breathlessly calls a "tense half a minute" in which "the Queen’s 53-year-old son was in danger of being shot dead by officers paid to protect him and his family."
Other outlets are considerably more measured, but note that guards might have been jittery because two days earlier they had arrested a legitimate intruder and charged him with burglary. Scotland Yard is confirming that a man was stopped Wednesday and "satisfactorily identified," though it says in a statement that "no weapons were drawn and no force was used." Andrew says he's been the recipient of an apology, adding wryly: "I am grateful for their apology and look forward to a safe walk in the garden in the future." (More Prince Andrew stories.)
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