Andrew, Duke of York

[grandduchessella]

I think they've been together on the downlow more years since their divorce than not. Sarah and Andrew have all but confirmed it in various interviews. Any remarriage though I can't see happening while at least Phillip is alive. The Queen was supposed to be very fond still of Sarah but Phillip was the one who just couldn't get past her behavior and the damage it did to the RF. The trip to Balmoral was a big deal though--some speculation was on perhaps on imminent engagement of Beatrice to Dave Clark.

[Grace]

Oh, they've been together all right, when it suits them in between other partners.  Immature pair!  They do deserve each other, I'll say that much!

[Kimberly]

ha ha ha
How very restrained of you Grace.......

[Greenowl]

According to the Sunday Express, Prince Andrew has accepted an apology from the police after armed officers stopped him in the gardens of Buckingham Palace.

The incident came days after two men were held in a security breach at Queen Elizabeth's London residence. Police shouted at the 53-year-old prince, fifth in line to the throne, to "put your hands up and get on the ground", the Sunday Express newspaper reported, citing an unnamed royal source. The officers had apparently failed to recognise the prince, who was strolling the grounds in broad daylight in the late afternoon after attending an event in London on Wednesday. In a statement, Prince Andrew said: "The police have a difficult job to do balancing security for the royal family and deterring intruders, and sometimes they get it wrong. "I am grateful for their apology and look forward to a safe walk in the garden in the future."

London's Metropolitan Police earlier confirmed that two of its officers had stopped a man in the palace gardens and asked him to verify his identity.

"The man was satisfactorily identified. No weapons were drawn and no force was used," the police said in a statement that did not name the prince.

[IvanVII]

How do you not recognize an immediate member of the Royal family, especially if you're assigned to the palace....

[Kalafrana]

It seems a bit strange, but it's happened before. There is a nice story of how the Kaiser went out for a walk in the park at Potsdam, and when he got back the sentries had changed and a new sentry refused to let him in! To make matters worse, the sentry kept addressing the Kaiser as 'Herr Leutnant' (was he wearing a greatcoat without rank badges, I wonder?).

The Kaiser was a good deal more instantly recognisable than the Duke of York!

Ann

[Vecchiolarry]

Hi,

My thought:
Somebody's not doing their job.  The Duke and/or the security boss.

Shouldn't security know the movements of their protectees?
Don't they know that The Queen is in her Reception Room with the Prime Minister or her wardrobe people?
Doesn't the Duke say, "I'm going out for a walk in the gardens".....
Don't the staff report that "Sally, the maid, is cleaning in the Ball Room"

Lax information flow - stupid...

Larry

[CHRISinUSA]

Agree.  What you are describing is the security in place for most presidents and prime ministers around the world.  President Obama, for example, wears a sensor that shows security his exact location at all times.  But I would not be surprised if the Queen flatly rejected these sorts of practices as too intrusive into her private life.  I suspect royal protection teams regularly have their requests for added layers "declined" by HM.

I remember when Obama stayed at Buckingham Palace and the US Secret Service wanted to reinforce the windows and floors of the Belgian Suite in the event of an airborne attack.  The Queen reportedly refused, saying in effect that if somebody truly wanted to do that, reinforced windows or floors weren't going to do much good anyway. 

[RoyalWatcher]

I remember when Obama stayed at Buckingham Palace and the US Secret Service wanted to reinforce the windows and floors of the Belgian Suite in the event of an airborne attack.  The Queen reportedly refused, saying in effect that if somebody truly wanted to do that, reinforced windows or floors weren't going to do much good anyway. 

That is just an awesome and pragmatic response...love it!

[Kalafrana]

Part of the routine of state visits to Britain byforeign heads of state includes the visitor going to Buckingham Palace in a carriage procession. Unprecedentedly, Obama's security advisers insisted that he went in a bullet-proof limousine!

Sad!

Ann

[TimM]

Part of the routine of state visits to Britain byforeign heads of state includes the visitor going to Buckingham Palace in a carriage procession. Unprecedentedly, Obama's security advisers insisted that he went in a bullet-proof limousine!

Probably because everyone knows the last time a U.S. President rode in an open car, in Dallas, nearly fifty years ago...

[grandduchessella]

Part of the routine of state visits to Britain byforeign heads of state includes the visitor going to Buckingham Palace in a carriage procession. Unprecedentedly, Obama's security advisers insisted that he went in a bullet-proof limousine!

Sad!

Ann

It wasn't unprecedented-- In 2003, President George Bush didn't ride in a carriage either over security concerns. During his visit there were a number of angry protests over the Iraq War.

[Kalafrana]

But it does seem only to be American presidents who eschew the carriage.

Plenty of other heads of states are met by angry protests.

Ann

[CHRISinUSA]

To bring the topic full circle back to the Duke's recent incident in the gardens, yes, that's because the Secret Service is absolutely fanatical in its security protocols.  The costs are classified but staggering according to all reputable estimates.

Security estimates alone vary from 50 million to $150 million a year to protect just the president and his family at home and abroad.  One source said combining security, transportation and other operational costs of just the first family, Americans spend $1.4 billion a year - 20 times what the entire monarchy costs Britain. 

To add insult to injury, I found other published sources saying the Secret Service spent $113.4 million protecting the presidential candidates during the 2012 election.  That alone is twice the cost of the entire monarchy.

Brits are extremely luck to have their royal family.

[TimM]

The U.S. has lost four Presidents to assassins (Garfield and McKinley being the other two, as everyone knows about Lincoln and Kennedy).  So I can't blame them for being careful.