Threats to Britain's Queen Elizabeth investigated after Christmas security scare

Footage emerges after man arrested and crossbow recovered from Windsor Castle

Queen Elizabeth II records her annual Christmas broadcast in the White Drawing Room in Windsor Castle, England. Photo: PA

British police are investigating a video of apparent threats addressed to Queen Elizabeth II, which emerged after a royal security scare on Christmas Day.

Footage published by The Sun newspaper showed a masked, hooded figure saying they planned to assassinate the monarch.

In a distorted voice, the person spoke of exacting revenge for the Jallianwala Bagh massacre, a British colonial-era atrocity in India in 1919.

It came after a man, 19, was arrested on Christmas Day in the grounds of Windsor Castle, where the Queen was in residence. A crossbow was later recovered from the royal estate.

London’s Metropolitan Police said it was examining the contents of a video after the man’s arrest, but was silent on the question of who appeared in the footage. Buckingham Palace declined to comment.

Police said security processes had been triggered “within moments” of the man entering the Windsor Castle grounds, and said he did not enter any buildings. A specialist operations branch was investigating the security breach.

The man, from the south coast of England, was arrested on suspicion of breach or trespass of a protected site and possession of an offensive weapon. He was placed in medical care under the provisions of a mental health law.

The Queen, 95, spent Christmas Day at Windsor Castle, where her son, Prince Charles, and his wife Camilla attended church with other royals.

While at Windsor, the Queen recorded a televised message to mark her first Christmas since the death of her husband Prince Philip.