The Queen spent the day in Cardiff after the incident
A royal bodyguard accidentally fired two shots
from his gun on the Royal Train while the
Queen was on board.
The Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh were
asleep in another carriage when the royal
protection officer discharged two shots at
approximately 0530 BST on Thursday, Scotland
Yard said.
No-one was injured but an investigation has
been launched by the Metropolitan Police,
Gwent Police and British Transport Police.
A Scotland Yard spokesman said: "Two shots
were fired which caused slight damage to the
interior of the train. A round went into a table
and the other into the carpet."
He added that the officer had not been
suspended but had been taken off firearms
duty pending the results of the investigation.
The train had stopped for the night in a siding
in Gwent on its way to Cardiff, where the
Queen and Prince Philip had several
engagements.
Queen asleep
The veteran firearms officer with the elite
Royalty and Diplomatic Protection Squad.
discharged a round from his 9mm Glock
automatic pistol in the staff dining room of the
train.
According to reports, the second shot was
accidentally fired moments later as he tried to
make the weapon safe.
The Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh were
asleep in a separate compartment two
carriages away from the officer and apparently
slept through the incident.
The officer, who has not been named, was on
his own at the time of the incident.
He was immediately relieved of his duties and
sent back to London pending the outcome of
the inquiry.
A palace source said the Queen was fully
informed about the incident over breakfast but
appeared unruffled by it.
Narrow miss
Both she and Prince Philip continued with their
engagements in Cardiff.
It is not the first time a gun has accidentally
gone off near one of the Royal Family.
In November, a policeman accidentally fired his
Glock automatic pistol while emptying it inside
St James's Palace - the Prince of Wales's home
in London.
The bullet was reported to have narrowly
missed a soldier walking in the palace grounds.
It apparently ricocheted off the floor and
smashed through a ground-floor window.
Six years ago, a Royalty Protection officer shot
himself in the leg during routine target
practice.
~*~
Dowager empress taken ill(Electronic Telegraph)
THE Dowager Empress Nagako of Japan is ill and breathing with the aid of
an oxygen mask, the Imperial Household Agency said yesterday. Her
condition was not critical, it said.
Nagako, 97, married the late Emperor Hirohito in 1924, becoming empress in
1927. She has rarely been seen in public since his death in 1989. Colin Joyce,
Tokyo
~*~
Don't write off the elderly, Prince
says (UK Times)
BY ALEXANDRA FREAN, SOCIAL AFFAIRS
CORRESPONDENT
THE Prince of Wales called last night for a more positive
attitude towards older people and a rethink of society's
expectations of ageing.
In a speech at St James's Palace, he spoke of the need to
"break away from the common belief that as we grow
older our health and well-being must inevitably become
poorer".
Introducing the annual lecture of the health charity The
King's Fund, of which he is president, the Prince said that
public emphasis on the needs of older people often led
society to be blind to the benefits and opportunities that
growing older could bring.
"A minority of frail older people do have very significant
healthcare needs. But the great majority is able to enjoy
active and productive lives and make no greater use of
health services than younger people. Yet to judge from the
media, one might be forgiven for thinking that all older
people are financially, physically and socially dependent
on others."
~*~
Princes paint cultural connection (UK Times)
BY ALAN HAMILTON
TWO Princes opened an exhibition of their paintings
yesterday next to the works of an Old Master. The Prince
of Wales paints soft watercolours of Scottish hills. Prince
Khalid of Saudi Arabia paints bold, bright oils of hawks,
horses and Arab women.
Their work, inaugurating a cultural exchange between
Britain and Saudi Arabia, was on display at the
Banqueting House in Whitehall, Central London. Rubens
painted the ceiling of the Banqueting Hall with images of
James I ascending to heaven as reward for his earthly
works as England's first Stuart monarch. Rubens
surrounded him with rich panels of allegory as "Reason
triumphing over intemperate discord" and "Abundance
bestriding avarice".
The Princes standing beneath the ceiling yesterday were a
touch more modest. The Prince of Wales said: "It is
embarrassing for an amateur artist to be surrounded by
our own inadequate works, especially when being looked
down upon by Rubens."
The exhibition follows a visit by the Prince last November
to the Asir province on the Red Sea, of which Prince
Khalid, a son of the late King Faisal, is governor. It is
mountainous and the only part of Saudi Arabia that sees
snow.
The Prince of Wales has 30 watercolours on display,
including one of his Highgrove home and landscapes of
Scotland, Provence, Greece, Turkey and two of Asir. He
said the light and landscapes in Asir were remarkable and
that he had tried to capture harsh light on mountain ranges.
In the exhibition catalogue, the Prince said: "I have tried in
my painting of the area to capture something of the
grandeur of the scenery, the peaceful atmosphere and the
effect of sunlight on the serried ranks of mountains."
He added yesterday: "I must tell you how much I enjoyed
my visit last year to the Province of Asir. It was the most
wonderful place to paint."
Prince Khalid, 60, an amateur artist with 26 paintings on
display, said: "I believe my fellow artist has captured the
light of the province very successfully." Also on show
were 15 paintings by British artist James Hart Dyke, who
went with the Prince of Wales to Saudi Arabia. He said
Prince Khalid's work reflected the culture of Saudi
Arabia. "He has some very interesting techniques; he is
fluid and bold."
Of Prince Charles, he said: "His strength is that he is
passionate about what he does; some of his best paintings
have been done in Scotland, which he loves." The
exhibition, Painting and Patronage, is free and open
until Wednesday. All proceeds will go to the Prince of
Wales's Art Foundation in Shoreditch, East London.