Buckingham Palace: Knife-carrying would-be intruder held

The Queen was not at home at the time of the incident, police said

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A 44-year-old man who was carrying a knife has been arrested by police after he tried to enter Buckingham Palace, Scotland Yard has said.

It said the man tried to enter via the palace's north centre gate at about 11:30 BST but was stopped immediately.

He was arrested on suspicion of trespassing on a protected site and possessing an offensive weapon and was taken to a London police station

Buckingham Palace said the Queen was not at home at the time.

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Royal security scares

• 1974 - a mentally ill man, Ian Ball, tries to kidnap Princess Anne as she is driven down the Mall. Her bodyguard and three other people are shot
• 1981 - six blank shots are fired from the crowd while the Queen is riding in the Trooping the Colour ceremony
• 1982 - unemployed Michael Fagan breaks into the Queen's private chambers in Buckingham Palace while she is in bed
• 1994 - student David Kang charges at Prince Charles while firing a starting pistol during a ceremony in Sydney
• 2003 - comedian Aaron Barschak manages to get into Prince William's 21st birthday party at Windsor Castle

The police said in a statement that the knife was found after the man was searched, adding that no-one was injured during the incident.

The north centre gate is the one furthest to the right in the commonest view of the palace (looking from the Victoria Memorial). It is the entrance to the palace which is in everyday use.

The incident follows the arrest last month of a man on suspicion of burglary, trespass and criminal damage after police said he had scaled a fence to get into Buckingham Palace.

A second man was arrested outside the palace on suspicion of conspiracy to commit burglary.

Both remain on police bail.Security at the palace has been breached on a number of occasions, most famously by Michael Fagan in 1982 when he broke into the Queen's bedroom.