A protective guardsman in the Queen's elite security detail has been caught on camera going berserk at a woman tourist who encroached too close to his horse.
The dramatic clip has been uploaded to TikTok by user Ethan (@_phigs) who vowed never to return to London following the incident involving his step-mum. It shows her approaching the soldier on a black horse outside Buckingham Palace after queuing up to pose for a picture.
As she gets close to the majestic creature, she reaches up to hold the horse's reins, clearly spooking the animal. Aware of his companion's distress, the guard yells: "Stand back from the Queen's lifeguard, don't touch the reins!"
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Startled by the loud command, the blonde-haired woman quickly moves away in shock immediately after being shouted at, reports the Mirror. The video has now gone viral online, notching up more than 188,000 likes and is captioned: "We Will Never Return To London After This Incident."
But some users on the social media platform had little sympathy for the woman in the video. Some commented that, in their opinion, the woman was at fault, adding that the Queen's guard is part of the armed forces - not Disneyland.
One wrote: "It’s not Disney they are working horses and serving army." A second commented: "They really don’t care if you’re going back I promise you", and a third remarked: "Serves her right you aren’t allowed to touch the guard."
One person in the comments section recalled being allowed to grab the reins for a picture after asking permission from a soldier. An Army Spokesperson said: “We take all incidents like this seriously and want to ensure all those who visit Horse Guards have an enjoyable time.
"This area is particularly busy with tourists and on occasions the soldiers undertaking Guard duty need to shout loudly to alert members of the public if they get too close to the horses, which happened in this case. We have signs placed alongside the horse boxes, stating that the horses bite and would always encourage the public not to get close to horses, as after all, they are animals and can be unpredictable.”
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