Royal guard nearly SHOT the Queen when he saw her strolling round Buckingham Palace at 3am

A former guardsman has revealed how he nearly shot the Queen while she went for a late night walk around the grounds of Buckingham Palace.

The unnamed soldier explained how he spotted a figure in the darkness at 3am before challenging them.

The Times wrote of the extraordinary encounter: “Thinking that he had come across an intruder, he shouted: ‘Who’s that?’ To his surprise it was the Queen.”

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He then apparently blurted out: “Bloody hell, Your Majesty, I nearly shot you.”

The Queen, who is said to like to going for a stroll when she cannot sleep, apparently responded: “That’s quite all right. Next time I’ll ring through beforehand so you don’t have to shoot me.”

The paper said that the incident happened several years ago and the Queen no longer makes late night ventures around the palace grounds.

This is not the first time a member of the Royal Family has been mistaken for an intruder.

In 2013 Prince Andrew was confronted by armed police as he walked in the Buckingham Palace garden.

Buckingham Palace declined to comment on the guardsman’s claims.

Top pic: Getty