The Queen's Guard yelled at the woman after she got too close to his horse. Photo / TikTok @phigs_
The Queen's Guard yelled at the woman after she got too close to his horse. Photo / TikTok @phigs_
One tourist has learned exactly what happens when you overstep your boundaries in London.
While most tourists visit the city in hopes of catching a glimpse of the Queen, one woman was excited to see a Queen's Guard and their horse and got up close and personal to get a picture.
However, things quickly turned sour, and the Queen's Guard proved to the woman he was not there simply for decoration.
Taking to TikTok the woman's stepson shared a video of the situation and said he will "never return to London" after his stepmum was shouted at by the Queen's Guard when she touched the reins of the horse.
The woman can be seen touching the horse. Photo / TikTok @phigs_
In the video, the woman is seen approaching the horse and getting extremely close to its face before gently taking hold of the reins but her actions quickly caught the attention of the guard, who yelled, "Stand back from the Queen's lifeguard, don't touch the reins!"
The startled woman quickly stepped away from the horse while other members of the public watched on.
The video has since gone viral, receiving over 4.3 million views and 22 thousand comments, including one from the man who posted it who said: "He was a rather angry little man".
Many viewers of the video disagreed with the man and showed their support for the Queen's Guard who was simply doing his job.
One person said, "They have a job, just don't go near them." While another commented, "Serves her right, you aren't allowed to touch the guard."
The woman was visibly startled after the guard yelled at her. Photo / TikTok @phigs_
A third person said, "The guards are not tourist attractions. You don't take selfies with the Tesco security guards."
The Queen's Guards are expected to follow strict rules, and some of them were revealed in a 2018 Reddit post. Taking to the public forum, a guard said there are only certain circumstances in which the Queen's Guards are allowed to break composure, and the woman's actions were one of them.
He said Guards "are allowed to get [people] away by shouting…warnings if they fail to move away or start to act aggressively." For instance, they're known to yell "make way for the Queen's Guard!" at tourists who get in their way.
Other rules they have to follow include keeping a straight face. If a Queen's Guard is caught by a superior smiling or laughing at a tourist's joke or silly antics, it could cost them.
The guardsman said they can be charged "a few days to a week's pay" if they are caught.
According to the Reddit thread, it is usually around ₤200 ($385) if you are seen laughing or smiling.
