As Lownie talked about in his warning about Andrew’s vulnerability to attackers, there was a well-documented kidnapping try on Princess Anne on March 20, 1974.
A lone gunman named Ian Ball ambushed the then-24-year-old Princess and her then-husband, Captain Mark Phillips, as they have been driving again to Buckingham Palace alongside The Mall in London.
Ball blocked their limousine, opened fireplace with a handgun, and demanded a $3million ransom, which he claimed he wished to donate to Britain’s Nationwide Well being Service.
When Ball ordered the Princess to step out of the car, she famously replied: “Not bloody possible!” and remained inside her car, calmly conversing with him whereas contemplating her choices.
Earlier than Ball might pull the Princess from the automobile, a number of males intervened and have been shot, together with her private bodyguard, Inspector James Beaton, her chauffeur, a close-by police officer, and a passing journalist.
A passing pedestrian, former heavyweight boxer Ron Russell, additionally stepped in and punched Ball behind the pinnacle, permitting the Princess to flee out the alternative aspect of the limousine.
As extra police arrived, Ball fled into the close by park however was shortly caught and arrested. Ball was identified with schizophrenia and sentenced to indefinite detention in a psychiatric hospital.
The bystanders and officers who protected the Princess obtained prestigious gallantry medals from Queen Elizabeth II.